Others say...

"Grinds fine, poorly designed"
This thing grinds well, but the grind settings are entirely pointless (you still have to hold down the grind button the whole time) and the cleaning system is hokey and awkward. Have you ever had a moment of appreciation for the way subtle details in design make some products a joy to use? This is not one of these products. I recommend looking elsewhere.

"Mr. Coffee IDS77 Electric Blade Grinder"
I finally found a grinder that doesn't spray coffee all over my kitchen! I've used the traditional "bullet" grinders, burr grinders, and even manual grinders. They all left a certain amount of counter mess to clean after the beans were ground. I'm not a fan of "Mr. Coffee" brand products, but I decided to try this grinder after reading other favorable reviews. I was pleasantly surprised to discover it grinds very evenly for a blade grinder, and doesn't make a mess while doing it. The "chamber maid" feature is somewhat useful, but on the fine grind setting, a lot of coffee still sticks to the inside. I have to use a little brush to free the grounds. It's not "the perfect grinder" but it is a "clean" grinder and I'm very satisfied with the performance so far. Still, it is an inexpensive unit constructed predominently of plastic parts, as I'd expect from the "Mr. Coffee" brand. So, I don't know how durable it will be, and I just can't bring myself to give it more than four stars.

"Excellent Addition to Coffee Experience"
I purchased this in November and it we are now at the end of May. It has been used every day at least once since I opened it in November; so it has been in daily use for over six months. It works as well as it did the day that I bought it.

I purchased this to coarsely grind my coffee for use in a French press, and I have found this little machine to do the job every time. I have used it for finer grinds for use in drip machines and it has worked well for that purpose also.

I must say, besides the fact that this little machine is durable and effective, the best part about it is the cleaning system. The ability to simply twist the lid part and swipe the ground coffee from the sides of the container is amazing. I usually grind my coffee, do two twists, and then pour it into the coffee pot to begin brewing. That way I always get all of the coffee I ground into the pot and I'm never left with stale old grounds on the sides of the container.

In addition, unlike many blade grinders, the container in which the coffee is ground separates from the rest of the machine. This allows for easy pouring of the coffee into a filter basket or other coffee-making apparatus. With other machines, the whole assembly must be tilted to pour the coffee in; this can be difficult, especially with a cord hanging off the machine.

For the roughly $20 I spent on this little device (possibly less), I'd have to say that it is one of the best purchases I have ever made. Also, I will never go back to buying preground coffee. While right out of the bag pre-ground coffee may be pretty good, the exposure to air afforded by a non-sealed bag removes the great aroma from the coffee and therefore removes the great taste. Grinding your own beans is cheap and easy with this little machine, and will give you coffee ready to brew that is head and shoulders above even a freshly opened bag of pre-ground coffee. It actually does make a huge difference.

"best blade grinder (for coffee)"
Funny. I bought this thing for the wrong reasons, but ended up loving it anyway.

What sealed the deal for me was the description of the Chamber Maid Cleaning System. The most frustrating thing about my Krups & Cuisinart blade grinders is that it's so hard to clean. The Chamber Maid feature sounded like an automated feature that scraped the sides down for you. As it turns out, it's just 3 little plastic "fingers". To use it, you twist the cap which moves the fingers and knocks some of the coffee back down to the bottom of the bowl. It works pretty well.

I also assumed the grind settings meant it was automatic. As in, set the coarseness and quantity and switch it on. In actuality, you have to hold the button down until it stops on its own. That's actually safer because it prevents you from walking off. Motorized appliances sometimes don't automatically switch off the way they're supposed to, which burns out the motor and sometimes results in fires. Also, you want to keep an eye on the beans to make sure you achieve the desired coarseness.

The Chamber Maid fingers have an added bonus. They agitate the beans as they get pushed around the bowl, which results in a more even grind. I've NEVER seen a grind this consistent on a blade grinder.

My favorite feature is the removable machine-washable chamber. It's like a tiny high-speed blender. Now I don't have to deal with weeks-old coffee dust spoiling the flavor of fresh coffee.

But the most important thing of all, is the flavor. I use the drip method, where I pour hot water over a paper cone with freshly ground beans. My coffee was usually pretty good with the Krups grinder, but every now and then, I'd get a bitter brew. So far, with this grinder, I'm getting more flavor and consistency.

I'm convinced there's NO BETTER GRINDER UNDER $20. We'll see how well it holds up over time.

I agree with the other reviewers somewhat about the noise. It's definitely the loudest grinder I own. It also has a slightly more annoying quality to it. Not only does the motor make a high-pitched whine as expected, there's an additional mid-range frequency. I'm guessing that's the sound of the Chamber Maid rattling around. Add the sound of the beans being smashed to bits and you've got quite a racket. But you know what? It's worth it! What's a few seconds of noise compared to a perfectly brewed pot of coffee? Better than putting up with obnoxious children while waiting in line for a mediocre cup of Starbucks.

"some nice features, but still a blade grinder"
I bought this coffee grinder after the hand-me-down grind I inherited from my folks kept leaving grounds on the counter. Based on reviews this sounded like a great grinder and it does have some very nice features, like the removeable grinding chamber that allows you to pour the grounds into the filter or pot, without needing to pick up the whole machine. The "Chamber Maid" is also a nice feature to scrape the grounds off the side of the chamber. But it is still a blade grinder and as such, some coffee gets ground into dust, which leaves mud in the bottom of your cup if your using a press pot or a single cup drip maker like Bodum's Solo. I also found the "automatic" feature, which you can set to grind anywhere from 4-12 cups either Course, Medium or Fine, useless. Again, I wanted a course grind for my press pot, but set for 4 cups and course grounds, it ground my beans medium to fine, before shutting down. So it is back to grinding until it "sounds right" and using my 4 cup drip coffee maker with a paper filter, which takes away some of the taste, but results in mud-free cups of coffee.