NOW CLOSED Tassimo T20 coffee machine reviewer feedback thread.

[KatieBMumsnet]

This thread is for the 16 Mumsnetters who have been trying out the Tassimo T20 coffee machine. Below are a few questions for you to answer, but please also add any other comments you may have.

Questions:

• What were your overall impressions of the Tassimo T20?
  

• How easy or difficult did you find the setting up process?
  

• How easy or difficult did you find the machine to use?
  

• What did you think of the drinks produced?
  

• What TDISCs did you try? What TDISCs do you think you'll look to buy in the future?
  

• Do you think you'll continue to use the Tassimo T20 in the future?
  

• If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Tassimo T20 to a friend or relative? If so why? If not, why not?
  

Thanks,

MNHQ

[peachypips]

QOD no, just have very refined taste buds.

[acrabadabra]

• What were your overall impressions of the Tassimo T20? 
  

I think it's a nice compact size. Like that it's black as it matches my other small appliances. But, it looks quite cheap and plasticy.
Also, I use quite big mugs which means removing the drip tray. The base under it is not flat so the cup wobbles a bit. Great you can do this but would be much better if the base was flat. It also means it spatters quite a bit as its not close enough to the spout.

• How easy or difficult did you find the setting up process?
  

Very simple.

• How easy or difficult did you find the machine to use?
  

Much, much easier than my dh's current coffee maker which we've had for years. No matter how many times it's been explained to me, I just don't get it.
This was a breath of fresh air in comparison.

• What did you think of the drinks produced?
  

Both drinks taste good, but I like to drink a lot! I found the amount of coffee a bit on the mean side. If I used the manual button to add more water it became a little weak tasting. I have customised my americano by heating some milk in the microwave before adding the coffee.

• What TDISCs did you try?
  

We had the suchard hot choc and costa americano. I think big brother has been watching us as they would have been my first choices.

What TDISCs do you think you'll look to buy in the future?
I have just used my £20 discount to buy some tea, more of the costa americano and another couple of coffee pods for dh to try. Unless the tea is mindblowing I doubt I will buy it again. I like to drink my tea by the pint!

• Do you think you'll continue to use the Tassimo T20 in the future?
  

I will if I like the tea pods and it will def be used by dh. He has a costa concession in his work and it will save a fortune if he takes one to work and gives up the cake he normally buys with it.

• If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Tassimo T20 to a friend or relative? If so why? If not, why not
  

I think so. I want to see how the tea pods are as most of my friends and family are tea jennies and I think that will be a harder sell. I want to be impressed but I think tea is much more a personalised drink than coffee.

[acrabadabra]

Also many thanks for choosing me to test. I am very pleased with my machine and would never have been able to justify buying it for myself.

[scrappydappydoo]

• What were your overall impressions of the Tassimo T20?
  

Small compact unit, not ugly addition to kitchen worktop

• How easy or difficult did you find the setting up process?
  

Easy - instructions clear and simple to follow

• How easy or difficult did you find the machine to use?
  

Very easy -I like that its quick and cleant ouse - so much less faff than using filter coffee.

• What did you think of the drinks produced?
  

Teas are good, coffee not as nice as store brought one - not so much flavour but still good.

• What TDISCs did you try? What TDISCs do you think you'll look to buy in the future?
  

We were given the English breakfast and expresso ones - we have brought more tea ones, the costa coffee ones and cadburys hot choc

• Do you think you'll continue to use the Tassimo T20 in the future?
  

Yes - its much quicker than having to boil a kettle and there's a good choice of drinks. It's a little expensive so wouldn't use it all the time - maybe once a day

• If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Tassimo T20 to a friend or relative? If so why? If not, why not?
  

Depends of the friend - I have a friend who is Costa coffee mad and I've already suggested she gets one to try an break the habit!

Thank you!!!

[tvstand]

For those who are finding the coffee too strongm i can recommend carte noire petit dejeuner.

It's only available on the website, but it's by far the nicest coffee they do and it won't blow your head off!

I got a machine for Christmas, and love it, it's my daily treat!

[tinypumpkin]

What were your overall impressions of the Tassimo T20?

I really loved it, it was clean and neat looking. Looks good in the kitchen and is such a treat for me. I adore coffee (never used to pre children) and would never treat myself in this way. It feels very indulgent! It did also look very easy to use.

• How easy or difficult did you find the setting up process?
  

I found it pretty easy, I was concerned that I wouldn't! It was a quick process from box to coffee!

• How easy or difficult did you find the machine to use?
  

It's really easy to use (similar comments to those about start up of the machine). I thought it would be a lot more faffy than it truly was. I am not good with faffy things so need things to be easy and quick. It is a little more noisy than I thought it would be but that is not a complaint at all. It's a little too easy to use, it has become rather addictive!

• What did you think of the drinks produced?
  

The initial drinks were smaller in size but with adjusting the water the mugs are now full with each coffee / drink. This is much better. They are hot and look good. Coffee is good although strong in many cases!

• What TDISCs did you try?
  

I was given suchard choc and costa americano. The hot chocolate was a little watery and very vending machine tasting I think. The powder did seem to stick to the bottom. Not so keen on this.

The americano was good, I bought more! I much preferred the coffee but it was strong. I have tried some other coffees now (sucker!) and like the petit dejeuner one as another poster mentioned. That is lovely! I have also bought the carte noire latte machiatto and that is just tooooo nice. very bad for the waistline :)

What TDISCs do you think you'll look to buy in the future?

Tempted to try milka choc to see if this is any better than the suchard one. I did fancy the chai one but I am not so sure given the price and feedback of others.

• Do you think you'll continue to use the Tassimo T20 in the future?
  

Yes, it is so easy to use and looks fab in the kitchen. I am hooked!

• If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Tassimo T20 to a friend or relative? If so why? If not, why not?
  

I would as I feel it is easy to use and set up. It is relatively compact and makes good quality coffee quickly. The only downside as with all these things is the price of the pods.

Thank you MN and Tassimo for letting me try this, it is much appreciated :)

[QOD]

I found milk pods on Tesco today, so now we can have carte noir and costa Americano with steamed milk ... Kinda latte like .... Which is what I like!

[triplets]

Hi............a kind MN just directed me to you, perfect! I recd my new machine y/day, got it for £30 through Costa. I must say I found the instructions not easy and couldnt get it to go at first. Surprised how long it seemed to take to make a coffee and disappointed with the amount it made. I bought one box of Tassimo Cappucino, 8 large cups for £4.99 which I thought was expensive. 215ml to me is not large! I didnt realize you can but any make of discs and other things other than coffee....................derrrrr. I expect Ill get used to it, any tips gratefully rec`d!

[smileyhappymummy]

What were your overall impressions of the Tassimo T20

Neat, attractive case, although a little large - certainly a lot bulkier than a friend's Nespresso machine. The position of the water container - at the back of the machine - is awkward if, like me, you have cupboards overhanging most of your work surfaces


How easy or difficult did you find the setting up process
Extremely easy. The instructions are very simple and there is really very little to do to set it up: just pressing a button 4 times to rinse the machine through with clean water.

How easy was the machine to use?
Incredibly easy. There really is almost nothing to it: open lid; insert disk; close lid; press button. Seriously, if you can't manage this, you probably aren't ready for unsupervised hot drinks.

What did you think of the drinks produced?
A bit disappointing. I was supplied with 2 varieties Costa cappuccino and Carte Noir "Expresso" and neither impressed. I generally drink coffee black and don't like sweet drinks as much, so I am probably not the best person to comment on the cappuccino disks, which contain "lactose and mineral reduced ultra filtered milk concentrate" - which evidently used to be milk - and sugar, thus not really being to my taste.

The "Expresso" (which is presumably espresso that you can trademark) was a lot more appealing. The taste was pretty decent: in a different league to the instant I normally drink at home. The coffee had a nice smooth texture and there was a little bit of crema too. Unfortunately, I found it to be far too weak. I prefer a long coffee to espresso, but adding more than a very little hot water to this drink to make an Americano in the normal way resulted in a weak, tasteless coffee that was worse than instant and not much better than water.

Perhaps some of the Costa Americano disks might be more up my street, as far as strengths concerned, although I'm not a big fan of Costa coffee as a rule and there is nowhere round where I live that sells them. In fact, coincidentally, the two flavours I was sent are also the only ones on sale around here.

A general problem I found was that the drinks are not hot enough. Even warming the cups beforehand didn't help much - drinks were still too tepid for my liking.


Do you think you'll continue use to use the Tass t20 in future?
No. It's not the machine for me. Ever since my late, lamented filter machine broke, I've been thinking about buying an espresso machine. The T20 this has certainly helped me to decide to do just that - but this isn't the one I'm after. The cost-per drink is expensive, unless you buy in bulk online - and then you are stuck with just one kind of coffee until your next big order and I've always loved trying different beans and blends.

The waste bothers me a bit too: each serving of coffee comes in a thick plastic container, with a foil lid, that comes in a cardboard box with 7 other servings, that is wrapped in a foil bag. That's an awful lot to throw away for a cup of coffee.

If it came up in conversation would. You recommend the tas t20 to a friend or relative if so why if not why not

And having just said all of that,yes, I would recommend it to others. If you want espressos and cappuccinos that taste far better than instant coffee, with a minimum of fuss and mess, don't mind being restricted to a fairly small range of tastes and don't like your coffee piping hot, then this is ideal. It's definitely not the coffee maker for me, but I can think of a fair few people for whom this would be absolutely perfect.

Thank you very much indeed for letting us try it!

[velvetspoon]

What were your overall impressions of the Tassimo T20?

I thought it looked really smart, it was neat, unobtrusive, and didn't take up too much room on my worktop. I love coffee, but as the only one in the house who drinks it, I never felt I could justify buying a 'proper' coffee machine just for me. The morning this arrived felt like Christmas, and I couldn't wait to try it!! I loved how quick it was too, I was expecting it to take ages, when in fact (especially if you're just making one drink) it's loads faster than boiling a kettle. That was a big plus to me too.

How easy or difficult did you find the setting up process?

The whole process was really easy. Instructions are very simple and clear to follow. nothing to fit together, just really straightforward, which I thought was great.

How easy or difficult was the machine to use?

Incredibly so. I was expecting it to be complicated and was very pleasantly surprised! It really couldn't be easier. Both my children used it, and in particular it was great for my youngest son who can't lift the kettle - this was much safer for him to use, and he enjoyed feeling grown up and making his own tea!

What did you think of the drinks produced?

Really good. I'm not sure what I was expecting but it was definitely better than I thought it would be! I am not a great tea drinker normally, but tried the tea and thought it was pretty good - my sons both gave it the thumbs up :) The coffee was also really nice, a long way better than my usual instant coffee.

What TDISCs did you try? What TDISCs do you think you'll look to buy in the future?

I was supplied with Kenco Colombian coffee and English breakfast tea. I am looking forward to buying some more coffees, especially Costa ones (love Costa coffee, but can't justify the £2+ cost, making my own at home is more convenient and much cheaper too!) with the £20!

Do you think you'll continue use to use the Tassimo T20 in future?

Definitely, as mentioned above, I am looking forward to trying new flavours. The machine has permanent pride of place on my worktop :)

If it came up in conversation, would you recommend the Tassimo T20 to a friend or relative? If so why? If not, why not?

Absolutely. I have had several friends round since I received it, all were impressed by it's appearance and how easy it was to use, plus the quality of the coffee produced, and are considering purchasing their own in the next couple of months.

Just to add, thank you so much for letting us try it!

[QOD]

Just checking in ... We've had the warning light come on about descaling which is a bummer. Have ordered the stuff from Bosch as instructed, an eye watering £5.99 plus £3.95 p&p for a 2 pack.

However, the machine is used 2 to 3 times a day, we've spent a fortune on costa latte and also the caramel latte (forgotten the brand) and love every cup.

Good move giving some machines away Tassimo, we've probably doubled your sales!

[surpriseitsme]

Noticed a few comments about waste just to let you know if you head over to tassimo uk on fbook there are recyclers who will collect/pay postage for empty discs and packaging :)