I know that I'll get shot down by some coffee aficionados but if you're looking for a fully automatic coffee machine that has received good reviews for a number of years you could do worse than this machine.
The new kid on the block is also on sale (Philips 2200 - $499) although I haven't heard much about it.
https://www.amazon.com.au/Automatic-capability-intuitive-EP2…
Philips looks great for a small super automatic. I always watch settle coffee gear reviews. It is close to Breville barista express money but for an all in one automatic this Philips looks good!
https://youtu.be/uOVhHPhuU4c
Thanks for the vid, review was done 2 years ago so has been around a little while then. Does look like a nice machine.
Coffee snobs tbh… Good deal
I have one of these. I’m a snob. It makes great coffee. Great deal.
I have a DeLonghi Perfecta and cant get a good shot out of it. I'm using the same beans (Aldi Brazilian) in a Caffitally machine (refilled pods) and it tastes great. But I can't work out my Perfecta. Coffee lacks body/ tastes thin
I've tried changing the grind size all the way down to where the machine won't work (says grind size too fine).
I even used the exact same grinded coffee as the Caffitally machine (using the pre grind option in the perfecta) and it tastes totally different. BUT, I did notice the largest pre ground shot you can do is 6 grams. So maybe the brew head is just a bit limited (ie. Can't do a 8 -12g shot of fine grinded coffee).
What settings do people use to get the best coffee out of a Delonghi machine? I can adjust shot size (6 -12g) and length of coffee and temp.
Having had 2 machines. Each was set up differently, so no two are the same.
My current one, I stripped down (YouTube) and cleaned grinding unit. Now grind and flavour is great (unit is 4 years old).
To get 12g shots I always do two grinds of 6g each. With the Magnifica version, you have a ground coffee shute and it has an image showing max insertion of one scoop of coffee. From that I am guessing that also means grind volume is limited to that amount as well.
Yeah, I got this for $40 as it had a dead thermoblock. I ended up pulling this apart completely. Grinder was still perfect. Replaced the ball and seals on the pump (they were fine, but wanted to give it a full refurb). Replaced the thermoblock and cleaned the generator / brew head while at it. Great to work on, I'll give them that. Most likely failure would be the thermal fuses, or sticking solenoids. All up it cost me $39 in parts (Amazon).
It had held up really well considering it has done 5000 coffees. But I think the limitation is still the brew unit. I guess its fully pressurised and you cant change the tamp. Also, pre grind limited to 6 grams tells the story.
Sadly, my partner prefers instant over this coffee. I don't why it's quite bitter. Guessing the shot doesn't get extracted properly. I'm now increasing the grind size. Already coarser than what I use in other machines, but maybe needs to be coarser due to pressurisation.
Did you refurb the grinding unit? Mine would grind too coarse until I did this (BinL used to run grinder dry). After cleaning 3 grinds fixed the issue and its great. Had to reset grind back to 3 (the one inside the bean hopper) Now mine is Magnifica, so yours might be a little different.
To remove grind head and disassemble its a reverse thread.
Good price on Black but Silver one is still more than other stores.
Would a coffee from this be much worse than from a Bambino Plus and Smart Grinder? I am on the fence on what to purchase
Have a Delonghi Primadonna as our household drinks milk coffees but love the time saving and convenience of having a fully automatic machine that I can use fresh beans in rather than nespresso pods/capsules and I don't have the time to separately grind and tamp and pull a coffee and froth milk + clean up daily. 13,000 coffees later and I'd buy another in a heartbeat if this one died (we have multiple coffee drinkers in the house and drink 2-3 coffee each daily).
For anyone considering these from the convenience factor, on a scale of 10 (10 being what a cafe can pull), a nespresso is probably about 5/10 and this is easily 8/10 depending on beans and adjusting to get the right grind setting etc (if amazing fresh beans and right settings, I'd even go up to 9/10).
What size, length and grind settings do you do your shots? I know it depends on how oily the beans are. But on average?
I've never been able to get a coffee as good as putting fresh ground coffee into a refillable Caffitally pod.
Try making a coffee with preground coffee using the pregroundd bypass shute. If that tastes ok then its the grinder than needs work. If not then its something else.
Bypass coffee is the same. The exact same grinds in the other machine taste great. In the Delonghi the coffee is thin and bitter. I mean it's ok, but the saeco machine that costs $50 is much better. Both have the same pump (so it's not pressure). I've pulled the thing apart completely and cleaned. Not a single grain or blockage anywhere.
I'm not sure what sets the tamp pressure, but I'd bet this DeLonghi is tamping too hard. Now thinking about it, there was a spring inside the generator housing, and probably a stop switch. But you would think the spring would get looser with time. Not tamp harder. Hmm, definitely won't do a 12g double shot at a decent grind. There is a button for 2 coffees at the same time, but doesn't work at a good single shot grind. Nothing but a dribble comes out and the machine gives an error "grind too fine". The demo guy at Harvey Norman doesn't do two shots at once. So this feature won't produce a quality coffee.
Coffee is convenient and ok, just not as good as I thought it would be. Refilling a map pod machine with fresh ground produces a much better coffee. But you control the tamp pressure in each pod.
As for the new Phillips, Beko, Smeg machines. I had a look inside. Basically exactly the same.
Maybe your machine needs servicing/adjustment? I've gotten mine serviced twice to keep it running optimally (and replaced a pump cos after 13,000 coffees it needed a new part which is fair enough). Usually have the grind set around 3-4 and use a pretty dark/oily roast which works fine for us.
Nothing to really "service" outside the brew unit. Which you can pull out yourself and do in a few mins. Remove screw and clean the portafilter. Rinse and lube the slides. Check seals.
Plus a full descale and more importantly using those detergent based coffee cleaner tablets. They are brilliant. This 5000 coffee machine was filthy inside. I then ran a descale and it did nothing in removing old coffee scum. Then ran the tablet. This time when I opened it up it all looked like new. Descale is still important to prevent scale build up inside the thermoblock
But to remove old coffee scum, these tablets are 100% the go.
The pump has a plastic ball that wears away. You can replace it with the plastic ball from any hand soap pump pack. Takes maybe 5 mins.
After that the thermoblock will eventually die. But these things are well made for easy repairs. Sad to see so many thrown away. They are an easy fix.
I haven't tried a dark bean..will try. I can definitely see oily beans being better (with a small shot). But the manual actually says not to use oily beans as it will clog a large shot. Cheers
We drink mainly coffee with milk, so for me I'd look for a fully automatic with the milk thing included. But this is an awesome price. I'll have to stick the nespresso I have until I can get a good bargain :)
This or the Phillips?
Who cares about the coffee snobs? I paid about the same price for this fully automatic years ago and I'm happy with it