Bean to cup time, ESAM 4200 or go for more?

vibe666

Looking to get a half decent bean to cup machine and the ESAM 4200 seems to be a good starting point, but I'm wondering if i could get significantly better by upping my game a bit?

I know i'll be more than happy with the 4200, but would there be much benefit in spending maybe another 1-200 quid on something a bit better?

maybe the 5400 or even stretch to the 4350 or am i going to end up with basically the same thing with a few extra bells and whistles? are they worth the money?

Alun

I have this one ... http://www.delonghi.com/en-GB/products/coffee/coffee-makers/automatic-coffee-makers/ecam-23420sb-0132214042/

I was also originally planning on getting the 4200, but when I saw it in the flesh in the shop (B&T) I was a bit disappointed, the controls felt a bit plasticky and fragile. Mine has electronic push button controls and just felt a bit better put together. Also they were having a promotion at the time that meant that the one I got was effectively only a little bit more expensive than the 4200, so the deal was done. It's been used 5 or 6 times a day, every day for nearly a year now and is still performing well.

As I said, I got mine in B&T in Dublin (not a shop I normally frequent!) and they were the cheaper than Arnott's at the time, although just after Christmas in the sales, Arnott's were slightly cheaper. You may be able to get it online cheaper.

Gran Hermano

Check Amazon UK and Amazon.de for pricing.

vibe666

Alun wrote: »

I was also originally planning on getting the 4200, but when I saw it in the flesh in the shop (B&T) I was a bit disappointed

probably a silly question, but what's B&T?

I've mostly been looking at Amazon as they seem to have good prices.

I have Amazon Prime, so my only delivery costs will be €3.50 for parcel motel and maybe a tip over to finglas to pick it up if it's an oversized box, which makes it my no.1 online shopping destination most of the time.

Padraig Mor

I got a bean to cup (Saeco HD8751) a few months ago. My thoughts:

Make sure you check Amazon.de! They have significantly lower prices on many bean to cups than the UK site. I got a my machine from amazon.de for ~€230. The same machine on the UK site was over £400!

No point on getting the bells and whistles unless you really want them. Not too sure on DeLonghi, but in the Saeco range, the next model up gets you a cappucinotore (semi automatic froth maker - basically a rubber tube worth 50 cent) for your extra hundred quid or whatever.That's fine, but I see plenty of complaints of it not frothing enough and the froth not being hot enough. Go up another model and you get an integrated milk carafe, making things a bit more convenient but I see the same complaints. Not worth the extra money IMHO - and it seems many people prefer frothing manually, which ain't difficult!

Make sure the water reservoir is a decent size. Mine is 1.8L (I think) and I seem to be constantly refilling it - and the machine isn't used an awful lot.

Don't forget maintenance. This isn't a Nespresso - you have to do a reasonable amount of cleaning yourself. Clean machine and brew group every week. Tablets once a month. Descaling depends on your water. Occasional lubrication and changing of O rings. And all these items don't come cheap - budget €50+ for enough materials for 6 months of maintenance (Saeco - I'd imagine DeLonghi is in the same ballpark).

Don't cod yourself about 'saving money' (you haven't mentioned this but I know plenty of people consider it). Unlike ground coffee, it's hard to find cheap whole beans. You can walk into Lidl and get 250g of decent ground coffee for €3 - you can't do this with beans! For those smaller bag sizes, cheapest I've found was probably Robt Roberts in Tesco - €5.50 or so. You'll probably get plenty of advice to only buy from 'artisan' roasters. That's grand until you see that their basic blends are €6.50+ per 250g. Plus shipping if you're not local! That adds up very quickly when you're going through over a kilo a month! Obviously it's usually cheaper to buy by the kilo - although it'll probably take you a good while to try various beans until you find your 'preferred bean'. I still haven't! Cheapest I've seen locally is Harvey Norman selling kilos of Lavazza for €15 - it's not fantastic coffee though. Amazon have a good selection. You'll also probably use more than you think - especially if drinking Americanos or long coffees. I put 2 shots of espresso at the strongest 'aroma' setting (~20g of coffee beans in total) into an Americano. Honestly, if you're happy with a pretty decent espresso and want to keep the costs down, best bet is probably Nespresso (boo! hiss!).

What extras are worth having? I'd kill to have a 'double basket' so the machine could just pull a double shot, rather than doing two shots in succession. I'm not sure if any bean to cup machines can do this though? Would love a double boiler so as to have steam ready instantly for frothing, rather than waiting 20 seconds for it to heat up. I thin it's mostly top end machines have these though. A double grinder / hopper machine would also be handy - so you can have two different types of beans at the ready (maybe one for straight espresso, one for long coffees). Getting into expensive territory there again though.

Consider getting a premium machine second hand. I've seen Jura commercial-grade machines (double grinder, double boiler) going on Donedeal for €500.