CR’s take: The Keurig K-Café Special Edition Coffee, Latte & Cappuccino Maker K84 uses K-Cup pods to brew coffee, lattes, and cappuccinos. It can even brew iced lattes and iced cappuccinos, but it lacks a mode for making traditional iced coffee. It’s admirably consistent in terms of brew size and temperature. It takes longer than the fastest models to heat up for the first cup, earning only a Good rating in that test, but does better with subsequent cups. In addition to its built-in milk frother, this model comes with a strong-brew setting, an auto-shutoff feature, a height-adjustable drip tray, and a removable water reservoir. But owners surveyed by CR give Keurig coffee makers below-average marks for reliability.

CR’s take: If you like the Keurig K-Café’s features but are looking for something at a lower price, consider the Keurig K-Latte Single Serve K-36. While it isn’t as versatile as the K-Café, it can still brew hot coffee as well as lattes, thanks to its built-in milk frother. It performs almost identically to the K-Café in our tests but does better in our first-cup speed evaluation, where it receives a Very Good rating. It’s equipped with an auto-shutoff, a height-adjustable drip tray, and a removable water reservoir.

CR’s take: The Mr. Coffee Occasions Coffee and Espresso System 2092271 is a variant of the CR-tested (and recently discontinued) Mr. Coffee Occasions BVMC-O-CT. This Mr. Coffee is a combination coffee and espresso machine with a twist: It can brew coffee from either fresh grounds or Keurig K-Cup pods. This model also features a built-in milk frother, allowing you to make lattes and cappuccinos. It earns a Very Good rating for brew performance in CR’s tests. The appliance comes with a thermal carafe, a removable water reservoir and drip tray, a permanent filter, and automatic shutoff.

CR’s take: If you’re a fan of Nespresso’s proprietary coffee capsules, you might want to upgrade your Nespresso brewer to the DeLonghi Nespresso Lattissima One Espresso Maker EN500BW/W. Using Nespresso OriginalLine capsules, it can brew coffee and espresso as well as lattes and cappuccinos using a built-in milk frother and tank that dispenses milk foam right into your cup. This appliance receives Excellent ratings for brewing speed and size consistency in our lab tests, and Nespresso pod machines as a group get top marks for owner satisfaction and reliability in CR’s members survey.

CR’s take: A more affordable take on Ninja’s Coffee Bar brewers, the Ninja Specialty CM401 is a terrific all-in-one machine, capable of brewing hot and iced coffee, lattes, macchiatos, and other specialty brews. In our lab tests it receives an Excellent rating for brew performance, and its glass carafe handles with ease. This model is also loaded with features, including an over-ice brew mode for iced coffee, a built-in milk frother, brew-strength control, and six brew sizes for everything from travel mugs to full carafes, making it one of the most versatile coffee makers we’ve tested.

CR’s take: Ninja recently one-upped its Coffee Bar models with this Ninja Hot and Cold Brewed System CP307. The new model adds the ability to brew tea and cold-brew coffee. (Note that it makes cold brew in about 15 minutes, but our testers found it comes out lukewarm, not cold.) Its brew performance isn’t as good as the Ninja Specialty CM401, but its thermal carafe handles just as well. Bottom line: If you want the extras of cold brew and tea brewing, go for this machine. If not, you’ll get everything you need in the slightly lower-priced Ninja Specialty CM401.