DeLonghi BCO130T Combination Coffee/Espresso Machine

2/15/07 Received coffee maker with minor outside box damage but eveything seemed intact. Made several pots of very good coffee and espresso but after 4 days the main switch and digital readout went crazy and the water heating element for the coffee side refused to turn off. I had to unplug the unit fearing a fire. I am returning the unit to Delonghi. I will review the new unit after I have had it for a while.

4/2/07 I recieved the new unit in good condition and set it up with some trepidation (see earlier review). All the functions work fine and the coffee/espresso maker has been chugging along fine. It has made more than 50 pots of very good coffe and about 30 pots of espresso that even my Cuban colleagues enjoy. Based on my experience with the new unit so far, I would increase my rating to 4 stars, however Amazon will only allow one review per person.

7/15/08 When I first started using this product, I must admit that I was impressed. It packed a lot of funtionality in a reasonably priced product. I have now had this machine a little over a year and I can no longer use the coffee side of the machine because it leaks water all over my counter. Since it was out of warranty, I disassembled the machine to find out what was leaking. There was a fitting at the top of the machine where the water was pumped from the reservoir to the sprayer. I could not take that fitting apart because all of the screws were rusted completely. They just fell apart when I tried to unscrew them. I would think that a company such as this could afford to spend a few extra cents per machine to put in stainless steel screws! Is this another example of planned obsolescence? Based on this experience, I would downgrade my rating to one star.

12/18/09 Well now a little over a year after the coffee side went belly up, the expresso side has now bitten the dust as well. Into the trash bin it goes. Wow! for $150 you would think you should get more than two years use out of a coffee machine. DeLonghi... Never again!!! Definately downgraded to one star, if that.

I loved this coffee maker for the first 11 months...then it broke (leaks water EVERYWHERE). Delonghi customer service is awful! This item was a gift, and they are refusing to repair the item and they require me to ship it to them at my cost -not reimbursed. This is one of the most frustrsting consumer experiences that I have ever dealt with, and the Delonghi reps whom I have spoken with have complete disregard for the situation. It is sad because this has the potential to be a great product, but it is not backed-up by the manufacturer who is making repair or replacement impossible. Buyer beware...

Buy DeLonghi BCO130T Combination Coffee/Espresso Machine Now

Last December I bought the BCO-130T machine. I thoroughly enjoyed it the coffee it made and the very good espresso and cappuccino. It worked fine for awhile. About June/July it started leaking water from the bottom of the machine. I called the suggested repair facility in Virginia. As soon as I started to explain the problem to the owner, he told me the problem and that it was common and the machine would be replaced. I sent it in for repairs. Well that process took about 8 weeks, an absolutely ridiculous amount of time.

I finally get a replacement and now a couple/few months later this new machine is also leaking. So now I am two for two of machines that are defective and do not work. Although I have "had" the machine for about 11 months I have not been able to use it but about 8+months.

I have no confidence whatsoever in going through the process again not to mention that I will again have to pay shipping and be without a coffee maker for weeks. To spend ANY more money on this inferior product would be throwing good money after bad.

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Makes a good cup of coffee and the espresso machine part is easy to use and does a good job. I really like the built in milk frother. As long as you rinse it right away it is easy to clean and makes perfectly frothed milk everytime! The 1/5 feature allows you to make a half a pot of coffee that still tastes good.

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Few things that could be better but overall a very good machine.

The weak points are:

1. Instructions are so-so, not as direct and to the point as they could be if this is your 1st cappuccino machine. After a few brews, you should finally get it all down pat.

2. The carafes do not have hinged lids so they are a pain to use. Having had many coffee makers in the past, I was surprised to see this on an 'upscale' coffee maker. If you pour to quickly, they tend to spill coffee on the counter.

Now for the good part, once you figure it out it makes excellent coffee and cappuccino. I'm a coffee drinker but my wife prefers cappuccino. So she decided that a combination machine would be a great Christmas present rather then a separate machine because it would take less counter space. It is an added bonus that it can make both at the same time. We researched a lot of machines before landing on this one and are both quite happy with the results. As I said, in the big picture, the complaints were minor and if we were to do it over again, we would still purchase this machine.

Update, After 5, count 'em 5 of these machines I give up. Cappuccino side worked well on all of them, frother did a pretty good job but sometimes would just not froth. Coffee side tended to prove the old saying about multi-function units not doing everything well. Every unit leaked water on it's way to the coffee. The repair place was about a 45 minute drive and would be without a machine for a few weeks, then a new one would appear. After a bit it would leak again. It got to the point where they just had me cut off the cord and return it, which was easier but still annoying. I offered to pay to upgrade to a better unit but was told nothing existed. They offered a model down without the frother but since that seemed to work just fine i saw no purpose in that plus reviews on that one said it was a leaker too.

Would have kept it for the cappuccino side but it takes up to much room for that so it's off to the re-cycle bin. Too bad, great idea, poor execution. We now have 2 units, take up about the same amount of room and do a much better job.

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Pure Kona Coffee Blend Espresso Pods, ESE Pods for Home Espresso Machines, 36 ESE Pods

Maybe these pods aren't compatible with my otherwise ESE compatible machine, a Francic-Francis, but these pods make a watery espresso. If you like your espresso very long and diluted, these pods might be good for you. They don't seem to be packed tight enough. Same goes for Lavazzo ESE pods, btw. Only Illy's are really tight and work well with my machine. I believe the quality of this coffee is rather high, though, so I intend to try some whole beans.

Very expensive also.

This is a serious espresso. 100% Pure Espresso Roast Kona coffee that produces the finest espresso you will ever have.

It's extremely smoooooth and rich and not even a hint of bitterness. If you're looking for the best cup of espresso you just found it!!!!

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These pods are very expensive, but the taste is incredible. Please reply to this review if you find better (seems hardly possible).

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I grew up in Hawaii drinking Hawaiian Coffee. I have a Handpresso, either it doesn't work well with it or this coffee is too light, I can't get it like I get Starbucks Pods. Had to return it, my girl friend refuse to drink it.

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not happy with the flavor of these expensive pods... prefer Lavazza Gran Crema Espresso Pods over these, and they are WAY cheaper.

Gaggia 90501 Titanium SS Super Automatic Espresso and Cappuccino Machine, Stainless Steel

I've lusted after a Super Auto for years. When I finally decided to get one, I did a fare amount of investigating. The Gaggia Titanium had the best spec's for the price and good reviews. I decided to spend the extra money for the Stainless unit. I haven't seen the painted plastic model so I can't comment on the appearance. I do think the Stainless looks great! You can find reviews of the non-stainless here on Amazon and other than the outside appearance, the device is the same.

I've only had the unit for a few days but so far, I'm very happy. To the negatives first. The manual is awful! It's not just the Italian to English translation! The text is skimpy and the illustrations not so great. I spent a fair amount of time making sure I understood how to setup and use the unit. I'm pretty technically savvy and in the end, I figured it all out. But don't rush into using this product until you've figured out how to set it up, clean it and adjust all the settings (there are many).

The only issue I've had is whereby the auto bean grinder thinks it's empty when it's not. Open the lid (which could be a bit better designed) and stir and it works. Could be the beans I'm using not sure. It's an intermittent issue.

The good stuff: once you figure out the coffee strength and grind, the Gaggia makes a delicious cup. I wish the brew were a tad hotter (I have it set to max) but using the cup warmer helps. No issues making froth with the wand; much better than the older manual machine I had. You can't put a huge mug under the unit (the max size is 4.5 inches) but its so easy to make a cup you just make fresh when needed. You can set the unit for the amount of brew. However, I found that clicking the "large coffee" button twice, the unit thinks it's making 2 cups and that just about fills a decent size mug. It's much stronger too since the unit grinds two doses of coffee instead of just adding more hot water using the programmable size. You get a nice foam on top and as I said, the coffee is outstanding.

I love the clean up (or lack of) compared to the drip maker I had (a Bodum Vacuum unit). I still have that unit should I need to make a lot of coffee for company. But for the two mugs I drink in the morning, the Gaggia easily replaces this unit. And there's far less cleanup. The grinds sit in a canister and after a few days, you just tap it out into the trash and maybe rinse. So, you can use this Gaggia to replace a conventional coffee machine as long as you're making a cup or two. What I love is just pressing a button twice (for two large coffees) and walking away from the unit. A minute later, a great cup of Joe. It truly is super automatic.

I have the unit set for Energy savor whereby it's in a kind of sleep mode a few hours after I use it. I only drink in the morning. However, if you decide to "wake it up", it heats up in about 2 minutes. It also does a rinse cycle so I keep a small glass under the unit so it can clean itself and rinse out about 3oz of water. There is a little pan under which would catch the water but then you have to toss it out ever few days. There's also a "full Rinse" cycle that thoroughly cleans out the unit and uses about half the water in the reservoir. It's a menu item so don't select it unless you really want to do this (takes about 5 minutes and a lot of water goes into the catch pan or several cups if you so desire).

Yes it cost big bucks but as long as it works well for years and keeps its great looks, I'm very happy.

UPDATE. The issue with the grinder was the beans (too oily). I called the NY office and got someone in "tech support" in minutes. She knew her product. Sure enough, the inside of the grinder area was super oily making it hard for the beans to fall into the grinder area.

UPDATE: Dec 31st 2010. Approaching nearly 5 years with the unit, its preformed nearly perfectly and brewed 6377 cups of coffee! The only tiny issue I've had was the float in the water tank needed to be replaced (easy to do, cost $15). Over time, it gets water logged or something and stops floating, causing the unit to think there is no water in the tank. I was actually able to go quite awhile with a kludge fix using a small plastic tie to keep the float in the up position. Eventually I just ordered the part and replaced it in 5 minutes. Otherwise, the unit has worked preferably.

UPDATE: Dec 19th, 2012. 10377 cups of coffee and still going strong.

Unfortunately, like a 1970's Alpha Romeo, good looks and great performance don't add up to a hill of (coffee) beans over the long run when reliability is taken into account.

My first machine was dead on arrival with the fateful "Ventilate" issues seen by other purchasers. The second machine, which although shipped and sold by Amazon was manufactured 18 months prior to my purchase (Jan 2007). This started to give trouble after about 14 months with the boiler leaking steam and flooding the counter-top which, given the claims of a stainless steal "durable" boiler was risible. This, coupled with the fact that the brewunit has jammed three times (requiring a trip to the local repair shop) means that 18 months in to the purchase I've spent over $650 in maintenance fees. For 2-3 cups of coffee per day, a trip to Starbucks begins to look cheap!

Buy Gaggia 90501 Titanium SS Super Automatic Espresso and Cappuccino Machine, Stainless Steel Now

I bought my Gaggia Titanium about 1 year ago and hated it for the first month. The machine kept showing the "ventilate" sign (apparently a common problem) and I couldn't figure out what to do. (Manual is terrible!) I went to fix it.com and found someone who was able to solve the problem. Go in the menu and get the asterik to show next to factory settings. (Use the arrow buttons to get the asterik on factory settings. Push "yes." That should solve the problem. You will have to reset the cup sizes.

I haven't seen the ventilate sign for a long time now. My family has made over 1,500 cups now and we love our machine. It is very easy to clean too. We use Lavazza Super Crema beans ($27 for 2.2 pounds) It's a smooth, mellow tasting Italian bean that is not bitter or greasy. (Beans never get stuck in the hopper.) It makes a nice, authentic Italian "crema" too. Enjoy!

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I was very leery of spending this kind of money on a product that might or might not work...but I am very very happywe love the Gaggia and totally enjoy it...I have severe RA and cannot manage muchthis item is totally user friendly to anyone with hand strength problemsI have no trouble using it...it is a welcome surprise to a lot of items that are hard to usethe other user friendly products I find are all of kitchenaid....yes we enjoy the gaggia and coffee time is very specialthe frother works perfect i use it daily...anyone looking for the best out there should consider this machine!

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This has been an excellent trouble free product. The Lattes we can now make at home are better than ones bought in Starbucks, etc.. The unit has been flawless and we are very satisfied.

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