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A coffee maker for $11,000? Will it save Starbucks?
Starbucks thinks so: they bought the company. The machine, the Clover, was developed by a group of Stanford grads and is the ultimate in tweakable coffee makers. The description in the article of how two minor tweaks: increasing temperature from 205 to 207f and adding 6 grams of beans totally changed the taste of the cup, was impressive. But that is cup -- singular. One cup at a time. For $11,000.
Starbucks has other problems, such as having to order so many tons of coffee that it's not possible to get it distributed before it gets a little stale, and it's questionable as to how rapidly these machines can be produced. It's unquestionable that it's an amazing machine, but it's like a Stratocaster or a Stradivarius, it is going to depend upon the skill of the operator -- also described in the article.
http://www.wired.com/gadgets/miscellaneous/magazine/16-08/mf_clover?currentPage=all
Starbucks has other problems, such as having to order so many tons of coffee that it's not possible to get it distributed before it gets a little stale, and it's questionable as to how rapidly these machines can be produced. It's unquestionable that it's an amazing machine, but it's like a Stratocaster or a Stradivarius, it is going to depend upon the skill of the operator -- also described in the article.
http://www.wired.com/gadgets/miscellaneous/magazine/16-08/mf_clover?currentPage=all