Tassimo T-Discs vs Regular Coffee Pods
Posted: Tuesday, April 20, 2010
by Anthony Davis
At first blush, going by the title, you're probably assuming that I'm going to dissuade folks from buying the Tassimo Brewer in favor of a normal coffee pod brewer. Nothing could be further from the truth. The concept of a bar-coded single serve coffee system that makes fairly complicated concoctions all on its own is, to be honest, amazing, and standard coffee pods can't hope to compare to that level of sophistication. However, Tassimo Brewers do have one huge short-coming, and that is that you cannot use anything other than T-Discs with them.
This is not as big a problem with other single serve coffee makers and systems as you might would think. Although it's not nearly as simple as using the coffee pods that were intended for them, you can find adapters and converters that will convert almost every other format to another. There are usually problems to be overcome, and, because there's very little standardization between the various manufacturers, things that are advertised to be "universal" may or may not be. However, these are problems can be overcome simply by trial and error. If something doesn't work with one coffee pod, you can always try a different brand, for instance.
What Makes It So Much Worse For The Tassimo System?
The problem lies within the shape of T-Discs. You can tell just by looking at them why you can't just swap them out with anything else. Add to that the bar-coding system, which means that it there's any modification to the T-Disc, the method of brewing it will no longer be accurate. There are those who have tried to refill used T-Discs, but they're not re-sealable, and they have to be sealed for the brewer to be able to build up the required pressure to brew.
Why Not Just Use T-Discs?
There are a variety of reasons that one may not want to use T-Discs. Price, for one. Tassimo T-Discs are not cheap, especially if your only desire is a simple cup of coffee. There's also availability. Many people around the world still live in rural areas, and their local grocery store may or may not stock such things. There's also the principal of the matter. Many people do not like buying a product that force them to continue buying from that same company if they want to operate the original product. To some, that feels like a scam. To be fair, there are quite a few different brand names that make T-Discs, but you can be rest assured that Bosch, makers of Tassimo, got their cut.
What If I Already Have A Tassimo Brewer?
If you've already spent your money on a Tassimo, and are trying to find other options, you're mostly out of luck. Hopefully you're reading this before you put big money down on a brewer that uses something you can't afford. If this is not the case, you'd probably be best off biting the bullet and buying a cheap regular coffee maker or pod coffee brewer and saving your Tassimo for special stuff. Regular coffee pods aren't terribly pricey, and they are usually easy to find, both locally and online.
Check out Great Coffee Pods for more information on both coffee pods and other types of single serve coffee.
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