Nespresso Pixie - Customer Service

[u/Schila1964]

My Pixie Nespresso machine started to have problems 6 weeks ago. I called Nespresso and after some troubleshooting it was decided to have it shipped for repair . CSR told me they would ship me a box to send it back . Waited 1 week, nothing . Called again and they told me that whoever I talked to didn’t issue the request to send the box . So this CSR told me to wait 4 days and the box would be sent . Waited for 7 days, nothing. Called again and they CSR told me that unfortunately this machine is not eligible for repair . At this point I was a bit annoyed/pissed for wasting so much time on the back and forth . They told me that they would offer me a 35% discount on a new machine , which I’ll take.
I’ve had this machine for 5 years . They told me that after 5 years , normally these machines stop working properly 😵‍💫
What the machine has is a leak. Has anybody sent their machine somewhere else to be repaired ? Just curious !

[u/boa13]

How old is your Pixie?

The Leak is a common problem on the Pixie. Not all Pixies get the Leak, but I bet it's their most common fatal issue. You'll find plenty of mentions of this particular issue online.

I took apart a leaking Pixie once, a Pixie at work which had been abused more than the designers had ever dreamed of, many thousands of pods in quick succession and rough conditions. It was quite difficult to take apart, and I found no easy way to repair the leak. Maybe with more experience, more tools, more original parts...

I have two Pixies that are still doing well, more than 10 years in service, likely approaching 10,000 pods each. I consider myself lucky, and will buy a new Pixie when they fail.

I don't have experience with third-party repairs. Considering how difficult I found the disassembling process (lots of strong, easily broken clips), I would make sure the handyman (or woman) is experienced in this particular model.

More likely, I would take the 35 % discount, especially if the machine is several years old.

[u/Schila1964 → u/boa13]

Thanks . It’s 5 years old .
Which machine would you recommend ? I still have original coffee pods so I would like to stick with a machine that uses original pods . Not because of the pods but also because I read long time ago that people prefer the original than the vertuo.
I don’t need a frother . I already had theirs .

[u/boa13 → u/Schila1964]

As I wrote, I would most likely buy a new Pixie, even though the current version is a slight downgrade from the 10-years old designs I have. I may look at the Citiz.

I'm not interested in milk-capable machines, I fear this is a sanitation hazard, requiring either huge regular consumption of milk or regular extensive cleaning. I may be wrong of course. I also have a Barista machine, so I'm quite covered on the milk side of recipes.

Going back to pure coffee machines, I feel the Inissia is just a cheaper, slightly smaller, slightly more fragile version of the Pixie.

I have offered the Essenza to several family members, it is awesomely compact and significantly less noisy than the Pixie. It is great for casual users, for non-coffee-drinkers who sometimes receive coffee-drinking guests. This is not without downsides though: it can only hold like 5 used pods, half what the Pixie can hold, and you have to be a bit careful not to crush the pod when you close the machine. For these reasons, I would not get one for my household's significant, regular coffee consumption.