Most Helpful Customer Reviews
|
|
183 of 188 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Great Looking Quality Grinder, March 31, 2007
This review is from: Breville BCG450XL Conical Burr Grinder (Kitchen)
I have used three grinders in the past 5 years, one blade and two wheel burr grinders, all broke or were dusty and noisy. This is the first conical wheel grinder I have owned and I cannot compare it to its comparable competitor, the Capresso, and I have only used it a dozen times or so, However, I am impressed by its quality, it is beautifully made and the huge reduction in noise was most welcome. The big plus...I set the timer, press start and walk away, no holding lids down, no coffee flying around etc. Just for the reduction in noise, its quality and the fire and forget operation makes it a 5. It grinds coffee very consistently and the grind is adjusted easily. Is it perfect? No. Two items I noticed. It has a 30 second timer...I need more time so I set it for 20 seconds and do two grinds...not an issue but for me, but wanted to tell you. Second, the ground coffee compartment is shaped in a manner that has insets so its not as easy to clean out and I have to empty the coffee carefully. Still I recommend this and am impressed. It is quality!I will provide a six month review to see if this maintains its operation.
After six months my initial views remain the same, a very fine grinder!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you?
 
|
|
|
|
|
|
103 of 107 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Still happy after three months, September 8, 2007
This review is from: Breville BCG450XL Conical Burr Grinder (Kitchen)
I bought this grinder as a replacement for a previous burr grinder that was dying a slow, painful death. I now wish that I had put the poor old grinder out of its misery much earlier! This Breville unit is a vast improvement over every grinder I've used before.
For starters, it generates less than 50% of the noise I've heard from competing grinders. I have no idea why that should be, I just accept it and move on! The grounds are dispensed very neatly. There is no need to wipe up the surrounding countertop once the cycle is complete - all of the grounds arrive neatly in the little plastic receptacle.
When I first started researching burr grinders, I was intrigued by the concept of 'static reducing' technology. Given that grounds clinging to both the machine parts and the receptical can create a real mess, I was wondering if this magical technology was really effective. To my surprise, at least with this machine, the answer is 'yes'. I can flip the lid on the grounds receptical and tip the coffee into my machine with almost nothing left behind as a result of static cling - even if the grinder has just finished its work (which is when the static tends to be most bothersome).
The quality of the grind is fantastic. The output is uniform and the coarseness can be adjusted within a range that is probably far wider than I will ever explore. The finest setting produces grounds that are perfect, in my book, for even the fussiest espresso drinker.
The stylish-looking machine seems to be well-built, with high grade materials used throughout. I don't quite agree with some of the previous reviewers who feel the plastic is a bit flimsy. After over 3 months in service, I have not had any problems or concerns with the plastic.
The only downside I see is the small size of the hopper. Perhaps I am just accustomed to a large capacity hopper, but this device doesn't seem to me to hold the promised half-pound of coffee. I have to refill it twice a week. My last grinder required servicing less often than once a week. Still, I suppose filling it more often keeps the beans even fresher!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you?
|
|
|
|
|
|
70 of 71 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Best deal going, January 28, 2008
This review is from: Breville BCG450XL Conical Burr Grinder (Kitchen)
PROS: good even grind, little static cling, low noise, good price, aesthetics, fairly easy to clean - with some minuses.
CONS: oily beans can clog in bottom of hopper (all grinders seem to have oily bean issues), funky on/off switch location seems to get knocked to off all the time, timer can't be bypassed and seems to get turned down or up by incidental contact - if you are "dosing" be careful.
We've had the Icon for about three months now and are really very pleased with it. It replaced the horrible blade grinder in our dead Cuisinart Grind & Brew. Whatever you do I'd never buy anything but a separate conical burr grinder and coffee maker. The Cuisinart was terrible! Only a couple of minor flaws keep me from giving it five stars. But then the competitors start at $150 to $200, so I'm not complaining. Breville is an up and coming company in an exclusive field and they are giving Jura/Capresso fits at trendy stores. The unit is attractive and fits snugly under the cabinets in our small kitchen. It's designed to blend with the modern "professional"stainless kitchen look without going overboard so it gets good marks on looks.
The unit is easy to clean, except that I'd like to have a way to remove the lower section of the Conical Burr for weekly cleaning. If you use oily dark roast beans as we do you'll definitely want to clean regularly as oil builds up in the bottom of the hopper making beans stick. Gently rocking the grinder while it runs will dislodge any recalcitrant beans. This is not really a big problem and from the reviews I've read this is an issue with all grinders.
The instructions don't mention cleaning the removable section of the Burr Grinder but it will build up an almost greasy deposit on the inside and a small streak of dark deposit on the outside and bottom of the removable section. After taking out the bean hopper just lift the top of the burr by it's plastic holder and clean with a tooth brush. When reassembling be sure to line up the burr housing the same way it came out or you will not be able to reinstall the hopper. This is easier to do than to type, it's just part of the weekly cleaning, but it should have been covered in the manual.
The other thing the manual doesn't cover on cleaning is that I have to invert the unit and gently tap it to dislodge the slight buildup of old grinds from the bottom burr section before reinstalling the top half of the burr. I then tap the unit with it held upright to make any remaining grounds fall from the shoot. Doing this over the sink saves any cleanup hassles. If not careful one could drop or damage the unit doing this. I should point out that I've never seen any significant buildup of grounds in the shoot - nothing to affect the great tasting coffee this unit grinds.
I know this sounds like a lot of work, but it's really not much trouble. I clean the unit this way once a week and it take about 15 min. to do. Bear in mind that this machine grinds two pots a day of French roast and Tanzanian peaberry. Those are both very oily beans and from what I've read most grinders have major issues with the dark roasts.
To gain a fifth star I'd like to see Breville make the conical burr completely removable and include some sort of brush to clean the shoot and burrs. I'd also like the hopper made so beans can't lodge themselves in the bottom of the hopper requiring rocking while grinding.
In closing I'll say that if you don't use Dark Roasts I doubt you will see any of these problems. And if you do I assure you this grinder will work well for you with minor adjustment.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you?
|
|
|
|
|
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews
|
