When Keurig came out with the Keurig 2.0 machine in 2014, it angered many people. That’s because the company decided to make the machine incompatible with all brands of coffee except those that were in certain K-cups. Here’s what the problem was, and some hacks to get around the restrictive measure.

Problems with the Restrictions

Why does it matter what kinds of K-cups you can use in your coffee maker? It goes beyond principle. One issue is that allowing only certain, approved cups means that only certain types of coffee could be made. In other words, Keurig 2.0 owners could not, in effect, necessarily choose their preferred types of coffee. 

What if you wanted, for example, a low-acid brand of coffee, or something organic? If, say, Alex’s Low-Acid Organic Coffee wasn’t specially labeled to work in the Keurig 2.0, you were out of luck (until you use a simple hack…which you’ll see later in this article). 

Another issue is that this set-up acted like a monopoly. Keurig had cornered the market on these coffee makers. Nobody else could reasonably get in and act as a competitor.

These truly are important concerns and, in fact, the legal system clearly agreed, including with estimates that the proprietary nature of the machines had led to unreasonably high prices in K-cups. In a class action settlement, people who had purchased K-cups were compensated. 

Simple Hacks for Your Keurig 2.0

What if you want to use Alex’s Low-Acid Organic Coffee K-cups in a Keurig 2.0? You’re not out of luck. Here are some simple hacks.

1. Tape the lid of a licensed K-cup onto the lid of each K-cup before you use it. The problem with the 2.0 is that it looks for the specific digital rights management (DRM) marking on licensed K-cups. You can tape the lid of a licensed K-cup onto the top of your preferred K-cup brand so the machine “thinks” that any old cup of coffee is compatible with the machine
2. Tape the lid of a licensed K-cup into your Keurig 2.0. You can tape the lid of a licensed K-cup into the Keurig 2.0, which means you don’t have to re-tape a lid each time to a new K-cup.
3. Purchase an add-on. Some companies sell add-ons that do the same thing, but don’t require you to tape old lids. The SoloClip 2 and MyClip Freedom Clip let you use your preferred brand of coffee, even in a Keurig 2.0.
4. Use a sticker. Another option is to purchase a set of specially made stickers that will cause your Keurig 2.0 to work even without the licensed K-cup.
5. Use a reusable cup. They sell reusable K-cups and filters that have the magic go-ahead symbol to allow the machine to work. Just fill them with your favorite brand of ground coffee whenever you want. It’s a great option for Whole Bean or Fresh Ground varieties of Alex’s Low-Acid Organic Coffee.

You deserve to be able to choose your own coffee brand, even with a Keurig coffee maker. If you have the Keurig 2.0, you can use easy hacks to enable your machine to work with any brand of K-cup. That means you can use your favorite brand, such as Alex’s Low-Acid Organic Coffee, in your Keurig 2.0.