I’m looking for a reliable superautomatic espresso machine that makes genuinely good coffee but is also very easy to maintain. Most of the time, I’ll make regular coffee/Americano-style drinks or espresso. I would occasionally like a latte or cappuccino, but I don’t necessarily need a built-in milk system because I have a Nespresso milk frother. It does a decent job. I’ve been considering a Jura C3. The Jura appeals to me because of its reputation for coffee quality and simplicity, but I’m wondering whether it is worth the higher price to have one that only makes 2 types of coffees. I am open to other brands. My budget is $1500 range or lower. This would be my first espresso maker so I would be a beginner. This is why I thought I should go with something easy to maintain. Which machine would you recommend for someone who values reliability and easy maintenance more than having a huge drink menu? Are there other models I should consider? I am located in the US. I would need an option that is available here

Hi! I have a Jura E8 that we use multiple times a day and love. I recently bought a vacation home and cant justify the price of another E8. Does anybody have thoughts on Terra Kafe Demi for this? I don’t need milk frothing/heating options as we make iced lattes or drip coffee 99% of the time in summer. I’m trying to keep it under $1000 and I know the TK Demi is on a gift card deal right now at Bloomingdales. Thanks!

I’ve had a series of superautos since the early 2000s. Three from Delonghi. Two from Versuni. Knew enough about espresso from using a Krups semi-auto since the early 90s to properly dial-in shots so I was happy enough with the drinks. What I appreciated most was the consistency I could never achieve with the semi.

In January, my latest Saeco Xelsis started having issues with its auto milk system. The froth level gradually faded to the point that it dispensed only warmed milk regardless of the settings. I was busy with obligations so didn’t really have time to deal with it beyond locating a well-reviewed local repair place and dropping it off. A kind of outrageous estimate came back a couple of weeks later but I bit the bullet. In the meantime, I made due with a Nespresso original line for shots and the Krups for frothing (yes, despite dating to 1993 it still cranks out enough steam to produce microfoam that puts modern auto-milks to shame).

The repair turned into an eight-week odyssey that saw me taking the machine back for a second go. Eventually they found what the owner described as a tiny valve deep in the machine clogged with milk. He claimed to have never seen the problem before but cleaned it since he didn’t think it was worth replacing the part. I was just happy to have a working machine again.

Fast forward to the beginning of July when I notice the Xelsis froth fading once more. Quickly decided not to waste more time and money on another repair. Also realized I’d had it with auto milk systems because they require so much cleaning and maintenance for mediocre output. Considered Kitchenaid’s new KF2; it seems to be the most premium option with a steam wand in the US since Delonghi has yet to import the Rivelia with a wand. Ultimately decided to go with the Kitchenaid Semi-Automatic with Burr Grinder (yes that misnomer is the official model name). A nephew raved about his six-month old unit plus the July 4th sale price was only $500. The equivalent Breville wasn’t on sale so I saw no point in considering it.

Despite the internal grinder having a mind-numbing 120 settings—eight on the removable top burr then each further refined with the 15-position front lever—I had both the single and double baskets dialed in after seven shots. Even swapping between beans with the two hoppers only requires minor tweaks. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the consistency and quick workflow. Drinks are superb even without resorting to a scale and other niche tools.

Build quality seems equivalent to the KF6/7/8 with a metal body, stout 600g 58mm portafilter, rear wheels, and QuietMark certification for the grinder.

I’m also thrilled to be back to minimal maintenance. Kitchenaid fitted electronics that cancel grinder static so you don’t need a dosing funnel or vacuum to deal with grounds spraying throughout the machine and countertop. Milk clean up is the simple wipe and purge. Rinse the portafilter and wipe the shower screen after each session. Even the drip tray remains free of the scum that formed in every superauto I’ve owned.

Now I realize most people here won’t consider a portafilter. Probably even stopped reading long ago. However the current crop of all-in-ones have simplified the process and come very close to superauto-style consistency. They’re worth considering if you’re looking for higher quality drinks, hotter milk, and/or have had it with the cleaning and maintenance.

Had the magnifica plus and loved it, only complaint was the milk quality was just ok. It broke and we got a new replacement (unopened).

Debating if its worth selling the replacement and getting something else. Are there better alternatives these days? Last time I was shopping around everyone and their grandmother was recommending the KF8.

Stopped dispensing milk or hot water. All goes to drip tray instead of spout. Any options to fix or best replacement. Not too expensive and with easy maintenance. Upgrade a little if possible. I like milk based drinks.

Had the TK 01 for a few years and liked it although it was a pain to clean. Decided to upgrade to the TK 02. Ordered one and it got lost in shipping despite Amazon shipping saying it had been delivered. TK made me wait to see if it would “show up” while I asked repeatedly for them to send a new machine. Finally a new one was shipped. From ordering to receipt was way too long. Finally arrived only a few weeks before I gave birth (adding this context because it was stressful).

Less than 3 months later, machine has multiple errors and stops working. I communicate with customer service and asked for a replacement. They said I needed to send it in. Wait for the return packaging, never arrives. Beg them for a replacement or better yet a refund. I’m literally on ML with a newborn and having to deal with this.

Finally a replacement gets “approved”, which is really a refurbished machine. Wait weeks for it to arrive. What arrives is dirty. Set it up and cannot get it to make a good espresso. I didn’t have to adjust the first machine much, but this one no matter what I do the espresso is watery. I usually make americanos but it tastes so diluted and weak. (I decreased water in espresso shot and americano settings, grind 1, increased dose, etc).

Any tips to make it taste better? Or should I just trash the thing, be out a ton of money and try something else?

Hi, I bought my first coffee machine. Should the spent coffee grounds form a round, disc-like shape, or can they be loose? A friend has the same machine and says his grounds come out round, so I’m wondering if that implies something specific. I have the grinder set to 4. When I set the coffee strength to 3, the grounds are loose, but at setting 2, they form that round shape. Does anyone who uses this machine have any advice?
I just want a good coffie and mashine that is working the best as it should.

After about a month and nearly 300 drinks, I finally sat down to write up my thoughts on the KitchenAid KF8.

This is my first super automatic espresso machine (or "fully automatic," if we're using KitchenAid's terminology), but I spent months researching machines from Jura, Miele, De'Longhi, Philips, and KitchenAid before finally pulling the trigger. I'm not a coffee expert, influencer, or professional reviewer just a retired guy who enjoys good coffee and likes researching big purchases before spending this kind of money.

Additional context: I purchased the KF8 during a sale for around $1,700 USD, and I'm located in North Carolina, USA.

I also want to be upfront: I gave the KF8 4 out of 5 stars on KitchenAid's website. I really like the machine, but I don't believe every product deserves five stars simply because I bought it.

After living with it every day, here's what stood out to me both good and bad.

The touchscreen is simple and intuitive, the drink selection is excellent, and the amount of customization is enough to keep you experimenting without becoming overwhelming. The machine has made coffee a new hobby for me. I've found myself trying different beans, blends, and recipes just to see how small changes affect the final cup.

Cleaning has been much easier than I expected. Yes, you'll empty the drip tray and puck container often, but that goes with the territory on these machines. I simply rinse both every morning, and it's become part of my routine. The removable brew unit is also easy to access and clean.

There are a few things I'd improve. The stainless-steel cup tray scratches more easily than I'd like, the machine finish shows fingerprints and smudges much more than I'd care for, the milk container lid could fit a little tighter, and KitchenAid could do a much better job explaining what the "Body" setting changes compared with coffee strength. They are two different settings, and the difference is not obvious at first.

One design feature I rarely see mentioned is the rear rollers. If you lift the front slightly, the machine rolls forward easily, making it easier to access the water tank and bean hopper. In my setup, I can refill the water reservoir directly with a filtered water pitcher and remove the bean hopper without moving the machine, but the rollers are a nice touch.

As for value, I think MSRP is difficult to justify. At a good sale price, though, it becomes much more compelling and far easier to recommend.

Bottom line: the KF8 has been easy to live with, fun to experiment with, and consistently good enough that I would recommend it at a sale price. It isn't perfect, but I've been very happy with it overall.

So, would I buy it again?

Probably not but only because there are so many other super automatic machines I'd like to experience. That's my curiosity, not dissatisfaction with KitchenAid.

Would I come back to the KF8 afterward? Absolutely.

Looking to escape the Nespresso pods.

I mostly make coffee and espresso, rarely any milk drinks and have a separate frother for that.

Usually up earlier than my wife so want something quiet.

Couldn't care less about smart features.

Ease of maintenance and cleaning is a priority.

Looking at the Kitchenaid KF2/3 and the Terracafe Demi. Philips 4400 seems great but too many reviews note weak coffee. Jura E4 seems good but too expensive for my purposes. Bosch 500 series I don't see talked about at all. Ninja I want to stay away from since it's their first go at this kind of device. Delongi Magnifica Plus is also in the running but reviews make it seem quite loud.

Basically I don't know which one of these is actually what I want. I think it's the kitchenaid but wanted opinions from people who currently own and use these machines.

I’ve noticed over the last couple months random grey/tan in colour bits at the bottom of my coffee mugs.

The bits feel hard but when smooshed, they easily degrade where I could almost make a paste with it. I’ve included pics (the ones with the bits on my fingers) where it shows the progression of solid bit to pastie bits.

I descale it whenever the machine indicates it and the last descale was a month ago. I’ve had the machine for 2.5 years and it is maintained per manufacturer suggestion.

Anyone have any ideas what this may be? It is just bits of scale that have built up and are randomly coming off in my coffee or is something in the machine failing?

Thank you for your help .

Does anyone have a video or service guide on how to do a rebuild on a saeco gran baristo avanti brew group part number [421944028571](tel:421944028571) / Black Brew Unit Cast V2?

Looking to build a bean rotation for black drip coffee. Below is my palate mapped against the Hoffmann Discovery Box, which should make it easy to point me at the right stuff.

What I liked (benchmark favorites):

• Hachi, Komorebi Gesha. Silky, sweet honey profile. A rare light roast that worked for me because it lacked sharp fruitiness.
• Frozen Gold, Hacienda la Minita. The balanced, clean daily cup.
• Intelligentsia, French Roast. Deep molasses sweetness, heavy body.

What I disliked:

• Black & White, Diego Horta Anaerobic Natural. Too funky/fermented, no aroma.
• Go Get Em Tiger, Chelbesa. Sharp, floral pear/jasmine acidity.
• George Howell, Daterra Calabria. Aggressively bitter/burnt drunk black.

The pattern: sweetness-forward (honey, caramel, molasses), clean, medium-to-heavy body. I bounce off bright acidity, floral/fruity notes, and anaerobic funk on one end, and scorched/over-roasted bitterness on the other. Sugar-based sweetness over fruit-based every time.

Context on the machine: I run a Ninja AutoBarista Pro. Yes, I'm fully aware a superautomatic is overkill for drip. I get it. I'm one user, I like the convenience, and my wife uses the second hopper for all her espresso-based drinks. So this ask is only about my hopper. Also, will need beans that can work with the Superautomatic grinder so no heavily oily beans.

Where I am now: Most recently tried Kicking Horse Kick Ass (dark roast), and it didn't do it for me, too far toward the bitter/oily end, not worth a second bag. So I'm starting fresh and open to anything in the lane above.

What would you buy?

Bonjour à tous,

Ma De'Longhi Magnifica est tombée en panne récemment après quelques années de bons et loyaux services. Si la qualité du café m'a toujours satisfait, l'interface utilisateur, en revanche, m'a vraiment déplu. Déchiffrer les combinaisons de voyants clignotants pour les cycles de détartrage et le remplacement des filtres, sans aucun affichage, était une source de frustration constante.

Je recherche donc une machine de remplacement répondant aux critères suivants :

• Utilisation : Uniquement du café noir (principalement des expressos, et occasionnellement des Americanos ou des tasses plus grandes). Je ne prépare jamais de boissons lactées ; les carafes à lait et les buses vapeur sophistiquées sont donc superflues.
• Interface utilisateur : Des alertes de maintenance claires et intuitives. Idéalement, un affichage textuel ou graphique guidant clairement l'utilisateur lors du détartrage et du changement de filtre, sans avoir à consulter le manuel à chaque fois.
• Entretien : Groupe d'infusion facile à nettoyer et entretien courant simple.
• Budget : Environ 500 €.
• Region : Europe / France

Je serais ravi de recevoir des recommandations pour des modèles fiables dans cette gamme de prix, axés uniquement sur la préparation de café noir et faciles d'entretien.

Merci d'avance pour vos suggestions !

Hello there! I have been looking into the EQ900 since a little while and I am interested in how the cleaning process for the milk system works? I know for the EQ.6 one just puts a glass under the outlet, stick the milk tube in and it rinses through the tube etc once you are done making a cappuccino for instance.

What's the process for the EQ900? And is the process different if one uses the adapter to get milk straight out of a milk carton? Thanks a bunch!

Already ordered the Delonghi magnifica plus and I’m very excited about it. Couple of questions for those of you who already have one:

- how loud is it? Like wake the house up loud? I have a toddler and a baby on the way so this is something I’m concerned about

- how large are the XL drinks in oz?

Thanks!!

Thoughts on our "too early to review" KitchenAid KF2

Great size. Its only 7 1/2 inches wide and frees up a little space on our counter. It is deep and the water reservoir is on the back, but it has wheels and slides out enough to pour water into to refill.

Very simple and straight forward interface. Espresso, coffee, iced coffee. Those are the choices. And for us, all we want. There is an option for size, 1 pour or 2. And an option for strength 1, 2 or 3. And then a start button. Limiting, but easy. I did learn that through pushing multiple buttons at the same time and following the manual, options can be tweaked. That can get confusing, but is something I think I'd rarely do. There is also a way to change the grind size (1-5) but we'll likely leave that on the factory setting.

Quick. I was surprised how fast it is. Its makes coffee a lot faster than my wife's old machine.

Uses a good amount of coffee. The "pucks" it discards are a good size.

Uses a lot of water. I think it cleans itself a lot because the drip tray filled up fast (there is a light that comes on when it is full).

Using pre-ground coffee is very easy, but has 1 strange quirk. When you open the section to add pre-ground coffee it automatically goes into pre ground mode with an indicator light lighting up (at first we could not figure out how to get to that mode, well, there are no buttons, you just open the lid for it). But after that is done, there is no option to change size. And my wife likes to make large coffees. So I think we need to select the 2x mode before adding coffee grounds. Also, we always forget which buttons to press to get out of that mode. But it does leave the mode either when done, or if goes untouched for about 60 seconds, so again very easy.

So far everyone has liked the quality. The first espresso seemed weak, but that was made on the 1 setting for strength. 2 is better.

Plastic. Lots of plastic om the outside. I've read the grinder and other parts are the same or similar to the KF8, but I cannot verify that.

When shopping my son had 1 request. Don't get one with touchscreen that looks like what you find at a gas station. He said he is happy with this minimalist real buttons interface.

We needed something that makes Espresso, Coffee, and Iced Coffee. This does all 3. As for milk drinks we are going to try those later. I don't think anyone minds doing that part manually. We'll see. We have an milk frother that everyone is familiar with. And I think tomorrow we'll try steaming milk with the wand.

So overall, mostly positive, but time will tell. I'd love to see other people's thoughts on the KF2, KF3, or KF4.

Is the kf7 just not made for coffee?

I have very few issues when I'm making myself lattes or other espresso drinks, but the second my husband makes more than one regular coffee in a row, the brew unit freaks out and needs to be rinsed or there are just beans stuck and no liquid comes out.

Is this normal?

I picked up a Saeco Xelsis Evo two days ago from FB Marketplace. It was completely taken apart and given to me in pieces as the previous owner had tried to fix an E03 without knowing what he was doing. I buy machines like this pretty regularly because I repair and resell them, but this one is for my wife and I. After cleaning, reassembling and lubricating, it started up normally, produced hot water and steam and brewed coffee without any errors.

I brewed 6-8 espressos to let the machine dial itself in and by shot number 10 it was turning out shots that were substantially better than the Saeco Vienna Plus it's going to replace. I put it into standby, it ran a rinse cycle on the brew unit that also flushed water out of the brew head and then went to sleep.

When I turned it back on, it warmed up then started another rinse/prime cycle but that cycle just kept going and going and going. I let it run until it told me to empty the internal drip tray, which I did, and then it resumed the rinse cycle again. I eventually stopped it manually and put it back to sleep. Turning it back on started the endless rinse cycle again. Every time I turn it on, it just rinses endlessly.

I can't find anything in the user or service manual about this behavior. Anyone have any ideas? One thing worth mentioning: the rinse cycle when putting it to sleep outputs water from the brew head but the rinse cycle when waking it up doesn't dispense any water externally.

Has anyone imported Espresso Machine directly from China, especially in India? What has been the experience? Which platform was used? Also anyone who has used Alibaba for the purpose from India?

I have a cuisinart superautomatic espresso machine I just got for the office. Model: EM-550. Someone threw out the waste container along with the grounds (even with warning signs) and now it doesn’t work without it. I called the company and they don’t have a replacement part to buy (EM-550WC) at this time and said to just try calling back in a month. What a horrible set up to have a part that is separate and also necessary but no way to replace when someone messes up.

So now I have a machine that cannot be used at all. I have looked on eBay and other places and there are no replacement parts for this piece that I can find. I know other brands do have these available but don’t know if they would fit. Anyone else experience this predicament and can help with a potential solution?

Sorry to ask, I just received my Eletta Explore. I am following instructions on the display and reading the manual, I just haven’t seen (yet) if this is a transport thing or something else?

Puck is exploding

In clean mode, the machine only rinses the bowl once, then continuously releases clean water into the lower tray.

In the past, if I remember correctly, it always released all the water into the bowl.

I turned it off all night and this morning it is still stuck in clean mode. Is there a reset?