Saturday, 27 March 2010

Binding Machine


I purchased this binder because almost everything comes with a PDF file and not a hardcopy manual. I am also finding that I have to rebind books that I have purchased because they are falling apart or coming apart as I turn the pages. This is a solid piece of equipment. It does a beautiful, neat clean job of binding. I would recommend it to anyone who has a lot of paperwork that needs to be in book form or in one place. I used to take my paperwork out to have it bound. Doing it at home is immediate. I read the reviews on a number of machines and had second thoughts about purchasing a cheaper more flimsy model. This is going to be around a very long time. I am very happy with this purchase. GBC CombBind C20 Binding System, 20 Sheet Punch Capacity, 320 Sheet Binding Capacity, Black (7706172)

Purchased this unit to replace the smaller C12 unit. Much better in my opinion. The major difference, other than the increased cost, is that the paper is inserted into the punching slot in a vertical position instead of the horizontal position of the C12. This makes a huge difference. The paper tended to crease on the C12 when trying to slide in more than 5 sheets. Not an issue on the C20. The vertical positioning uses gravity and is easier to align the sheets and "tap" then even before punching. The unit is quite heavy for it's size and appears to be very well made. Despite it's almost 2x cost over the C12, I feel it's well worth the added cost. It only takes a couple of incorrectly punched documents to realize this is a much better system. I expect to punch about 50 documents ranging from 20 to 100 pages per month with this machine.

Prior to this, I had the Ibico (small) system for years and it worked well. But since i have had this one, I am really pleased with it. I can bind more pages, faster than my old machine and I can use larger combs. On my old one, 3/4" and above I had to bind by hand.

I searched many different sites for this quality product. Amazon had the best price! I always appreciate their quick response and assistance in locating items such as this. Unfortunately, this was a Christmas gift for our local school, which has been closed so many days since that time due to the weather, there evidently has not been an opportunity to try it out and give me feedback on it's performance.'


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Binding Machine Binding Machine Binding Machine

Home Office - printer cable, usb


Psst... A little secret - part # F3U133-06 is now a Belkin Hi-Speed USB (USB 2.0) cable and is backwards compatible with USB 1.x devices. This makes the price that Amazon.com offers even more amazing (thanks Amazon)! Purchase this for most USB devices (1.x or 2.0) and if you ever upgrade to a 2.0 device later you won't have to buy an additional cable. You also get the exceptional quality of a Belkin product, so you know it will work the first time. Belkin F3U133-06 Pro Series Hi-Speed USB Cable (Six-Feet)

Best Buy wants (dollar amount) plus tax for this exact cable. The ONLY difference in the Belkin USB cable at the Best Buy store is the "24K gold-plated connectors and contacts for optimum conductivity" which I assure you will NOT be measurable or noticeable with a six foot USB cable anyway. They have consumers at their mercy and know that people buying a printer or other USB device need that cable today and don't want to wait to order it by mail.That said, thank God for Amazon.com and Amazon's customer reviews!! I have saved a bundle and avoided a LOT of frustration due to reader's valuable comments on products rather than relying on the more biased commercial reviews.

I had to buy a printer cable for my Epson 890. When I priced around, this could not be beat. WILL NOT WORK WITH PARALLEL PORT ONLY COMPUTERS For the person that had a previous review, this is a cable that will only work on a printer that has a USB outlet. This is not for printers that are strictly parallel port hook ups. ENDS FOR PRINTER AND COMPUTER DIFFERENT The USB end that is for the printer if you look in the photo, is the small end to the left. It is only about 3/16" wide and shorter than that. The USB end for the computer is the big end to the right in the picture(about 3/8" wide and shorter than that). MANY USB PRINTERS HAVE BOTH USB AND PARALLEL PORT CONNECTIONS Many USB printers have both a parallel port cable connection as well. That is one of those huge flat type ones (roughly 2" wide). This may sound simple for all you computer experts out there, but with the plentitude of this type of cable or that, it can get very confusing.Great buy.

The product description doesn't state this, but this is a USB 2.0 cable meaning you get access to all the extra speed USB 2.0 offers. It's also backward compatible with USB 1.0. The cable is dark grey (it matches the 2004 model Dells nicely), very sturdy, and has a great solid connection when plugged in. The price is low, the quality is not. This is an excellent value.

I do not really know what to say about this item except that it is a cable. Yep it is!!! :o)However, when I bought my printer, I didn't know the USB cable didn't come with it (Mister salesperson at Sears didn't feel obligated to tell me I guess!!), so I had to find one. After looking around I found out that Belkin was the most famous and reliable brand for computer cables, and others... Brand doesn't make a big difference for me usually, but as far as electronics are concerned I want to be able to get the best, so I went for Belkin... The Belkin website didn't really offer the best price (I wouldn't have thought so!!). However, Amazon did!!I've had the cable for about 2 months... I actually forgot about it because I never had any problems with it. The connection between the printer and my computer was done right away, without ANY problems.I would definitely go for Belkin again if I needed to.

Okay, since most of the printers don't come with cables any longer, you always need to purchase one separately. A "regular" printer cable can cost around $20 and it can be difficult to plug and unplug correctly without breaking one or more of those tiny prongs. So a USB cable is a great solution. It costs less and it's easy to plug and unplug, especially if your computer has front-mounted USB ports. I bought this one for my new HP LaserJet 1012 Printer and it works just fine. For this price, it's a great bargain.

This is a good USB cable. It is compatible with both USB 1.0 and 2.0 ports. It is long enough to give great flexibility with arraging whatever it needs to be connected to. The price is extremely good (even though amazon.com changes it every now and then) for this cable. It is way more expensive in stores. And getting a Belkin product for such a low price is excellent. This is totally worth the money, and is a great buy if you need a USB cable.

ok i bought this cable a month before i bought my new Canon S820 printer. I just got the printer today but need to let it sit for a day before opening it because the 7 degree temp. when ever you buy computer & componets they should be at room temputure before using. Now belkin is a well respected name in computer cables so just price counted. One important fact others failed to point out is that this cable is UBS 2.0 - 1.0 ready. Make sure anything USB you buy from cable to hubs are usb 2.0 because all new computers are usb 2.0. A USB 2.0 cable & hub can be used on USB 1.0-1.1 but not vice versia. YOu can't use a USB 1.0 cable to hook up to a USB 2.0 device. The speed is much different.

I had tried a cheaper cable for my UBS connection but it didn't work for me so I thought I'd give this one a try. I found this brand to work especially well for me. I bought a new printer to use exclusively for photos and I still wanted to use my other printer for everything else. I needed a UBS cable and this one worked perfectly. I would recommend it for anyone needing a UBS connection.

This is an exceptional buy for under seven dollars! (this currently retails between $20 - $25 at local electronic stores) Although you can buy generic for a few dollars cheaper, you are guaranteed quality and a lifetime warranty through Belkin.Now to the product - This is a 6' USB 2.0 (A plug/B plug) device cable. It is both Windows and Macintosh compatible. I found 6' to be an adequate length for the reach from the device(e.g. printer, scanner, etc) to the back of the computer/hub. They do have longer cables available though. Note that your device must have USB support(as most now do). However, the device doesn't have to be USB2.0 as the cable is backward compatible. - Printer Cable - Belkin - Usb - Cable'


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Home Office - printer cable, usb usb Home Office - printer cable, usb

10 Port Usb Hub - usb, usb hub


I have been needing a USB hub for a very long time. So many of my devices use the USB ports that I have to constantly plug and unplug them. I needed a hub, but I was worried about them having enough juice to power everything. No need to worry. This Plugable USB hub can be plugged into an outlet, and I can have all the power I need. So far, so good.



This unit can also be powered exclusively by the computer's USB port, so that it can be used without being plugged in. If you don't have many devices demanding power through the USB connection, this is a nice option and makes the unit more portable.



There are six hubs in the front and four in the back (two of which swivel upwards). I no longer have trouble finding an available USB port. I can keep everything plugged in and they all work as expected. I am happy with this purchase.



____________________________



UPDATE: I've had this hub for a month and the ports on the front side suddenly died. I can still use the ports on the backside. I suspect it's static electricity, since I reached in to handle it and a powerful shock emanated from my finger. I've contacted the manufacturer and will update here with their response.



_____________________________



2ND UPDATE: Warranty service was nearly instantaneous. I emailed them on a weekend and did not expect a response. Not only did I get a response, but they shipped a replacement right away. Talk about service! My new unit is now up and running. I will update again, if necessary.



____________________________



3Rd UPDATE: It's been six months since my initial review. My replacement hub is still working well. Plugable Technologies contacted me out of the blue just to check in with me on how things are going with my hub. Really and truly amazing customer service. For a product that initially gave me problems, I would not normally give five stars. I will make an exception in this case and will upgrade it today. The company obviously stands behind it's product and goes 110% out of its way to ensure satisfaction. I couldn't be happier. Plugable USB 2.0 10 Port Hub (with Power Adapter)

I must say, I have two of these USB Hubs by Plugable. I liked the first one so much I got another.

I have been through 5 hubs this year trying to find one that will power my external hard drive and charge my iPhone. It doesn't sound like too much to ask. Well, I finally found what I was looking for in this USB hub.



First the Fit and Finish. Everything looks good on this hub. From the piano black finish to the tasteful, blue, glowing bar and sweet blue light coming out of the ports. It's just enough light to let you find the ports in the dark.



There are 8 fixed ports on this hub and two ports that swivel out. There are 6 fixed ports on one side and 4 ports on the other. The side with 4 has the two swivel ports. From the logo and text printed on the unit, the swivel side is the top and the 6 come out the bottom. I have turned mine vertical and the ports come out the sides. The swivel ports are SO HANDY! I like the fact they put all the ports on just two sides. I dislike the hubs that have ports on 4 sides. Two sides is handy, four is crazy because you have cables coming out of all sides. All the ports are usable on this hub.



I mounted one unit to the wall behind my laptop in my shop. Some 3M Scotch 4010 Heavy Duty Clear Mounting Tape worked well. The other unit is mounted, using the same tape, by my desktop computer in the house.3M Scotch 4010 Heavy Duty Clear Mounting Tape



All in all, I appreciate that this USB hub just works. If you need more power and more ports, this is it. I have been looking at USB hubs since they came out with USB 1. I know quality when I see it and I really like the quality of this USB hub.

This is the best full-powered USB hub I've found anywhere. Retail stores stock USB hubs with only four or five ports, and even then, most of the hubs I tried have problems powering all the ports, all the time. This ten port hub is a great solution to having many USB devices that need to be connected at the same time. This hub has fully powered ports, which means that it charges attached devices, cell phones, iPods, and other USB charged devices, even when the computer it's connect to is not powered on.

As a computer engineer with many, many USB peripherals I could not be happier with this hub. This hub provides very easy access to 10 ports that can sit right there on your desk- no more getting up and searching for a free rear port (if your front ports are already full of course). It works very well without the power supply when devices connected to it are self powered (printers, external HDDs, etc), but don't expect to be able to run all of your USB powered devices (iPods for example) from this hub without it being plugged in to its own outlet. The glowing blue light on top is a very nice aesthetic which also illuminates the inside of the ports (except the two pivoting ports) providing for easy visibility in the dark. I highly recommend this hub.

This is a very useful USB hub. It can function either actively or passively powered. It has ten ports (six on the front, four on the back), more than most. Two of the back ports flip up (at up to a 90° angle) making it easier to plug in over-sized USB keys, etc.



The finish is a glossy black (which is sort of a negative as it shows dust and fingerprints easily) but it looks really nice if you keep it clean. It measures 6"W x 3"D x 3/4"H and has rubber feet to prevent it from slip-sliding around on your desk. There is a thin blue LED light which runs most of the width of the product; but, this light serves no useful purpose (other than showing the device is powered).



My major nitpick with the item is the distribution of the ports: I prefer it to be the reverse (four on the front, six on the back), because I have more than four USB devices I keep permanently plugged in and it would be more convenient to have these on the back where they are out of the way. But, this is a matter of preference.



Upon receipt, I tested it by plugging in three keys, three external hard drives, a keyboard, mouse, LCD display (which has four USB ports of its own), and a laser printer; I then initiated a long copy operation on each of the six attached storage devices. The hub got barely warm and I noticed no slowdown on the file transfer operations compared to plugging in these same devices into the USB ports on the PC.



I've also charged my Sony Walkman and my wife's Sansa Clip with it and they both charged in a similar time compared to plugged into the PC's USB ports.



So, it works well, looks good, and is reasonably priced (compared to the alternatives, some of which cost considerably more than the $29 I paid for the Plugable). If you need a USB hub, give this one serious consideration. - Usb - 10 Port Usb Hub - Powered Hub - Usb Hub'


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10 Port Usb Hub - usb, usb hub powered hub 10 Port Usb Hub - usb, usb hub

Self-propelled - gas-powered


After owning 3 Lawn Boy's and Sears Craftsman mowers,I have to say that this is by far the best mower I have owned in years. My previous mower was/is a lawn boy 2 stroke. I liked it, but it was very smelly and frequently broken. Luckily, it was easy to repair. I just got tired of constantly having to fix something, so I did some research and decided on this unit. The first time I used it I was expecting to have to empty the grass bag frequently as with my lawn boy, but it shredded the clipping so fine it seemed like the bag would never get full. I used to empty the bag on my lawn boy many times just doing the back yard, but with this machine I only had to empty it 2 times.

If your looking for a new mower, I would highly recommend any of the super recycler mowers.

They also come with a simple yet ingenious wash out connection. just connect a hose to the fitting, turn on the water, and start the motor. No more grass build up under the deck. Toro Super Recycler Self-Propelled Mower Briggs & Stratton 7 TP (21") #20092

I have a small landscaping company, and have used many mowers over the years. I have to say this is a wet lawn bagging dream machine, but the bag falls off at any bump due to the fact the bag hanger only holds on by maybe a 1/4 of an inch on each side, no reason they couldn't have added an additional 1/4 inch of steel to seat the bag better. The wheels are set to far back to push the mower over any inclines or up stairs easily. It also seems to have resistance as you try to push it while it's not running. Over all this is the best mower I have found this year unfortunetly, but given a choice I'd take a 2008-2009 Lawnboy any day of the week hands down. I wish the mower companies would start testing their own products and quit getting rid of the winners only to replace them with inferior products.

Consumer Reports rates it 2nd after a much more expensive Honda, but why pay $99.99 MORE than List Price?? makes NO sense whatsoever.

Keep looking, someone must have this on sale as we near the end of Summer.

I bought this mower and the engine ran great for about 5 months. Now I cant keep it working its in and out of repair shop. The entire mower is a piece of crap! If your grass is the slightest bit wet will jam up and not fill the bag. The mower pumps grass into the battery compartment. Oh yes that electric start lasted about 6 weeks! Toro what happened to you? I also bought a toro weed eater and that is a piece of junk also. What ever you do save your money and stay away from Toro.

JUST a terrible mower, i payed 360$ from a dealer after discounts.The first one i got wouldnt start half the time and would smoke alot,so i returned it.I exchanged it for another because i though i had a lemon.Well with my new one i started haveing problems with the rear wheels locking up when pulling back on it so i took it to the dealer and they adjusted the personal pace.Then last week both of my rear tires got flat spots in them so i took it back again and they took a whole week to put 2 tires on it.So now this week the tires got flat spots in them again so back to the dealer i go this week ! also the motor miss fires half of the time makeing a popping noise out of the muffler and they said that its just the design of it and to bad.Im going to get rid of it after they replace the tires and probly buy a honda or a sears craftsman professional.I REALY REALY REALY wanted to love this mower, its soooooo light and mulches grass like a dream.But toro has just lost their quality in the past 5 years.

This mower performed very well the first time out even though the conditions were not perfect. The clean-out feature is truly an asset for clearing debris under the mower deck. Although the mower was originally received in a damaged condition (not sure if it was defective prior to shipment or damaged during shipment) the company accepted a return and shipped a replacement. - Gas-powered'


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Self-propelled - gas-powered gas-powered Self-propelled - gas-powered

Bike Blinky Safety 1-led Bicycle Light S... - bike light, bicycle lights


Got these very quickly and they worked right away, you get multiple light modes and a set of 2 lights: white and red. Easy to use--wrap them around the bike bars or you can even wear them or hang them somewhere. These are similar to the Knog lights, but once I read the name: Beam Bugs and saw the double eye feature, I was sold. I also read other reviews. Comes with batteries inserted already with a plastic tag to keep it fresh from contact before usage. Has a soft body. Very cute, would buy again for other purposes, like a flashlight for my bag. Beam Bugs Head Light/Tail Light Instant Lighting System

What I love about these lights is how small and flexible they are so you can easily put them on and take them off and keep them in your pocket or purse so no one steals them when you've got your bike locked up. The 3 settings are nice, and the light is bright, though doesn't spread over very much area, but it's good enough. Because they're really bright, they definitely make you seen to cars and stuff.

The headlights work, but the taillights don't. A risky investment at this price. I wouldn't recommend buying this online, if it was in store, then it would have an easy return. Online returns are a hassle...Maybe you won't be as unlucky as I am. I would rather pay 2 dollars more and invest in planet bike headlight/taillight set for $16. - Bike Light - Bicycle Lights - Bicycle Light - Led Lights'


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Bike Blinky Safety 1-led Bicycle Light S... - bike light, bicycle lights bicycle lights Bike Blinky Safety 1-led Bicycle Light S... - bike light, bicycle lights

Battery Charger


I own a Ryobi 12-Volt cordless hand drill, whose battery charger died. Finding that Home Depot no longer carries any 12-V products (they've powered up to 18-V on everything), I checked Amazon and found what I thought was correct. The description stated that it charged ALL Ryobi 12-V batteries. Well, it doesn't. The probe end of the old batteries is a different shape than this charger. Had to return the charger (full refund) but then had to purchase a new drill ($79) and chuck the old one, which also had a great hand vac with it, but without a chargeable battery, it's useless. Ryobi 140295003 12-Volt Battery Charger

Although the status indicator on this charger never changes to "done", it may be due to the old batteries I am using. However, it does charge the batteries every time and for the price, it works flawlessly. I would recommend this charger to anyone who needs a replacement.

Although this is the product I wanted & it is a good product - I could unfortunately not use it! My husband requested the Ryobi charger but did not take into consideration that living in Australia we cannot use the same electrical products as in the USA! USA uses 110v & Australia 240v'


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Battery Charger Battery Charger Battery Charger

12 Cup Coffee Maker - programmable, coffeemaker


Bought this model at walmart for [...] as I had a gift card for there. Have used daily for about 6 weeks - usu. make about 8 cups. There have been no issues and the coffee tastes good for this economy model. Pause-n-serve works fine...can occasionly drip as all these models do when using that feature. Just keep a small napkin to wipe it off burner before setting carafe back on it. If you pull the carafe between "burps" (when the coffee actually drips through), you can virtually eliminate or minimze the drip. Easy to clean, the 2/hr shutoff works fine, and the timed brew feature works fine (as long as power doesn't go off over night). Overall it was a great buy in my opinion. The last Mr. Coffee I had (similiar unit) lasted 15 years...I can only hope this one lasts half that long. I even kept and use the same gold filter unit from the old one & it works fine on this model.



NOTE: Save the grounds and use on houseplants, in garden, and on small trees. Keeps insects away esp ants. The trees/plants absorbed the caffeine which doesn't hurt them - the insects can't tolerate it. I've been doing this for 20 years and works great. Mr. Coffee CGX23 12-Cup Programmable Coffeemaker, Black

I was very excited when I first bought this coffeemaker five weeks ago. It had everything I wanted in a coffeemaker. It was very stylish, convenient, easy to use, did not drip when pouring, was programmable, made a good cup of coffee, had cord storage, wasn't too large, had automatic shut-off after 2 hrs., etc. Too bad it stopped working after only 5 weeks of light use. I used it 3 to 4 times a week for one pot at a time. All of the sudden, the water wouldn't come through. I tried cleaning it as recommended, but to no avail. All it did was sputter and steam up my whole kitchen. Maybe I got a dud, but I returned it to Walmart and bought a different brand. Too bad, since I had such high hopes for this one.

So far this has been a wonderful product. We have had it about five weeks and use it five times a week. It is easy to use, makes great,hot coffee and looks good on the counter.



Our previous coffee maker was a Mr. Coffee which lasted about fifteen years. We looked at and researched many brands. For the price and given the service that we got from the previous Mr. coffee maker we went with this model.



The pot is easy to pour from with no drips. There are no grounds in the coffee. There is an occasional drip onto the hot plate when you remove the pot, but not every time. It is easy to fill with water and coffee. The brewing time for nine cups is about fourteen minutes. There is a gurgling sound toward the end of the brewing cycle but it is not loud. We are well pleased with our purchase.

I just purchased at least my third coffee maker in this same style and features. The first two were black, while my new one is white. This coffee maker is very easy to use and very reliable. I have never had any problems, in terms of making coffee.



I did have a problem with the previous one as the heating area got worn away in a small spot and stained the coffee pot. Didn't effect the coffee, but didn't look good.

The clock on my coffee maker has reset itself, jumping one or two hours, without anyone having touched it. This makes it impossible to use the delay brew function with confidence. This is a shame because the coffee maker is otherwise well designed.

This coffee maker is great! The only (and I mean only) small issue I've had so far is that when the steam comes up to pour through the grounds, the grounds tend to splash outside of the filter and they get into the coffee itself. I say this is a minor issue because I used to drink Turkish style coffee a lot so I really don't care if there are grounds in my brew, but it does cause me to give it 4 of 5 stars because the coffee maker isn't *supposed* to do this. The problem could be that I grind beans myself and I could be grinding them too fine... bigger grounds probably don't splash around. It's worth buying the coffee maker, I've been happy with it, otherwise!

The Good:

I liked this pot because it was simple and had the basic essential functions - Simple to use, programmable, auto shut-off, good capacity, and no useless frills. From the moment I set it up I was pleased with its performance and ease of use.

The Bad:

Like other reviewers have mentioned, this coffee maker is not long for this world. After 4 short months of use, the pump failed. The coffee maker now spurts, chokes, and cries its way through each pot. And the surges of water into the basket will often displace the filter, meaning grounds can end up anywhere.



I am a fan of simple devices because simple devices usually have less complexity, and therefore, fewer failure modes. I had high hopes this would be one of those products. But alas, it failed anyway.



Note: The failure is not due to high levels of deposits in my water. My previous coffee maker endured more than 5 years of my tap water, and probably would have gone on longer, had I not broken it. And my clothes iron has endured the same 5 years of tap water, and it still performs admirably.



Be careful with this pot; it gets tired too quickly.

Nothing fancy but it does the job and the coffee tastes good so who cares? At home I have a fancy cuisinart coffee maker that makes amazing coffee, but costs triple what this one costs. This one is for work and it's just fine for the job.



Coffee is a little weaker than I'd like but I make up for that by adding more coffee/less water than what the instructions call for.



My only minor quibble is that when I pour from the carafe, it dribbles if I don't pour very carefully, making a mess on the counter.

This coffeemaker brews weak coffee with 4 scoops of Folgers for the pot. With 5 scoops, it overflowed the filter, and the coffee still isn't as strong as I like.



This is too bad, because otherwise this is an attractive, inexpensive coffeemaker with a lot to like about it. I especially like the carafe design, which is easy to handle when full and doesn't spill easily when poured fast.



My house is at 6200' elevation, and water boils at about 201°F. Consequently, all coffeemakers tend to produce hot water faster than at sea level. I suspect this is the root cause of the weak coffee and the filter overflow. However, the coffee maker I'm replacing, an old B&D Spacemaker (RIP), brewed 12 cups of robust coffee with 4 scoops of coffee.



A few other relatively minor quibbles:

1. To fill it with water, you have to lift the lid, which is the entire top of the coffeemaker and hinged in the back. This requires more clearance than available under a typical kitchen cabinet, so you have to slide the unit out from under the cabinet.

2. There are two holes in the back of the water tank to prevent overfilling. However, when the unit is filled completely (to the 12-cup mark, not over), the water level is about 1/4" below these holes. When you slide the unit back under the cabinet with a full tank, it's very easy to slosh the water and have it come out the holes. A bit of duck tape would fix this, however.

3. The carafe may be a bit harder than average to clean because of a small opening at the top and sharp angles in the glass at the bottom. However, with a little strategy and the right brush, this shouldn't be a problem. - Coffeemaker - Mr Coffee - 12 Cup Coffee Maker - Programmable'


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12 Cup Coffee Maker - programmable, coffeemaker programmable 12 Cup Coffee Maker - programmable, coffeemaker