When the price of a high end coffee machine, it is actually a matter of course, to protect it from the damage caused by hard water, not to mention the difference in taste. We use the filter in the Krups EA9010 and are very satisfied. As already mentioned elsewhere, one comes about a month of having such a cartridge and for the price is also acceptable. The water filter shown here is supplied in an original packaging (foil bag) from Krups, so I expect this also over the years a constant quality.
