Recommendations on capsule system selection and Nespresso Delonghi 520 capsule coffee machine review

Let me first talk about my motivation for buying a coffee machine. When it comes to German beverages, the first thing that comes to mind is beer. I was one of them, too. It wasn’t until I came to Germany that I realized that the Germans’ favorite beverage was not beer but coffee, which ranked first before mineral water/beer. The average annual consumption per person was 160 liters (130 for beer and 100 for mineral water, data from a German statistics website). I was puzzled at the time, how could this thing taste so good? So I thought of buying a coffee machine.

Coffee machines are generally divided into drip type/pump type (Italian style)/fully automatic/capsule machine/Pad machine (similar to capsule, such as Senseo). The more common machine is the drip type, but the drip type is bland, and I guess I won’t like it; the fully automatic type is too expensive and takes up space, and the beans may go stale if you don’t drink frequently, so I ruled that out. Later I focused on pump type and capsule coffee machines.

During this period, I studied this product:

This machine is relatively small in size, and the floor space occupied is basically the same as that of the capsule machine. What attracted me at the beginning is that the milk frothing nozzle can directly produce hot water (the cheapest German kettle is 30 euros, which is really crazy), and it can also be used to make tea, just put the tea leaves in the filter (thinking back to the time, it was really annoying... how boring it would be to make tea with this thing). Directly using coffee powder is much cheaper than the capsule machine, but it is not as convenient as capsules. I get up at 6 o'clock every day to go to school, and it is not worth spending 7/8 minutes with the machine in the morning, so I finally concentrated on studying capsule coffee machines. I studied it for a week and gained a lot. I decided to post it and share it with everyone.

An (incomplete/unfair) comparison of several major capsule systems:

(The reason why it is unfair is that the comparison is completely from the author's point of view, so the details are different, for reference by those who are interested.) The first and most important step in choosing a capsule coffee machine is to determine the coffee capsule system, because the capsules of different systems are incompatible, so the system you choose directly affects the types of coffee you can choose in the future, so you must be very careful! !

Iperespresso by ILLY

The unit price of capsules is 5.5 yuan/capsule (I believe most value friends will not go to specialty stores to buy original price capsules, so the price comparison comes from Ma Yun's home). The Iperespresso system was directly excluded at the beginning. The choice is too small. The capsules are not cheap. There are only a few types of capsules. If you want to make latte and other fancy styles, you have to buy a milk frother separately. There seem to be two machines, one classic and one modern. Value friends who have a special liking for Illy can also consider it.

Tassimo

I feel that the Tassimo system is like an alliance, with a wide variety of machine brands and capsule brands. It is a relatively open system with rich choices. It can make coffee/tea/hot cocoa/beverages, etc., and the price-performance ratio is really good. The machine is very cheap, and it also comes with capsules. It feels like it is almost free. The model in the picture above has been recommended many times on Zhiyoumai. It costs 30 euros and comes with capsules worth 40 euros. Another selling point of Tassimo is that the capsules have barcodes that can automatically read the appropriate water volume and other parameters, but there are pros and cons. Various parameters are fixed and difficult to adjust casually. It is difficult to satisfy everyone.

Cafessimo at Tchibo

Tchibo's coffee has always been well-known (in Germany), the machines are not expensive (ranging from 50 to 150 euros), and the capsule selection is relatively rich, similar to Tassimo. However, Cafissimo does not have milk capsules, and some of its machines do not have milk systems and need to purchase milk frothers separately. It is a bit inconvenient not to provide milk capsules. One of the selling points is the adjustable extraction pressure, with three levels to choose from.

Nestle's Dolce Gusto (Can I say I can never remember this name... I always copy and paste it)

This is the system that I was most optimistic about. I planned to buy it and not worry about it anymore, but there is always a but, so I gave up in the end. There are more choices of beverages, such as coffee/tea/hot cocoa, and you can adjust the amount of water yourself. There are milk capsules, which makes it convenient to make fancy drinks. In addition, the design of Dolce coffee machines is good, with a sense of design, but the price is relatively high. The positioning itself is lower than Nespresso, but there are few activities. Some machines are not as cheap as Nespresso's original price machines even if they are discounted during activities. And those who like latte/cappuccino need to buy milk capsules, which doubles the cost per cup.

Nespresso from Nestlé

The picture above is the one the OP bought.

After writing for a long time, I finally get to the point. Nespresso is positioned at a relatively high end in the capsule coffee system, and the capsules are not cheap (in terms of original price, the domestic price is not expensive because of the purchasing agent factor, but it is indeed the most expensive of all capsules in Germany, about 0.4 Euros). However, it has always been very popular in the comparison of various coffee machines. It is the type that is always first and not second. De Guoren has a high opinion of it. The author has seen this kind of evaluation more than once: "Nespresso is the real coffee, and other systems (referring to Dolce/Tassimo, etc., according to the author's analysis, it should not include Illy) make drinks for children."

As for the design of the machine, I personally feel that Nespresso is not as stylish as Dolce, nor as elegant as Illy, but it is more refined. In addition, the entire Nespresso series has a built-in waste capsule box that can hold 10 waste capsules, which is more convenient and does not require pouring them out one at a time.

In terms of capsule selection, Nespresso was not originally an advantage, because it only produces coffee capsules, not tea/cocoa and other beverages. However, this shortcoming has been completely changed since its patent expired in 2013. Nespresso is now the coffee system with the widest selection of capsules, with no less than 20 brands (each brand has a variety of flavors) launching capsule products for it. It is also the only capsule system that allows the purchase of third-party capsules, and even launched refillable capsules (it’s really painful, what’s the point of buying a capsule coffee machine, now it’s going back to the past, and the most amazing thing is that it costs 40 euros each, foreigners are really brave to ask for such a high price, and the most important thing is that people still buy it...)

I'll put the link up for everyone to see, in case the OP gets desperate enough to buy it someday...

After more than a week of analysis, I basically decided to buy a Nespresso machine. However, the opportunity for me to pay for it happened when I passed by its physical store (Stuttgart). Can I say that I almost didn't dare to go in at that time? The decoration is really high-end, and I'm not the only one who agrees. My classmates also agreed at the time. The store is full of style. I went in and took a look around. I found that no one came to greet me, so I felt relieved and walked around with peace of mind. Here is the Google Street View of the store. You can also go to the second floor. Friends who are interested can climb over the wall to experience it. It seems that the decoration style is quite different from that of physical stores in China——

I'll put the comparison table I made for your convenience. Please feel free to point out any shortcomings.

Machine unboxing and ordering

The machine is from a specialty store, model Lattissima+. The new Lattissima Touch is on the market, so the old model is discounted. The new model has two more buttons, one for Ristretto and one for pure milk froth, and a cleaning and descaling reminder light (the descaling reminder also exists on the old model, integrated on the cappuccino button). All buttons are touch-sensitive, and the appearance is changed from matte to glossy. I personally feel that the improvement is not significant, and the old model is still more affordable.

The purchase price was 189 euros, and it came with capsules (200 pcs) worth 75 euros and chocolates worth 7.5 euros (the chocolates were really good, thumbs up). I also got a Nespresso membership card, which allows me to buy capsules from the self-service machines in the store and drink free coffee at the tasting center in the store. I can have a cup when I get tired of shopping in the mall.

The main thing in the package is the brown machine. It looks ugly online, but I think it is very beautiful when I see it in person in the store. On the right is the milk system. In addition, after asking and confirming, all Nespresso machines are of exactly the same quality, only the functions and appearance are different. This is probably also applicable to other systems.

The machine comes with 16 capsules and 200 capsules for free. I have to complain that since the machine is an old model, the free trial capsules will expire on December 30. The purchase date is December 18, which is a bit of a rip-off, but I'm too lazy to look for it. The 200 free capsules are absolutely fresh, and are basically produced within a month. And the free capsules are quite generous, covering all price ranges, not just the cheapest model. Thumbs up.

After turning on the machine, set the water hardness and automatic shutdown time. The water hardness parameters affect the interval time for each system to prompt descaling. I bought a test paper to test it.

(This picture was in the correct direction before it was uploaded, but it became horizontal after it was uploaded...) From top to bottom, they are the hardness of tap water, the hardness of the water filter after one month of use, and the hardness of the new filter element, which also proves the effectiveness of the water filter. I can rest assured that my hair should be saved...

Comparison between original capsules and some third-party capsules

Since there are so many third-party capsules, it would be a waste if I didn’t buy some to try, so I went to three supermarkets to find capsules from three brands.

The long ones are original capsules. All capsules come in 10 capsules per box. The reason why the latter one is so big is that a separate air-filled packaging is added outside the capsule (a bit redundant, but it still cannot change the fact that it is the cheapest capsule)

Comparison pictures of various capsules after being anally penetrated. From left to right, they are Nespresso original/Bellarom/Dallmayr Capsa./Cafet. Although the designs of third-party capsules are different, there have been no compatibility issues so far, so you can rest assured.

I wanted to post a photo of the coffee being served, but no matter how many times I took it, it looked really ugly, so I gave up. Finally, I want to complain about the German cups. A double-layer glass cup costs more than 10 euros, and every time I pass by it, I have to play with it and then reluctantly put it back. . . .