Customer Reviews

Delonghi Esam5400 Digital Super Automatic Machine Espresso/coffee/latte/cappuccino

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

After many years of home barista-ing and many machines, I wanted a change: I wanted a cleaner counter without knock boxes and grounds everywhere and Cafiza and backflushing and mess. It has exceeded my expectations. I drink a traditional cappuccino. Yes, the foam is the tall style shaving foam, rather than the silky microfoam, but I've learned to live with that, and the Delonghi foams better than my Gaggias, though it takes a bit longer. The steam wand is very easy to clean and does not clog. Setting the machine to the finest grind, and setting it to the highest strength and highest temp, my cappas are perfect -- absolutely delicious. Yes, it's essentially thermoblock and pressurized, but I prefer the cappas' flavor to what I had with a much more expensive setup. The machine holds plenty of beans, and cleans itself superbly every time. It's a design marvel and easy to use. I'm happy I didn't get the model with the milk container, because the steaming is very easy to do myself, and using a thermometer, I can make sure the steamed milk is the temp I want. The main negative for me is that I wish the water container were one inch wider [and hence the machine one inch wider] which would have significantly increased the volume of water it contained: I find myself refilling the water often, compared to emptying pucks or refilling beans, which is rare. Overall, I'm very happy I went for this Perfecta.

This machine is AMAZING! I have never tasted smoother, richer coffee ever ... not even in coffee shops. It is so easy to use and within minutes you can have espresso, latte, cappuccino or americano coffee. I used to use a french press, have tried ordinary percolators and have used a pod machine, but this coffee maker gets 10 out of 5 stars if I could rate it as such! You can make coffee from beans (the machine grinds as much as is required automatically) or you can add ground beans yourself. You can choose which strength of coffee you want as well as which volume. I will never go back to the other methods of coffee making! The only thing is ... we're all drinking way too much delicious coffee now!

I have had this machine for nearly a year and it has been a great purchase for me--like most things, there is a bit of a learning curve but it is fairly steep. The espresso made is quite good and the machine is very solid. The foaming process for cappucinos and lattes is very easy to learn and makes a very attractive drink. Delonghi offers a two year warranty which is the best I've seen--fortunately I haven't needed it yet, but it's nice to know it's there. The only downside at all is that it is a bit loud and the water reservoir requires fairly frequent filling, but neither one of these bothers me very much at all--I mention it simply for the sake of completeness. For the money, I think this machine is probably the best on the market, especially if you like the convenience and simplicity of not having to grind your own beans, tamp, etc. Highly recommended!

I use this machine for about two weeks and I like it so far. It makes a great espresso in just 30 seconds with one touch of a button. I also tried making cappuccinos a few times and they were OK, but the steam wand is a bit short, leaving not much space between machine and the wand itself. For those who complain about cold coffee, I'd say: read the manual, people. Coffee temperature can be adjusted, and it is not on the highest setting initialy. Also, if you use fine porcelain or bone china cups, or ever paper cups (ugh!), they would not cool your drink as much as regular stoneware mugs.

An ex-boyfriend had a super-automatic coffee/espresso maker, which inspired me to (finally!) replace my old drip machine. It took me a while to decide, because there are so many with complaints about poor customer service and needing to be sent away for long periods of time for servicing, and they are mostly very pricey. This one is perfect (so far, knock wood). It works great and doesn't take up too much room on the counter (unlike the ex-boyfriend's, which was HUGE!) The water reservoir is a bit small, which I guess is why it doesn't take up too much room, so I can't really complain. I set the machine on "medium" strength and it's strong enough for me (I like it pretty strong), so that bodes well for entertaining my European friends who drink coffee that looks like tar. I did already call customer service because I couldn't find the instructions on how to test water hardness (it's there, I just couldn't find it) and they were very helpful.

I was a little concerned when the box arrived looking like it had detoured through Afghanistan (I suspect that's the USPS's fault, not the seller's), but the machine is completely unscathed.

This is definitely a well designed machine. It takes about 5 minutes to learn how to use and you'll be off and running with great coffee. We bought this item for our small office and everyone is happy with the results.

Positives:-
1) This machine requires very little cleaning and the compartments open up easily to replenish water or empty out grounds. There is a tray beneath the spout to catch drips and spills.

2) Many ways to customize your preferences:- how fine the coffee beans are ground, strength of the brew, quantity of water in the coffee, temperature of coffee, etc.

3) The quality of coffee is leagues above that of a coffeemaker. This is for the coffee that you enjoy sip by sip, not the mug of coffee you quaff down to keep from falling asleep in meetings.

4) The steam spout is terrific to warm milk or creamer.

The negatives:-
1) Dont expect this to replace a typical coffeemaker - it doesnt do mugs of coffee. It takes a couple of minutes or more to make each cup.

2) The machine is loud, particularly when it is grinding beans and if you use the milk steamer. When someone is making coffee in our office, everyone else knows it. For bosses, this seems like a good way to keep track of who's really working and who's not.

3) The hot water dispenser is the same spout that is used for steaming milk/creamer and literally spurts out very little at a time (like a garden sprinkler). Not practical at all if you need a water for a cup of tea.

4) The machine is really made for those who only use whole beans. There is a storage compartment for beans and the machine will meter out the right amount per cup. There is no storage for grounds so you'll have to pour a spoonful each time you want to make a cup of coffee from grounds.