Flavia FUSION FL401 Coffee & Espresso Combo

As an avid coffee drinker, I was intrigued when the Flavia Fusion Express Machine and Coffee maker was first introduced. With a multitude individual coffee, tea and indulgence packets to choose from, I always have a choice of what to drink.

- Flavia Fusion -

Positives:

* Simple to use and easy to operate - Just slide open the door, place the coffee packet in the holder, close the door and press the appropriate easy to see (you'll see why this is mentioned when I get to the Deluxe model) selection (Coffee/Tea, Frothy 2-Pack, Choco/Other) and within 30-45 seconds you have a hot beverage to enjoy.

* Easy to change filters.

* Huge selection of beverage choices either available through myflavia.com or other online marketplaces like eBay.

* Adjustable cup height for the dispenser - Press the button on the left of the dispenser and move it up or down to fit anywhere from a styrofoam cup to a travel mug.

* Multiple color choices (available in Black, Ice Blue or Red).

Negatives:

* Beverage tends to splash when brewing, especially onto the inside of the dispenser which is difficult to remove for cleaning. This is especially true when brewing the two-pack options, i.e., Expresso and Creamy topping.

* No hot water button.

* No external water level indicator.

Flavia Fusion Deluxe:

Same positives as above (with the exception of the color choices) plus:

* New sleek design with good looking blue led lights for your beverage options.

* Hot water button.

* External water level indicator.

* Very little splashing when brewing beverages resulting in a machine that doesn't require almost daily cleanings. The option that splashes the most is the hot water button choice. At the end of brewing, a short burst of water will come out. If you allow for this, you can reduce the amount that splashes over the side.

Negatives:

* Currently one color choice - Graphite

* Very hard to read the beverage selection - the selections, i.e. Coffee/Tea are the same color as the top of the machine cut out of the outline of a slightly darker color. Unless you have a well lit room and good eyes it's hard to read the choices. In a darker room, between the bright blue led lights and the hard to read writing, just hope that you remember which selection choice is which.

**One positive with both machines is that if you make the wrong selection and quickly press a different selection choice, it will override the first choice.**

* Higher level of vibration when brewing. The machine vibrates on both machines when brewing, but the deluxe vibrates more and makes more noise.

* Retails for $70 more (169.95 vs 99.95)

So which one should you buy - the Flavia Fusion or the Flavia Fusion Deluxe?

If they fix the difficult to read beverage choices, I would recommend the Deluxe. It comes down to how important the hot water button and external water level indicator are to you. If these are not important and you don't mind taking the extra time to clean the unit more frequently, then the regular Fusion is for you.

For me personally, I think it was worth spending the extra to get the Deluxe model.

My office has a flavia machine. I was originally hesitant to try Flavia, but at the insistance of my boss' boss, we bought one of their original models, designed for small offices. When I saw the variety of beverages that Flavia offers, I fell instantly in love with it. It makes drinking coffee & tea much more exciting since you can brew just one cup at a time. No more fighting over what type of coffee to make for the office today: Irish Creme, Hazelnut or French Vanilla. We can make all of them! Just pop in a packet of whatever coffee you'd like, close the sliding door, press the proper button at the top of the machine, and voila!

A few years later, we rented a newer model, although designed for larger offices, it did make cappuccinos, lattes, and much much more. That was even better. If I could have afforded it, I would have bought one of those. Then I discovered the fusion, and thanks to eBay I found one at a great price! It's sleek design makes you want to show off the machine, not hide in in the corner of your countertop. It's sitting comfortably on my breakfast bar, ready for brewing the best coffee or tea money can buy.

It's very easy to fill the machine, and the coffee or tea is always made to your liking in terms of strength. The only thing I have to say about the Fusion is that it doesn't give you a full mug's worth of beverage, so I always run it twice using the same packet. It doesn't comprimise the strength or flavor of the coffee, and still leaves a bit of room for cream/milk and sugar.

The fact that the dispenser has an adjustable height button is also great to fit whatever type of cup/glass you may have. The machine is also lightweight and easy to fill.

Out of all of the single cup coffee makers out there (and I've tried a few), I'm a big fan of Flavia and the Flavia fusion. I would suggest buying your coffee and tea on eBay if possible, to save you at least $10-20/case. Otherwise you can purchase them over the phone or through the Flavia website, www.flavia.net.

I was so excited to see my flavia machine arrive, I unpacked it, added water, put in filter, primed it, etc. Took only 30 seconds to heat up the water, I had 2 big 16 oz. cups, one for my husband and one for me. Took quite awhile to make 2 cups and both overran the cups. His was a creamy topping irish creme, mine was a latte exotic chai, 10 minutes later we both had a cup of coffee. Also it ran out of water, gotta fill it up again after those 2 big cups. The coffee does have great flavor and you can make exotic drinks. Would be nice when you have company and everyone wants something different, but takes quite a while to mix everything together. I told my husband use the grinder and let's use the big pot in the mornings, as we both drink alot of coffee to wake up in the morning. We will use the fusion for company. We spent lots of money to try this out on ourselves. Bought 3 for our daughters, it will work for them, as they are all in college. Would be perfect for people who only drink one cup. College kids, singles, and people who entertain quite often. The shame in this system is it doesn't have a big enough holding tank for the water, you have to keep refilling it.

I can't imagine life before the Flavia moved in to our home! My husband is VERY particular about his coffee. In the past, we've ONLY used thermal carafes because he doesn't care for the taste of "cooked" coffee. We had the opportunity to try this unit at a friend's home while on vacation. We were both very impressed at how tasty the coffee was. When we returned home, I ordered us a Flavia and also another one for my father for his birthday. He's another tricky one to please with coffee. Fast forward to when our units arrived...which when you deal with a Flavia Ambassador,(look for this in the eBay listing) it is shipped directly from the factory and arrives in about 4 days. I used to drink 2 cups of coffee per day. That was enough to get me moving and keep it that way all day long. Since our Flavia arrived, that has changed...EVERY single cup of coffee is such a wonderful aromatic and tasty treat, it's literally impossible to not indulge.
If you're thinking about the cost per cup, it's on the average of .32. Cross check that with a cup of Starbucks from the mall at $2.75. Flavia is better tasting. Also factor in the wasted coffee you dump from the pot that was made.
Have you had company over and 1 person in the group asks if you have decaf? No more brewing a second pot of older coffee for your guest...there are decaf packets available. They also have several different teas available. We've tried everything the company has to offer...even the kids like the hot chocolate.
The only drawback is the storage of the coffee packets. They come on rails of 20 packets per rail. A very clever design. I solved the problem of having boxes on my pantry shelves by using the peg board wall that was already in my pantry. I bought single 3" straight hook pegs from the hardware store and now have all of my selections neatly hanging where I can see all of my choices. I have a decorative box on the counter with a nice variety of selections (why have the same coffee 2 times in a row?????) for immediate use. If you search around the web, you will find that the original Flavia site isn't the least expensive for coffee packet purchases. I see in the review rules for this comment sheet I can't give you the outside link for the less expensive site. Just do a google search for Flavia coffee and look for 4-mega-vending. The order arrives in 3 days! They also sell a rotating unit that holds 6 rails of coffee packets. I haven't bought one yet. I rather like my pretty box on the counter.
If you're thinking about purchasing one of these units, I can say based on our EXTENSIVE (oh the joy!) use, that you would be very pleased with your purchase. I've already had 3 friends purchase their own Flavia's after trying ours!
One last comment to add comes from my dad. He said after his first week of ownership, that the only problem with this coffee maker (at this point, my heart skipped a beat because this was his birthday present!) is that every cup of coffee is so darn good. This comes from a man who believed the microwave was invented to reheat coffee. He is completely spoiled now and is truly enjoying it. My brothers tease him that his coffee cost is going to reach $30.00 per month. It's no surprise that when my brothers visit, they have to put their .32 on the counter before Dad will make them a cup of coffee! Ha ha!
Enjoy!

My husband and I used a different type of Flavia Coffee Maker at a bed and breakfast back in September. I am not a coffee drinker, so the package that makes one cup at a time is perfect for him. I ordered the Fusion for his Christmas gift this year. He loves it!!!! I believe Cocoa with Milky Way Swirl is his favorite.

I bought the machine from e-bay because it was the best price. I had searched several websites, and not one could beat that price.