Coffee is not just a drink, it is a must in today’s fast paced life. Does not matter if you are pure coffee lovers or not: having the right home coffee machine is essential in order to obtain the desired espresso cappuccino or any other coffee based drink.
The sales of this small appliance have increased consistently in the last years pushing the brands to produce more and more sophisticated and different types of coffee machines for domestic use.
In front of this large offer of different coffee machine the question is: How To Choose the Right coffee machine for my needs? What to consider before buying a coffee machine?
- Which type of coffee machine to choose?
- Manual
- Fully Automatic
- Capsules
- Espresso, cappuccino or both?
- The : Pump pressure
- Dimensions and materials
- Cleaning Maintenance
- The Coffee
Which type of coffee machine?
What is the differences between coffee machines that uses Pods, Capsules, Beans or ground coffee? Which one is the best?
Is important to know which are the differences among the models present on the market in order to find the product that suits our needs and match our budget.
Manual coffee Machine
The Classic coffee machine, the same type of those in use in cafes.
The manual coffee machines allow the user to make the perfect coffee for its taste. This means that you can easily choose how much coffee ground put in the handle, how much pressure give to the coffee, and which blend to use.
This kind of machine require more cleaning than the other typologies.
Capsule coffee machine
Quick and Easy
The best choice for those who want to prepare a coffee in just few seconds without making any mess. You are just required to insert the capsule in the coffee machine and then push a button to obtain a creamy espresso. Each capsule contain enough coffee for a single shot coffee. Being sealed the coffee inside the capsule stays fresh for longer.
Coffee capsules are usually more expensive than ground coffee or beans.
Bean to cup Coffee machine (fully automatic)
Just push one button
This kind of coffee machine have an adjustable internal grinder and a system that automatically makes coffee immediately after having ground the beans. This gives the coffee an incredible unique and fresh aroma.
Fully automatic coffee machines are more expensive than capsule coffee machines, despite the coffee beans which are cheaper than capsules.
Dimensions and structure
Is important to find a coffee machine which style and dimensions suit the place.
Cappuccinatore
If you are Cappuccino lovers you definitely are looking for a coffee machine with a panarello steam wand or a fully automatic cappuccino system. These machines are able to make a thick froth and perfect cappuccino with the ability to set also the amount of coffee and the coffee length.
This kind of machine have automatic cleaning systems and reminders, you just need to use the right solution for each cleaning cycle.
Maintenance
Every coffee machine needs to be cleaned at specific intervals that can be based on number of coffee made or days of usage. Every coffee machines needs continuous attention so choose your coffee machine with an eye also on the usage comfort.
In general we can say that manual and fully automatic coffee machines requires more time and attention to be cleaned and maintained properly because more residue can be stuck in the filter, while capsule machines are much easier to be cleaned.
When cleaning a coffee machine always check the brewing unit, the water tank, the steam wand, the grinder and the milk line when present. Always use a water filter in the tank and run a compete descaling process every month.
Pump pressure
Café coffee machine and automatic or domestic coffee machine works with the same principle: with pressure.
The secret of the espresso consist in extracting using high pressure all the essentials oils, the aromas and all the other substances that are present in the coffee. The pump is the element that push the water in the filter. In order to obtain a better coffee the pressure should be between 12 and 15 Bar.
The Price
In this section we will help you understand why the price differences.
First thing we need to consider which kind of coffee machine we are looking for.
Usually manual and capsule coffee machines are less expensive than the fully automatic / Bean to Cup ones, the price difference depends on the materials and also on the features the coffee machine offers. Basically we can affirm that as cheap as you go as basic features you get.
Another factor that impact on price is for how many coffee per day the machine is recommended for.
More expensive coffee machines have more features such as automatic descaling/cleaning system, adjustable coffee grinder, custom settings, different frothing systems etc.
So is very important to find the right coffee machine to know how many coffee per day is going to make and for which environment (office/home) we need the coffee machine.
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