Bean to cup coffee machine for a novice

[DinoHat]

I’ve had several pod machines but never a bean to cup machine. I spend an absolute fortune on Nespresso pods and so looking for a new machine.

Budget ideally £500-800

i really like the look of this one - Sage the Barista Touch Machine, Bean to Cup Coffee Machine with Milk Frother, SES880BTR - Black Truffle https://amzn.eu/d/4cyHpdu
but some reviews say the aftercare service isn’t that good - it’s quite a large spend so I don’t want to be replacing it for several years!

The touch screen really appeals to me
for ease.

I’ve looked at delongi machines before as they seem to have good reviews.

I want to make americanos, lattes and cappuccinos. Needs to be easy to use.

Any recommendations please?

Me and DH have spent more time studying coffee machines than we did buying a car 🤣

I wouldn’t get the Sage machine if you’re a complete novice op - it will prob make you a better cup of coffee than the delonghi but it’s a traditional pump espresso machine so you will need to tamp the freshly ground coffee etc. More effort and more bits to fiddle with (and more mess - we used to have a delonghi espresso machine and i always spilled the ground coffee everywhere 😵‍💫).

The delonghi magnifica is fab - we’re now on our second and it makes super
hot coffee. The difference to the sage is that you literally just press a button and it grounds/tamps/pours your coffee for you.

I second MindatWork 100%. They joy of the automated bean to cups like the Melitta of the Delonghi are that they are push and play. I'm sure the ritual of grinding, dosing and tamping are fun for some but it's a faff that I could well live without. Each to their own obviously.

It depends on whether you’re more ‘into’ your coffee or you just want something that makes a better cup but is still super low effort. My BIL has a sage and absolutely loves it but he’s really into his coffee and experiments with different beans/grinds etc.

Thank you - tbh I don’t want the hassle. I would do it but DH wouldn’t bother so I wouldn’t get a morning coffee in bed!

We have a sage it’s a great machine. Coffee comes out hot but when making lattes or cappuccino and wanting them extra hot I just steam the milk slightly longer

@DinoHat definitely go for a fully automated one then - we’ve got a magnifica evo and you can programme the strength / temp etc and adjust the grind. There are lots of great videos on YouTube that show you how.

Another vote for the DeLonghi Magnifica. If my house was burning down I'd save this!

Get the delongi for hot coffee op I got a sage and called them as I like my coffee hot- I asked if there was a setting I could change. They said no the idea was the temperature was so it could be drunk immediately. I told the shop I bought it from and they fortunately still let me swap it even though I’d used it for a few days. Otherwise very expensive mistake!

Another vote for sage Oracle, mine has been great 5 years.

We have a Delonghi Authentica, it's hand down my favourite kitchen gadget of all time. Makes delicious coffee every single time. We buy our beans on subscription from Pact (about £7 a bag) but the Lavazza range is also good, from supermarkets.
Had the machine for about 5 years and no issues at all. It's easy to clean and maintain and you can buy spare milk frothing nozzles if you accidentally throw on in the bin. Ahem.

@SorrowsPrayers haha I say the same about ours. Would save DCs, DDog and Dcoffeemachine😁

I love my Smeg bean to cup machine. Great coffee, looks neat on the work top and doesn't take up too much room.

We also have a Delonghi Magnifica and would highly recommend. Spares are easy to come by as per @Gherkingreen ’s experience and there are loads of videos of troubleshooting etc if you have a question or something goes wrong. We have had ours 5 years, used several times daily and it still going strong. One of the reasons I bought the model we have is because you can also make ground coffee so we use that to make decaf coffee for the kids and in the evenings. No need to empty and switch the beans.

@DinoHat the sage has adjustable temperature settings so it can be hot as you like!
I had a automated machine (delonghi primadonna) but this does make better coffee, it does need you to do some of the work though so if you want easy decent coffee, I'd go fully automated!

Before or after your children/pets/DH? 🤣🤣

I think we are going for this one. The reviews of the sage are pretty equal and I have concerns over hot coffee. It’s also £500
more for the sage so a no-brainer. I’m going to get it from curry’s or Argos not Amazon as a lot of the reviews from Amazon surround after care - one user accused them of
selling reconditioned machines. Which seems possible!

I’ve been very impressed by de Longj’s after sales. Unfortunately our had to go back a couple of times to fix a leek.(after 2 years of use) But each time it was relatively hassle free. And when they couldn’t repair it a third time we received a brand new machine within 48 hours.

That’s good - I found Nespresso support abysmal. Taken for repairs (wouldn’t tell me what those repairs were) and sent a new machine after I begged and said I didn’t want the hassle of a third “repair” new one leaks too.

spending £70-100 pcm on pods and would be happy to be rid of Nespresso!

We have a Philips one, cost about £350 ish from amazon. Makes great coffee and you can use ground coffee beans in it too. I always warm my drink in the microwave after making it though as it's not quite not enough for me. It's used every day so has probably paid for itself already.
It's not that big either and sits nearly on the worktop. Sorry, can remember which model it is though

If you look on eBay there are a range of reconditioned Sage machines at almost half price.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/333926210927?var=542983662706&epid=21014331199&hash=item4dbf8d9d6f:g:BqMAAOSwlYtkdcw~&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAA0DlcXhs0QuAI9UaRUYuuOlQYvkyMcfTXnH5H%2BoHb8hkwvOg%2FG9K1JkckrX8FifHylki0WyN0teCG5eo1y9Dj0wNlnbLmaHIUPC38NIBNj3HM7A25D43Y2uo1zMWDEnCY8difUX%2Fop8O4iEYEF5bfJ1jQYTWpParn42eqdr7nyUO2d9eWLwdFTjdBIDUPqMbntM7PL39E3cw529goiPPaNKZ0xl74R2%2BLQpnxKgMHFCMIL3%2BuPJznbRygiT5lpNUKWzUym6FyeJVS4sri14IaDQo%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR4Dszd-JYw

Got my daughter one, I can’t remember which model, as a new home/first job present. The cheaper price made it less of a risk that she might not like it. She and her flatmate both work shifts, and are getting through kilos of beans and saving lots on take out coffee.

Thank you - I’ve looked at these I think.

This is the problem with my Nespresso - despite it costing a fortune in terms of the pods I still love a “proper” coffee when I’m out and when being “out” includes my daily gym session it gets expensive!

I had a Magnifica but could never, ever get the milk frothing wand to work. I bought a Sage Express Impress in a sale and fell in love. Agree with the comments about the black paint chipping though.

Magnifica here too, six years old. Check out the Delonghi outlet on eBay.

No issues with mine, coffee is hot, milk frother works really well, I’ll replace it with the same (hopefully from the outlet again) when it goes.