Black & Decker 12-Cup Programmable Coffeemaker

I put this 12‑cup Black & Decker through its paces as my daily brewer for several weeks, from early‑morning auto brews to weekend pots for guests. It’s a straightforward, family‑sized drip machine with a few convenience features that, when used well, make weekday coffee a lot easier.

Design, footprint, and first impressions

The CM4000S has a compact footprint—about 7 by 7 inches at the base and 13.5 inches tall—so it tucks under upper cabinets without hogging counter space. At 2.1 pounds, it’s surprisingly light. That’s great for moving it around, but it also means you’ll want to push it back against a wall so it doesn’t slide when you pull the carafe out. The silver-and-black finish with stainless accents looks tidy and neutral in most kitchens.

The 12‑cup Duralife glass carafe is classic drip‑maker fare. “12 cups” here means 5‑ounce coffee cups, not big mugs. In practical terms, a full pot yields about five to six typical mugs. The handle is comfortable, and the spout pours cleanly when you’re deliberate; yank too quickly and you’ll get a stray drip.

Cord management is a small but welcome touch. The cord stores neatly so you can keep the counter uncluttered and only pull out as much length as you need.

Setup and controls

Out of the box, setup took only a few minutes: flush a pot of water, pop in a standard basket‑style paper filter, and you’re ready. The removable brew basket lifts out for easy loading and cleaning.

Controls are straightforward once you learn the sequence. You get:
- A 24‑hour programmable timer for auto brew
- A Fast Brew mode
- An adjustable brew strength selector
- A keep‑warm function that runs for about two hours
- An auto‑clean cycle

Programming the auto brew is not hard, but it’s not one‑button simple either. You set the clock, set the brew time, then arm the schedule. After a couple of mornings, it became muscle memory for me, but the first time through involves more button presses than you might expect.

Day‑to‑day usability

For weekday mornings, the timer is the hero feature. I loaded the filter and water at night, set the start time, and woke up to coffee ready to pour. The keep‑warm plate holds temperature well for about two hours; after that, the machine shuts off. Flavor stays acceptable for the first hour; by 90 minutes, the hot plate starts to flatten the brighter notes—standard behavior for glass‑carafe brewers.

The Sneak‑A‑Cup pause‑and‑pour works as advertised. You can remove the carafe mid‑brew, pour a cup, and slide it back in without a mess. If you linger too long, the basket will fill and drip, but quick pours didn’t leave me scrambling for paper towels.

One minor quirk I saw: if I pulled the carafe long after brewing—say 30 to 45 minutes—a small run of clear condensation sometimes escaped from the area above the carafe lip. It’s not coffee; it’s condensed steam that collects under the lid. It wasn’t a puddle, but I learned to keep a cloth nearby just in case.

Brewing performance and taste

At its core, this is a standard drip brewer with even, predictable results when you use a consistent grind and dose. With a medium grind and proper ratio (a good starting point is roughly 1 to 2 tablespoons per 5‑ounce cup), I got balanced, café‑style coffee that was neither overly bitter nor weak.

The brew strength selector makes a noticeable, if not dramatic, difference. The “strong” setting lengthens contact time and yields a fuller body. I preferred it for smaller batches (four to six “cups”). For a full pot, the standard setting was fine.

Water dispersion over the grounds is adequate for this price tier. If your grind is too coarse or you use too little coffee, you may see light channeling and thinner cups. Keeping the bed level in the basket, using a medium grind, and avoiding under‑dosing improved consistency. This isn’t a specialty‑grade showerhead, but with decent beans and good ratios, it produces a solid daily cup.

Speed and Fast Brew

Brew speed is average in standard mode and notably quicker in Fast Brew. The faster cycle shaved a few minutes off a full pot in my testing. The trade‑off is slightly more turbulence in the basket and a touch more brew noise. For busy mornings, I appreciated the option. If you’re optimizing for flavor over speed, stick to the regular mode.

Temperature and warming

Initial brew temperature was within a reasonable range for drip coffee, delivering hot coffee right out of the carafe. The keep‑warm plate maintained a comfortable drinking temperature for the two‑hour window. As with any glass‑carafe machine, leaving coffee on heat degrades the taste the longer it sits. If you’re nursing a pot over the morning, consider decanting into a thermal carafe or turning the plate off after 30–45 minutes.

Cleaning and maintenance

The removable brew basket is easy to rinse, and the machine includes an auto‑clean cycle to help with descaling when you notice slower brews or off flavors. I ran a cleaning cycle with a standard descaling solution after a couple of weeks and saw clear water flow improvement. Keeping the carafe and basket clean is straightforward with warm, soapy water. I also liked that the lid and basket geometry didn’t trap a lot of grounds—fewer nooks means faster cleanup.

Build quality and reliability notes

The lightweight body is both a strength and a weakness. It’s easy to move, but it feels less planted than heavier machines. Make sure it’s on a non‑slip surface. The buttons and display are basic but readable. After repeated cycles, everything functioned as expected: timer fired, auto‑off kicked in on schedule, and the plate held temperature consistently.

I did notice that the interface rewards patience: hold buttons for a beat rather than rapid‑tapping. That eliminated accidental mode changes for me. The machine’s simplicity also means fewer parts to fail—no grinders, no complex screens—so maintenance should be minimal beyond descaling.

Who it’s for

• Households that make multiple mugs per morning and want a programmable start time
• Offices or shared spaces that need an uncomplicated, large‑capacity pot
• Anyone who prefers a simple, reliable drip maker over single‑serve pods

Who should look elsewhere:
- Coffee enthusiasts chasing specialty‑level extraction and ultra‑even water dispersion
- People who want coffee to stay hot for many hours without flavor change (a thermal carafe brewer is a better fit)

Practical tips for better results

• Use fresh beans and a medium grind. Drip machines are sensitive to grind consistency.
• Dose properly. For a full pot, err on the generous side; under‑dosing is the fastest way to weak coffee.
• Level the grounds bed in the basket before brewing.
• Use the strong setting for smaller batches; regular for full pots.
• Don’t leave coffee on the hot plate for too long—decant if you’re sipping over time.
• Wipe the area above the carafe lip if you notice condensation after the machine sits.

The bottom line

The CM4000S is a practical, no‑nonsense 12‑cup brewer that emphasizes convenience: a reliable 24‑hour timer, a functional brew‑strength toggle, an effective pause‑and‑pour, and a keep‑warm plate that covers most mornings. It’s not a precision instrument, and it won’t magically fix a too‑coarse grind or an under‑dosed basket, but with decent inputs it delivers the straightforward, hot coffee most people want at 6 a.m.

Recommendation: I recommend this coffeemaker for households and offices that value simplicity, capacity, and a dependable timer at an accessible price. It’s easy to live with, fast enough when you need it, and low‑maintenance. If you need all‑day heat retention without flavor drift or you’re chasing connoisseur‑level extraction, consider a thermal‑carafe brewer or a higher‑end machine. For everyday drip, the CM4000S hits the mark.