De’Longhi BCO430 Combination Espresso & Coffee Machine

This machine is a Godsend for our family that has immense disagreement over what to d. The Grandfather loves straight, simple brewed coffee. The Grandmother loves hot tea. The Mother loves iced tea. The Father enjoys hot chocolate, and the Son loves espresso. For $150, you get a machine that can pretty much make any beverage at a Starbucks. There are two water tanks- a removable one for the espresso/hot water/frothing wand and an innovative front loading one for the coffee. This works well for our kitchen shelf, which with other machines has involved pulling the unit out of the shelf before poring into a small space in the corner. Nearly everything with this unit can be done from the front, except changing the water filters. Machine is a great value for the benefits of two separate units, and cheaper than many espresso machines. The machine controls the water temperature, but user is responsible for starting and stoping the water flow. The ESE (Easy serving espresso) pods are super easy to use, and completely optional. The open source standard keeps prices down and they are available in all different brands of coffee from cheap to gourmet. We originally started with loose coffee, but then switched to the pods after issues with grounds getting everywhere during the tamping process. The milk frother is straight forward to use and doubles as a hot water outlet for americanos, tea and instant coffee. Keep in mind that the machine does not come with a frothing pot (get a good quality cone shaped one for better foam) or espresso glasses, but does include a combined tamper/coffee measure. If you decide not to use pods, be sure to invest in a better tamper instead of the plastic one that is included. The 16 bar pump pulls good shots with suitable crema and strength. Comes with two portafilters, for short/pods or long shots. Bear in mind that the coffe scoop that is included is larger than the portafilter. If you have no idea how to froth milk, basically pour the cold milk into the cup and leave it in the milk while swirling the milk around for wet foam, or move it up and down near the top for dry foam. When you feel the milk getting to the same temperature as Starbucks, pull it out. The machine is simple to clean- just bang the handle on the side of the garbage to dump out the coffee, and run the frother under the tap for a few seconds. Every week or so, empty the (removable) drip tray and clean out the handle, portafilters, and area where the handle is locked in. Every few months, de-scale the unit and switch out the filters. About the drip coffee unit, pretty standard. Programmable brew times and auto-stop. Carafe is sturdy and has a well designed spout that prevents any dripping and fits perfectly into the port for the water tank. If you are only making a few cups, definitely turn on the 1-4 cups button. It does something patented that really improves the flavor. So far, there has been no mechanical issues but I will update if anything happens.

Solo para verdaderos amantes del cafe. Los que disfrutan una buena taza de cafe bien preparado.
Tuve una version mas viejita en UK, donde conocí la marca De’Longhi.
Esta version es mas elegante y moderna. Hace un cafe perfecto con su filtro de cobre. Es resistente al lavavajillas.
Respecto al expresso, es riquisimo y aunque parece poca su capacidad; el tiempo de calentado te da chance de lavar y preparar la siguiente carga de cafe.
NO dice explicitamente, pero recomiendo que compren de una vez repuestos de los filtritos (DeLonghi 7313285779 Filtro de carbón) y el descalcificador (De’Longhi EcoDecalk descalcificador Natural para máquinas de café) para asegurarse de tener un cafe de primera cada vez 😀

All is well, for us coffee, cappuccino lovers here! Its been a couple weeks, and being used daily. Its nice being able to have options from a brewed pot of coffee, to an espresso or cappuccino in one machine. Doesn’t come with a grinder, not a deal breaker. The automated feature for our morning pot of coffee, is doing its thing perfectly. The automatic shut off is good, we have it set for 1 hour rather then 2. Easy to clean!
We have had no issues arise with any part of this unit, its been working flawlessly. I was concerned after reading some of the reviews, and so far I have no complaints. It performs as expected, its simple and easy to use. Takes up minimal space, like any other regular coffee machine in my opinion. As for the noise level, no louder then any other espresso maker we’ve ever used when using that function on them. As for your milk, I would suggest warming it in the microwave first, before frothing. It helps.
Its keeping us happy here, that means everything to us.