Caraway is well-known for its iconic non-toxic cookware, bakeware, utensils and even trash cans. But, what it's not so well-known for is its coffee makers. Why? Well, because it's never made one before. Until now.

And while that's big news in itself, what's really special about Caraway's first-ever entry into a busy coffee maker world is that it's taking its non-toxic ethos and planting it firmly into the brewing process.

In fact, the Caraway 10-Cup Coffee Maker has eliminated plastic from the brew path altogether.

Using a 'first-of-its-kind Clean Brew System', this coffee maker uses stainless steel and glass, meaning your coffee is brewed entirely plastic-free.

For a drip coffee maker, that's a pretty big deal, unless you're planning to brew it all manually (which I'm certainly not).

Why I'll be picking one up

It's hard to ask for a coffee maker that's entirely plastic-free when the market is saturated with options that use plastics for internal components.

But everything in Caraway's coffee maker is focused on eliminating their use.

From the water path, shower head, brew basket, and even the reusable coffee filter, each part of the brewing process is made from stainless steel – and it all leads to a durable glass carafe for a cleaner-tasting cup all the way from brew to pour.

It's clear Caraway has really focused in on this plastic-free innovation (and I heard it has spent 5 years doing just that), but plenty of thought has also gone into its design.

I'm a huge fan of the clean lines and minimalist, yet stylish design of Caraway's cookware. Seeing this translated into a coffee maker is a dreamy countertop addition.

Plus, it's available in four colors; Cream, Midnight, Stone, and Clay, which all integrate nicely with the rest of Caraway's range, in keeping with its iconic muted palette.

And, there are plenty more features to enjoy with the 10-Cup Coffee Maker, including precise temperature control, the ability to brew 2-10 cups, a keep-warm function for up to 90 minutes, and a lovely compact and quiet footprint.

It also includes a built-in cleaning and descaling cycle, plus dishwasher-safe removable components. Coffee lovers may be intrigued by the one-dial control, too, that switches between brewing and cleaning.

If you're looking for a more detailed and in-depth coffee brewing system, there's no big screen with options here. But for me, that's not a deal-breaker.

Availability

Caraway's 10-Cup Coffee Maker is now available to buy exclusively for $495 at CarawayHome.com and Crate & Barrel stores and online. Caraway states that shipping commences 10/30, though "quantities are limited".

Whether it makes its way into our best coffee makers, we'll have to wait until we get our hands on one for a full review.

More from Tom's Guide

• 7 ways to create a barista-style coffee bar in your kitchen
• Coffee doesn’t have to be an expensive hobby — here’s my 5 favorite cheap accessories
• How to make coffee without a coffee maker — 5 easy techniques

The new De’Longhi Magnifica Duo goes where only a few automatic coffee machines have gone before: below $1,000. Yes, this superautomatic machine with hot and cold milk carafes is less than a grand. By 5 cents, sure, but still under a grand.

Even though $999.95 is still an objectively large amount of money, especially in 2026, it’s actually pretty affordable for an automatic coffee machine. Other De’Longhi models go for up to $2,500 (coughElettaExplorecough) with, honestly, not that much difference in performance.

So, is the Magnifica Duo one of the best espresso machines in 2026? It depends on what you’re after. Want something that can make you a fresh, hot (or cold) beverage in seconds without you lifting a finger? Then it’s definitely a contender. To find out more, keep reading this De’Longhi Magnifica Duo review.

De'Longhi Magnifica Duo review: Specs

De'Longhi Magnifica Duo review: Price & availability

The De’Longhi Magnifica Duo is $999 from Amazon U.S. and £699 from Amazon U.K. While this is a lot to swallow, most other automatic espresso machines will set you back almost double that. For example, the De’Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic, the KitchenAid KF8, or the De’Longhi Eletta Explore, which are $2,500, $2,000, and $2,000, respectively.

If you want to save as much money as possible but still want an automatic machine, the Magnifica Duo would be your best bet. The De’Longhi Magnifica Evo is $100 cheaper, but it can’t make iced drinks. I’ve also tested the De’Longhi Rivelia, which is still my favorite automatic espresso machine, but it’s a little pricier at $1,499.

For an automatic espresso machine capable of brewing hot and cold drinks, the Magnifica Duo is actually reasonably priced. I hate writing that about a machine three times the price of my first car, but it is what it is.

De'Longhi Magnifica Duo review: Design

Just like other De’Longhi automatic espresso machines, the Magnifica Duo is effectively a huge metal/plastic box. This one is particularly massive, too. It’s almost 18 inches deep and 14 inches tall, so ensure you have enough space in your kitchen before purchasing. I test a lot of espresso machines, and my first thought upon unboxing was, “Wow. That’s huge.”

In terms of looks, it’s also average. The brushed silver exterior is a pretty nice touch, and there’s a well-lit LED screen on the top. I do wish the machine was either less plasticky or smaller, though. As it’s so large, your eye is automatically drawn to it. Then all you can do is notice the plastic embellishments.

If you value looks over cost-effectiveness, I’d recommend checking out the aforementioned De’Longhi Rivelia, which comes in an array of pretty colors and is a touch smaller. It’s around six inches shallower than the Magnifica Duo, but the same height and width. Even so, every little helps, and in the grand scheme of things, the Rivelia is still smaller.

Now, the LED screen. Like the De’Longhi Rivelia and the De’Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic, the Magnifica Duo has a nice little LED screen for selecting drinks, maintenance, and everything in between. While it’s smaller and a little less detailed than the PrimaDonna Aromatic’s, you are saving $1,500, so I really can’t complain. The Magnifica Duo’s screen still manages everything you’d want it to: 20-drink selection, customization, and even walks you through tutorials if necessary.

De'Longhi Magnifica Duo review: Espresso

As mentioned earlier, the De’Longhi Magnifica Duo makes a whopping twenty drinks. This includes hot and cold beverages: you can make a flat white or iced cappuccino in one click. Just like other De’Longhi automatics, the Magnifica Duo is incredibly easy to use. You only need to press one button for a super speedy drink.

However, it’s not all perfect. Like other De’Longhi automatic machines, there’s no low water warning. This means the machine will sputter out halfway through making a coffee, leaving you with a half-full mug or simply abandoning the espresso extraction altogether. Yes, this wastes beans.

What I’d like to see is for the machine to warn you before making a beverage. If this machine knows its water is below the minimum amount, why does it let you proceed with making a coffee?

Alright, now let’s get into the most important thing: taste. How does the De’Longhi Magnifica Duo actually taste?

Well, like every other automatic machine. Unfortunately, there’s really no distinction between this machine, the Rivelia, the PrimaDonna Aromatic (the list goes on). Some people will love the taste-versus-ease tradeoff; some would rather have more power over their final brew.

As an automatic machine, the Magnifica Duo uses relatively high pump pressure (15 bar) and dual-walled (pressurized) portafilters, so you’re not going to get as much nuance or complexity as you would with a manual machine. This isn’t a Magnifica Duo issue, but an inherent flaw with this kind of coffee machine. Is it for you? I can’t tell you. It’s not really for me, but I have a Breville Bambino Plus and a hand grinder, the Comandante C40 MK4.

Here’s a shot of espresso brewed on the Magnifica Duo.

As you can see, it’s a little pale, and the crema is relatively aerated. Again, this won’t impress coffee nerds, but it’s decent for how little effort it required. This shot tasted quite acidic, but not bitter at all. As stated earlier, automatic machines naturally remove most nuanced and delicate flavors due to the pressurized extraction process, so this shot didn’t taste as it would on, say, a De’Longhi La Specialista Maestro.

My colleague Harry said the coffee tasted a little weak, but it wasn’t bitter or unpleasant. However, my colleague Nikita couldn’t taste the coffee at all. I thought my oat flat white was acceptable, with a delicate coffee flavor and good milk texture, but it didn’t do the $50 coffee beans any favors.

The Magnifica Duo can also make iced drinks, so of course I made a cold brew. Here’s a photo of said cold brew.

This cold brew was… interesting. In a bad way. It tasted overly acidic and weak simultaneously. I wouldn’t recommend using the cold brew setting at all. The rest of the cold drinks from this machine are decent, though.

De'Longhi Magnifica Duo review: Milk

One of the best things about the De’Longhi Magnifica Duo is milk texture. The machine comes with both hot and cold milk carafes: De’Longhi’s LatteCrema and LatteCrema Cool. Both milk systems create gorgeous milk texture, with delicate bubbles or smooth micro(ish)foam. Sure, this doesn’t replicate a skilled barista, but that’s not the point of this machine.

Here’s a close-up of a flat white made on the Magnifica Duo.

As you can see, the bubbles are controlled and smooth. My colleague Harry said the dairy texture was “nice and creamy”. I thought the plant-based milk was also great; soft yet dense, like perfectly whipped egg whites (gross image, but you get the gist).

The LatteCrema Cool also makes a gorgeous milk texture. Here’s a photo of a cold brew latte.

As you can see, the texture strikes the balance between cold foam and plain milk really well. The drink is layered beautifully without an overwhelming amount of froth.

De'Longhi Magnifica Duo review: Storage & maintenance

As mentioned above, the Magnifica Duo is large. Please make sure there’s enough space in your kitchen before buying; it’s one of the deepest machines I’ve ever tested.

Thankfully, both milk carafes are dishwasher-safe and force-purge after every use. This is great for easy, mindless cleaning. The machine also comes with a water filter and cleaning tablets — replacements are $20 from De’Longhi and $15 from De’Longhi, respectively — and walks you through cleaning cycles when required.

De’Longhi offers a two-year warranty as standard, which is the same as Ninja and Breville and better than Casabrews’s measly one-year. Even so, none of these brands can match SimplyGoodCoffee or Moccamaster — both give you a five-year warranty by default.

De'Longhi Magnifica Duo review: Verdict

The De’Longhi Magnifica Duo is a decent automatic coffee machine. Is it revolutionary? No. Does it make award-winning coffee? No. Is it supremely easy to use? Yes. Does it make coffee in seconds, with zero input from you? Also, yes.

At $999, this is on the cheaper end of automatic coffee machines (yeouch), so I’d recommend it over the De’Longhi Eletta Explore or De’Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic. If you can part with a little extra, though, I’d go for the De’Longhi Rivelia as it looks prettier, takes up less space (and can also make cold drinks with an extra $129 purchase).

As far as automatic coffee machines go, the Magnifica Duo is relatively affordable. It’s not life-changing, but if you want a decent amount of bang for a (somewhat) lower amount of buck, I’d go for it.

When Ooni announced the new Halo Core spiral mixer, one thought immediately crossed my mind: KitchenAid is in for some serious competition.

Available for $599 at Amazon, it hits the exact price as the iconic KitchenAid Artisan Plus, but offers a more compact and home-kitchen-friendly footprint than the high-end Ooni Halo Pro spiral mixer — currently our top pick for bread making in our best standing mixer buying guide.

While $599 is still a real investment, the Halo Core feels far more accessible than the Ooni Halo Pro, which is $799 at Amazon, plus it won't take up as much countertop space in your kitchen.

I’ve been putting the Halo Core through its paces, and there’s a lot to like. I’ll follow up with a full review in a couple of weeks, but for now, here are three things I loved and one thing you should know.

Ooni Halo Core spiral mixer: What I like

1. Perfect dough

The Halo Core spiral mixer, like its older sibling, is designed specifically for bread making. Instead of the planetary stand mixers home bakers are used to, Ooni’s design brings professional-grade spiral mixing into our kitchens.

How does it work? The dough hook and bowl rotate around a breaker bar — a stationary vertical metal rod that sits in the mixing bowl. Although watching the rotating bowl is fun to watch, it’s not a gimmick.

The breaker bar removes dough from the hook as it spins during mixing, preventing it from climbing up the dough hook and stopping you from pausing the mix to remove the dough. It also stretches the dough for a stronger gluten structure.

I’ve been experimenting with making bread and pizza dough, and although the pizza dough is currently proving in my kitchen, the bread tasted exceptional. In fact, my husband didn’t realize it was homemade.

I also found that the kneading process was smooth. The usual mixers I test move around my countertop when the dough hook is in action, and it almost seems like too much for the appliance’s motor. There was a clear difference when using the Ooni Halo Core. The mixer stayed steady, and there was no hint of any electric smell or the motor burning out.

2. Pause and go again

The controls of the Halo Core work differently from any stand mixer I’ve previously tested, but in a good way. The control knob is positioned on top of the appliance, so it’s easy to access whether you’re right- or left-handed. What’s more, it works in percentages, with 20 speeds. Turn it clockwise once for 5% at 60 rpm, and turn it up to 100% for 300 rpm.

The control lights up in sections, so you can clearly see which speed setting you're on. This is quite clever in itself, but what impressed me more was that you can simply press the knob and the appliance will pause. Press it again, and it will start from where it left off. It may seem like a small thing, but I found it took away the hassle of turning down the speed when you want to pause the mix.

3. Double whisk

I’ve never made butter before, but since my colleague made butter with the Halo Pro, I followed suit. I started by attaching the dual-geared whisk attachment — it even has a built-in gearbox for rapid whipping!

The whisk really came into its own, whipping the heavy cream into what looked like scrambled eggs until the fat and buttermilk separated. Apart from the speed, it’s fascinating to watch, and if you’ve never made butter before, I recommend giving it a go.

The whisk attachment proved that the Halo Core isn’t just good at making dough; it has a firm place in the kitchen for other baking tasks.

Ooni Halo Core spiral mixer: What I don't like

It wasn't great at mixing cake batter

After the whisk's success, I was excited to try the angled silicone-edge beater to make an all-in-one cake batter. I love the silicone beater I’ve used with the KitchenAid Artisan Plus, as it swipes around the edge of the bowl, incorporating the whole mixture — so you don’t need to stop midway through to scrape the ingredients off the side.

The Halo Core did the same, but it seemed to struggle to incorporate the butter into the mixture, even though it was soft when I added it to the bowl. Then, when I raised the mixer’s head, I noticed a large clump of butter was still attached to the beater.

I’m going to keep testing its cake-making ability, since other reviews have given it more positive results. So keep an eye out for my full review.

Over to you

Are you thinking about buying an Ooni mixer, or have you already invested in one? I’d love to read your thoughts and experiences in the comments below.

More from Tom's Guide

• KitchenAid vs Cuisinart: Which stand mixer is best?
• Smeg’s newest retro stand mixer gives KitchenAid a run for its money — here’s why it won me over
• I tested Ooni's new Rotating Stone — and it's your ticket to perfect pizza at home

Summer brings backyard barbecues, farmers market hauls and refrigerators packed with everything from fresh produce to leftover cookout essentials. But while most people know milk belongs in the fridge and ice cream belongs in the freezer, many seasonal foods fall into a gray area.

Should tomatoes be refrigerated? Does bread stay fresher in the fridge or freezer? And how long can leftover hot dogs really last?

We all know that proper food storage can help ingredients stay fresh longer, reduce waste, and make meal planning easier. Yet crowded refrigerators, forgotten leftovers and misplaced ingredients remain a common challenge, especially at the hottest time of the year.

Here's a practical guide to where some of summer's most popular foods should actually be stored — and how Bespoke AI Refrigerator Family Hub’s smart technology can help keep track of what you have before they are forgotten.¹

Foods that belong in the refrigerator

When temperatures climb, the refrigerator becomes the most important food storage zone in the kitchen. While some items are obvious candidates, others may surprise you.

Cut watermelon

An uncut watermelon can stay at room temperature, but once sliced, it should be refrigerated immediately. Leaving cut watermelon out for extended periods can encourage bacterial growth and affect both texture and flavor.

Store slices in a sealed container or tightly wrapped on a shelf rather than in the refrigerator door, where the contents are exposed to outside temperature more frequently.

Fresh corn on the cob

One of summer's most popular vegetables is often stored incorrectly. Fresh corn starts losing sweetness shortly after harvest, and refrigeration helps slow that process.

For its flavor, keep corn in the refrigerator’s Crisper+ Drawer and cook it within a few days of purchase. And don’t forget, it should only be husked just before cooking, so it should go into the fridge in its natural case. Storing it at room temperature may cause sugars to convert to starch more quickly, and husking it before storage will lead to that same conversion of sugars to starch, as well as rapid moisture loss and oxidation.

Barbecue ribs and cooked leftovers

Whether it's burgers, grilled chicken or ribs, cooked foods should be refrigerated within two hours of serving — and even sooner during extreme heat.

Leftovers often get pushed to the back of crowded shelves and forgotten. That's where organization becomes important. With Samsung Family Hub’s latest update, AI Vision² technology can identify and track many packaged foods and labeled containers placed inside compatible refrigerators, helping households see what's available and reducing the chances of leftovers being overlooked until it's too late.

Open condiments and sauces

Barbecue sauce, mayonnaise-based dressings and many opened condiment containers belong in the refrigerator after opening. During cookout season, these items are often moved in and out of coolers and outdoor tables, making proper storage even more important.

For households juggling tens of bottles and jars, the updated AI Food Manager’s food list can be a game changer, since it helps prevent duplicate purchases and unnecessary waste.

Berries

Strawberries, blueberries and raspberries should be refrigerated soon after purchase. Summer berries are particularly delicate and can spoil quickly on the countertop.

To extend freshness, wait to wash berries until you're ready to eat them. Excess moisture can accelerate spoilage.

Eggs

Although eggs are displayed unrefrigerated in some countries, they should remain refrigerated in the United States. Consistent cold temperatures help maintain freshness, so, contrary to popular belief, they should be stored on a shelf inside the refrigerator, not in the door.

Foods that belong in the freezer

The freezer can do more than store ice cream and frozen vegetables. It can also help extend the life of foods that might otherwise go unused.

Bread

Many people automatically refrigerate bread, but that can actually make it stale faster.

If you plan to eat a loaf within a few days, keep it at room temperature. If not, freeze it. Bread freezes well and can be thawed slice by slice as needed.

Avocados

If you've ever watched an avocado go from perfectly ripe to overripe in what feels like a day, the freezer can help. Ripe avocados freeze surprisingly well and can be stored as halves, slices or mashed.

While they won't keep the same texture for salads or toast after thawing, they're ideal for smoothies, guacamole and baking.

Excess herbs

Fresh herbs such as basil, parsley and cilantro can spoil quickly. Freezing chopped herbs in ice cube trays with a small amount of water or olive oil creates ready-to-use portions for future meals.

Foods that should stay at room temperature

Not everything benefits from refrigeration. In fact, some foods lose flavor or texture when stored too cold.

Tomatoes

This is one of the most common storage mistakes.

Refrigeration can make tomatoes mealy and dull their flavor. Whole tomatoes are generally best kept on the countertop and away from direct sunlight until ripe and ready to eat.

Once cut, however, they should be refrigerated.

Peaches, nectarines and plums

Stone fruits continue ripening after purchase. Refrigerating them too early can slow that process and affect texture.

Leave them on the counter until ripe, then move them to the refrigerator if you need a few extra days before eating them.

Onions

Whole onions prefer a cool, dry and well-ventilated location rather than the refrigerator. Moisture can encourage spoilage and soften texture.

Just don't store them directly next to potatoes, which can shorten their shelf life.

A smarter way to manage summer food storage

Knowing where foods belong is the first step toward keeping them fresher longer. The second is staying aware of what you already have.

As refrigerators fill up with produce, leftovers and barbecue essentials throughout the summer, it's easy for items to get lost or forgotten. As shown in the clips above, Samsung's upgraded AI Vision technology helps simplify food management by broadening its spectrum of recognized items – like your favorite breakfast jam and labeled food container with your leftovers – making it easier to keep track of ingredients and reduce unnecessary waste.

Learn more about Samsung’s Bespoke AI Refrigerator Family Hub here.

¹ Features and availability may vary by model and market.² A Wi-Fi connection and a Samsung account are required. If a food item is not recognizable, it may be listed as an unknown item. AI Vision cannot identify or list any food items in the freezer. Recognition uses AI models that may be updated periodically to help improve performance. The user may need to manually check and adjust the list to ensure its accuracy.

Le Creuset is an iconic kitchen brand. Star Trek is an iconic franchise. And what happens when you take two icons, put them in a bowl and mix them together? Well, a 12-piece kitchenware collection that'll turn your kitchen into a culinary command center.

To celebrate 60 years of "Star Trek", the cookware brand has lovingly crafted a limited-edition collection for fans of the franchise. Or, maybe you're just a fan of Spock (don't worry, there's a mug for that).

Christopher Scinto, Chief Marketing Officer at Le Creuset says: "With the Le Creuset x Star Trek Collection, we set out to commemorate some of the franchise's most beloved symbols with our signature craftsmanship and iconic colors and designs."

While there's 12 pieces in the collection that you can check out for a limited time only at Le Creuset stores, LeCreuset.com, and Williams-Sonoma.com, I've highlighted my five top picks below.

What's in my basket

The full Le Creuset x "Star Trek" collection ranges from $35 to $500, but with 12 items there's hopefully something for every price range. Before we jump into my basket, I want to give a special mention to the Mini Cocottes for Balok, Gorn and Talosian. While they're not in my basket right now, they're certainly worth checking out if you're a fan.

• 'Revolutionary for homemade bread': Why I can't wait to try Le Creuset's new oval bread oven
• Cast iron skillet vs Dutch oven — which is better?
• What is a Dutch oven — everything you need to know about this kitchen essential

As the joyful caregiver for an 18-pound Long-haired Chihuahua-Dachshund-Miniature Pinscher mix, I know a thing or two about dirty floors. Belvedere, mensch that he is, sheds like a madman. He’s also known to be a bit messy when it comes to wolfing down delicacies like raspberries, his favorite treat.

As a result, my partner and I spend countless hours a week vacuuming and swiffering to keep the dog-hair tumbleweeds and sticky floors to a minimum. If only there were a robot that could actually handle cleaning up after my all-time best pal.

Enter: The Ecovacs Deebot X12S OmniCycle.

1. It’s a high-power vacuum and wet mop in one

I just got my hands on the new Ecovacs Deebot X12S OmniCycle robot vacuum at the IFA show in Berlin, and dear readers, I am floored (some pun intended) by all its features and specs.

It’s been nearly a decade since I seriously considered purchasing a robot vacuum to assist around the house, and now I’m questioning why; they've really come a long way!

Make no mistake: the Deebot X12S OmniCycle is Ecovacs’ creme de la creme of consumer robot vacuums, but it’s honestly so much more than that. Sure, it’s got enough power to suck a bad joke right out of the air (or 27,000 Pa of suction), but it’s also a full-blown, automated wet mop with automatic spray action.

Translation: the grime on your hardwood floors and carpets stands no chance against this bad boy. For sticky messes, built-in sprayers soak down the gunk, while a plush, wet/dry roller underneath soaks up all the nastiness, leaving a floor so shiny, you’ll be seeing your own reflection.

2. Auto-cleaning eliminates the ‘yuck’ factor

But wait, a robot vacuum that doubles as a robot mop must require all sorts of regular maintenance? No, sir. Ecovacs sells a couple of different docks for the X12S, but all of them feature a thorough auto-clean function that uses pressure washing to thoroughly sanitize the robot’s roller and other mopping components.

3. Rapid-charging limits cleaning downtime

Need a lot of rooms cleaned? No problem. The Ecovacs Deebot X12S OmniCycle supports rapid charging while docked. So, in the five or so minutes it takes to run the mop auto-clean function, your robot vac is also topping up the battery to power ahead cleaning the next room.

Moreover, thanks to rapid charging, the Ecovacs Deebot X12S OmniCycle sports a less bulky battery than the robot vacuums of yore, while also being able to clean more rooms back-to-back.

4. Extra attention for edges and baseboards

I’m a bit of a neat freak, and scuzzy baseboards are my Achilles' heel. Fortunately, the Ecovacs Deebot X12S OmniCycle is designed to pay particular attention to baseboards and floor/carpet edges. But how? An admittedly cute yet highly effective little sweeper arm uses onboard sensors to determine where the floor ends and then scoops any/all debris into the robot’s suction mouth as it makes its rounds.

Will the Ecovacs Deebot X12S be Belvedere-approved?

Ultimately, there’s only one way to know for sure whether or not Ecovacs' latest 2-in-1 robot vacuum will actually be up to the task of tidying up after my rambunctious lil furry monster.

With that in mind, stay tuned for my full Ecovacs Deebot X12S review, coming soon.

More from Tom's Guide

• I just went hands-on with the new Circular Ring 3 — and it beats the Oura Ring 5 in 3 big ways
• Forget robot vacuums — Ecovacs' most exciting product at CES 2026 was its upcoming AI-powered pet companion
• 'Cleaning up after my pet has never been easier': I just tested this sub-$200 robot vacuum that's perfect for beginners

As a self-confessed coffee snob and director of Tom's Guide's The Coffee Lab, I'm always testing out new espresso products. At IFA 2026, I tried nunc., an AI-assisted espresso machine. Yes, an AI espresso machine.

So what does the AI in nunc. actually do? Instead of having to manually dial in your beans, nunc. uses an NFC code to analyze pre-packaged, nunc.-branded beans (you can also use your own beans). Then, the machine analyzes humidity, heat, bean size, and basically every other variable to grind to the perfect particle size. As someone who loves espresso but hates dialing in (why does it take so long sometimes?), I was excited to try this out. But as someone skeptical of AI at best, I had my reservations.

I didn't want nunc. to take away the art of making coffee. That's so human and personalized that it's impossible for AI to copy. Luckily, though, nunc. proved me wrong. Here's what happened when I tried it.

How does nunc. work?

As I mentioned above, every nunc.-branded bean hopper has an NFC code, exactly like a Nespresso Vertuo pod. The machine reads this NFC code to analyze the roast date, roast type, bean type, and processing type, and work out precisely how to grind those specific beans. Then, it analyzes the environment — heat, humidity — to finalize the optimal grind.

This means the grind size will change from morning to evening, or even hour to hour. If you have an espresso at 6 a.m., when the air in your house is dewy and humid, the grind size will be different from your 1 p.m. espresso, sun shining overhead, A/C running.

Of course, if you have the companion app, you can input information about any beans.

How is nunc. different from a normal espresso machine?

In terms of functionality, nunc. works just like any other espresso machine. Think about it like this: it's almost like a superautomatic — Jura, De'Longhi Rivelia — but a totally manual machine. All it does for you is choose the ideal grind size. Honestly, dialling in beans is the worst part of espresso making for me, so I'm completely on board.

You tamp, insert the portafilter into the grouphead, and can pre-infuse the beans yourself. You can either steam the milk automatically (like the Breville Bambino Plus), or do it manually (any other manual espresso machine).

You dispose of the spent grounds yourself; you empty the drip tray yourself. The only part that is "AI" is the grinder.

How does nunc.'s "AI" coffee taste?

nunc. doesn't make "different" coffee. You won't have one sip and go, "Woah, I can totally taste the AI, dude!" It honestly tastes like a human barista was there every step of the way... because there was. You make the coffee.

Here's a shot of my oat flat white.

It looks like a normal coffee. The taste was clean, polished, with a soft, dark-chocolate-like bitterness rounding it out. I wanted a little more fruit, acid, and funk — I like a funky coffee — but this was likely because I didn't choose my beans.

The milk texture was a little too bubbly for me; I like mine more velvety. Like any other espresso machine, though, you can adjust milk texture easily. Just don't aerate it as much.

I expected to dislike it because I'm extremely particular about my coffee, but this went down a treat.

Where can I get nunc.?

So, now's the time for the bad news. As I'm writing this, nunc. is only available in Germany. If you happen to be in Germany, nunc. costs €2,699. For an extra €149, you get a grinder, the machine, a spring-loaded tamper, a milk jug, a brush, and a tamping mat.

That price equates to around $3,135, which makes this one of the most expensive home espresso machines I've ever seen. There's the $3,000 Breville Dual Boiler, but the nunc. out-prices many of the prosumer models like the Lelit Bianca ($2,999) and Fellow Espresso Series 1 ($1,499).

nunc.'s representative informed me there is no release date for the U.S., U.K., E.U., Canada, Australia — basically any non-German markets. Hopefully, it won't be five years before we're seeing nunc. in our kitchens. I would love to play around with this machine myself.

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• I’ve been testing the Canoly C16 Cold Press Juicer — it somehow makes juicing complicated
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The Canoly C16 Cold Press Juicer promises a convenient way to make juice, nut milk and sorbet. But if anything, it proved to me once and for all that if you want a smooth-sailing juicing experience, you need to spend a little more money.

The machine is very quiet when operating and has a large hopper, meaning you can load up your ingredients in bulk. It’s also very simple to use with just one switch to control everything. However, I’m not sure any of that makes it worth the hassle.

It regularly overheats, is incredibly difficult to clean, and clogs frequently. To find out more about my experience with the machine, you can keep reading this full Canoly C16 Cold Press Juicer review.

Canoly C16 Cold Press Juicer review: Specs

Canoly C16 Cold Press Juicer review: Price & availability

The Canoly C16 Cold Press Juicer is available to purchase in the U.S. for $299 directly from the Canoly online store, but it’s often on sale for as low as $199. In the U.K., you can pick it up for £93 from Amazon.

This is very cheap for a cold press juicer, especially a 3-in-1 machine, as you need a lot of power to make nut milk. For example, the Nama C2 Cold Press Juicer and Blender can make nut milk with ease, but it retails for $800 — ouch!

Primarily, the Canoly is a juicer and sits in the market alongside the AMZCHEF Cold Press Juicer, which is priced at $199. This juicer is the same size as the Canoly but is far more controlled and user-friendly whilst remaining a budget option.

If you’re short on space, you could pick up the Ninja NeverClog Cold Press Juicer for $149, but it’s not the strongest and the process is very fiddly, so I would recommend a model with a hopper, but not the Canoly. Instead, the AMZCHEF would be the best option.

Canoly C16 Cold Press Juicer review: Design

The Canoly C16 Cold Press Juicer looks like any other juicer with a hopper. It’s striking and catches your attention immediately because of its size and almost futuristic design — the handle’s shape is almost spaceship-like — although it doesn’t have a flurry of touchscreen buttons like the Tribest Slowstar AI Vertical Hopper Juicer ($599).

The machine measures 17.3 x 9.7 x 6.7 inches, so it’s very tall. It didn’t fit under my kitchen cabinets, so storing it on the countertop wasn't an option. However, it’s easy to dismantle so it can be stored away in the cupboard. The Canoly C16 weighs 13.2 pounds, and I was able to carry it around easily while setting it up.

Inside the hopper, there’s a pre-cutting blade, and this made light work of tough ingredients, so I didn’t have to spend time chopping before adding them to the hopper. That said, the small feed chute on top measures six inches in diameter, so if you want to continuously feed ingredients, you’ll need to spend time chopping. I’d recommend simply lifting the lid and adding ingredients that way.

There are two different filters with the machine, so you can make milk, sorbet or juice, meaning you're not limited in what you can do. There are two spouts on either side of the machine. On the left is the pulp and on the right is the juice. You can open and close these as needed. I didn’t experience any drips or spills, so I was happy with these.

The juicer comes with two containers, one for collecting pulp and one for collecting juice. The juice container has a small lip to reduce spills and measurements denoted on the side. My only issue is that the measurements are very faint, and I found myself searching around the container for them. I found it easier to use my own measuring jug to see exactly how much liquid I was getting.

Controls

The Canoly C16 couldn’t be easier to use because it has one switch. Flip it one way for juice and the other for reverse. Annoyingly, this button is placed at the back of the juicer, so it’s a bit out of the way when you’re using it. When the hopper is open, the juicer stops for safety, like any other juicer.

Canoly C16 Cold Press Juicer review: Performance

The Canoly C16 Cold Press Juicer can do a lot. It’s a 3-in-1 machine, so it can make juice, nut milk, and sorbet. It sounds good on the packaging, but using it let me down. During operation, the machine was continuously overheating, despite the Canoly website stating it can handle 30 minutes of continuous operation. It also smells like burnt plastic after about 10 minutes of use.

The machine clogs often, so I had to reverse the juicing a couple of times, and it is extremely hard to clean as the pulp gets stuck throughout the machine rather than being pushed out. That said, it’s very quiet, operating at around 40 decibels thanks to the brushless motor.

To get an idea of what the C16 is capable of, I carried out my usual juicing tests and made nut milk and sorbet.

Apple juice:

Firstly, I juiced four apples, which gave me 700ml of juice. I cut the apples in half and put them straight into the hopper, which could fit two and a half apples at a time.

I was surprised by how long the apples took to juice. It looked as though they were being mulched in the hopper by the chopping blade. After all of the juice was extracted, there was still a lot of the apple stuck to the side walls of the hopper.

The fiber took a long time to come out, but it was mostly dry, indicating that most of the moisture had been extracted from the fruit. There was foam on the top of the apple juice but not much, meaning there wasn’t much air in the machine. This meant the juice had a sweeter taste, which is what you want. The juice was a little bitty, but felt mostly smooth in my mouth while drinking.

Orange juice:

Next up, I made a batch of orange juice using four oranges, which gave me a yield of 400ml. Before putting them in the hopper, they were peeled to avoid the bitter taste of the pith making its way into the final product.

This was a lot faster than the apple, but the pulp that came out of the machine was very moist, so it didn’t do a great job of getting all the juice out. The juice itself was thick in texture but not exactly bitty.

After juicing the four oranges without the peel, the juicer overheated. I left it for around half an hour and it came back to life, but four oranges should be a very easy ask.

Carrot and Celery juice:

I then made carrot and celery juice. I juiced 2.2 pounds of carrots and a whole bunch of celery, which gave me 500ml of juice. The chopping blade in the hopper was able to easily break down the carrot into manageable pieces for the auger, which was impressive to watch, but it was so strong that some small pieces of carrots came flying out at me through the six-inch feed chute.

The ingredients moved through the hopper quickly, but the celery stalks became very tangled, and there was a lot of carrot pulp remaining throughout the machine. A lot of the pulp made it into the juice too, unfortunately resulting in a very thick texture.

Cashew milk:

Moving on from classic juices, I made some nut milk. I opted for cashews and soaked two cups in water overnight in the refrigerator. After rinsing the nuts the next day, I slowly fed them into the juicer with filtered water.

As the milk was coming out of the juicer, I used the included sieve over the cup to catch any rogue lumps… and there were a lot. That said, the milk tasted good. I would just recommend using a cheesecloth to strain the milk after juicing to ensure there are no lumps.

The pulp was effectively pushed out of the machine, although there wasn’t much of it. But when I cleaned the juicer, all of the pulp was stuck in the hollow auger. This was annoying to clean out.

Sorbet:

Finally, I made sorbet using the included sorbet strainer. I added a mixture of frozen berries and cherries to the machine and simply pressed the on button.

The machine stopped a few times and had to be reversed. This isn’t something I’ve had to deal with when using any other juicer, but it just meant I had to be on hand to hit the reverse button when needed.

It quickly made spirals of sorbet, giving me a sweet treat that was ready in minutes. This clean-up was also a lot more straightforward than the juices with their messy pulp.

Canoly C16 Cold Press Juicer review: Cleaning

The Canoly C16 Cold Press Juicer is a nightmare to maintain. Juicers are notoriously difficult to keep clean because all of the small pieces of fruit and vegetables are being pushed through small gaps to get the most liquid possible. So everything gets trapped. But the Canoly is especially bad.

All of the parts are dishwasher safe apart from the motor base. Before I loaded it into the dishwasher, I rinsed off as much pulp as possible, but there was still some residue after the wash cycle. I went in with the provided cleaning brush to get the final bits out, but it took me about half an hour of scrubbing to be happy with the cleanliness of the machine. Tiny bits of pulp get stuck in the smallest crevices you’ve ever seen — nightmare.

Canoly C16 Cold Press Juicer review: Verdict

The Canoly C16 Cold Press is a 3-in-1 machine, so I was able to make milk, sorbet and juice. It’s very useful that all of the necessary attachments are included when you purchase the juicer. It’s very quiet when operating too, so it doesn’t cause too much of a commotion in the home.

The large hopper makes it easy to juice in batches if you need to, and it couldn’t be easier to use, with just one switch that controls everything.

However, this juice wastes a lot of your time through cleaning and waiting for it to stop overheating. Cleaning is incredibly difficult, with pulp getting caught up in every crevice you can think of, the machine frequently clogs, meaning you have to be on hand to hit the reverse switch. And it overheats when juicing fruits that should be easy, like oranges.

If you seriously want to get into juicing, I would recommend spending more money on a Nama juicer like the Nama J3.

I have a garage full of tools because I have far too many hobbies. And as anyone with complex hobbies can attest, the right tool for the job goes a long way toward making your life easier. Traeger’s Flatrock 2 Zone Griddle is one such tool. As experienced grillers can attest, some foods cook wonderfully over open flames, while others require a flat, even surface.

That distinction means a griddle needs to function differently than the best grill, and it’s vital to have even heat over your cooking surface. And even then, it can be difficult to cook multiple foods at one time, since different foods require different cooking temperatures.

Traeger has come up with a clever solution with the Flatrock 2 Zone Griddle, and overall, I found this griddle to outperform its peers, thanks in part to its two-chamber heating system and high-quality build. Here’s what happened.

Traeger Flatrock 2 Zone Griddle review: Price and availability

The Flatrock 2 Zone Griddle is available for $800 on Traeger’s website. Additionally, you can finance the purchase using Affirm at checkout. Traeger includes a 5-year warranty with purchase.

You can also buy the Flatrock 2 at other retailers such as The Home Depot, though availability may be limited. Traeger includes a SHOP LOCAL button on its website so you can find a retailer near you.

Traeger Flatrock 2 Zone Griddle review: Design

The Flatrock 2 Zone Griddle took about an hour and a half to build, although most of that time was spent unboxing and laying out the parts. The rest of the assembly process goes very quickly and the instructions are rock-solid, as was my experience with other Traeger products.

Once it’s all together, the Flatrock 2 feels stable and well built. The materials feel high-quality, and overall the unit looks great. I did have one small issue with the wire shelf that sits on the low shelf next to the propane bottle. One of the screw holes did not line up properly — as a result, that wire shelf tends to sway a bit.

Nevertheless, the Flatrock 2 comes packed with nifty features. For starters, the TruZone temperature control design allows for two very distinct cooking zones on each side of the griddle. In other words, the left burner is completely isolated from the right burner. Each one gets its own chamber, so you can really tailor the temperatures on different parts of the griddle.

Within those chambers, Traeger includes U-shaped burners — one for each side. Traeger says this helps eliminate cold spots on the cooking surface. And the FlameLock construction keeps wind out by using a recessed cooktop. That means wind won’t get in and blow at your burners while you’re cooking. Traeger says this also improves fuel efficiency.

The lid features folding hinges that keep the lid upright during cooking. Traeger says you should never cook with the lid closed, as this creates an excessively hot cooking surface that could pose a danger.

On the outside, the Flatrock features a folding prep shelf on each side, both equipped with P.A.L. accessory rails. Traeger makes a whole host of “Pop and Lock” accessories to work with these rails.

The carbon steel cooking surface is heavy-duty. It offers 486 square inches of cooking surface area, and a grease trap on the near side of the cooktop. That feeds into Traeger’s EZ-Clean Keg grease trap, which pulls out of the front of the unit for easy cleaning.

As is the case with any cast iron or carbon steel cooktop, you’ll want to season the cooking surface before your first use. This helps create a nice, non-stick surface, and it also burns off any residues or debris that may have accumulated during manufacturing and shipping.

Traeger Flatrock 2 Zone Griddle review: Cooking performance

Getting the Flatrock 2 Zone Griddle in for testing seemed like a great excuse for a burger night in the backyard. Griddles are a great choice for burgers because they cook the patties more evenly and help the burger retain moisture better. On top of that, you’ll get a nice sear all around.

The fold-out shelves are pretty spacious, and I was able to pack them full of everything I needed. I had already seasoned the cooking surface, so I simply fired up the Flatrock and let it heat up.

My infrared thermometer read 450 degrees in most regions of the cooking surface after about 10 minutes of warm-up time. The edges of the griddle registered cooler temperatures, and the corners the coolest of all. This isn’t too surprising, and it’s an issue I’ve faced in most griddles I’ve tested. It’s largely the result of a rectangular cooking surface and the rounded heating elements beneath.

Still, the Flatrock registered more consistent temperatures across the cooking surface, enough that I wasn’t worried too much about uneven cooking overall. Once the cooking surface had reached around 500 degrees, I lowered one side so I could caramelize some onions and slow-cook some bacon.

The Flatrock truly does allow for 2-zone cooking. The dual “chambers” around the individual burners work like a charm. The left side continued to register between 450 and 500 degrees, while the right side was consistent between 275 and 325 degrees.

I was very glad to see the temperature on the hot side reach 500 degrees, which is something that other griddles I’ve tested have struggled with. If the cooking surface doesn’t get hot enough, you’ll struggle to get a good sear on meats. So kudos to Traeger here.

That said, be sure to heed Traeger’s advice not to cook with the lid lowered. The lid gets super hot, and the handle does, too. I found that out the hard way when I left the lid closed during pre-heating.

On the first burger, I used Traeger’s steam dome to ensure a nice, juicy, medium-rare finish. I got an excellent sear on both sides without burning or losing any moisture. The burger ended up better than anything I’ve been served at a restaurant in recent memory.

For the second burger, I used Traeger’s Weighted Grill Press. This burger also came out very good, though the press does make more moisture seep out of the patty. Use this one if you’re after that “Smashburger” style. There was no sticking on the cook surface using either method.

On the other side of the grill, the onions caramelized perfectly at a lower temperature. When I wasn’t using the steam dome for the burgers, I put this over the onions so they didn’t dry out and start to burn. A bit of cowboy butter, sliced onions, and patience led to an excellent finish. Even at lower temperatures, none of the food stuck to the cooking surface.

It was so incredibly handy to be able to cook the onions and bacon at the same time as the burgers. The dual-zone heating really is a treat since it works so well. Everything I cooked came out perfectly.

And the cooking surface feels high-quality, rugged, and ready for years of use. You’ll need to care for it, and seasoning isn’t a difficult process — I recommend doing it frequently. When I was done cooking, I scraped off any debris and then added a light coating of grapeseed oil to the still-hot cooking surface. I spread it around, then wiped off the excess once the griddle cooled. Easy peasy.

Traeger Flatrock 2 Zone Griddle review: Accessories

Traeger offers a ton of accessories that work with its Pop and Lock system. One of the more relevant ones for this use is the Flat Top Grill Essentials Kit ($100), which includes two spatulas, a cooking surface scraper, and two squirt bottles.

The Ultimate Smashed Burger Kit ($130) is another great option for use with the Flatrock 2. It includes a weighted grill press, a spatula, and a steam dome that help you make delicious burgers.

Traeger Flatrock 2 Zone Griddle review: Competition

The outdoor griddle market is a big one, with brands like Traeger and Blackstone leading the way. There are more entry-level options like Nexgrill as well as fancier options like Solo Stove’s Steelfire 30, a clad stainless steel griddle option different from most other offerings.

The Flatrock 2 Zone Griddle offers plenty of nifty features that set it apart from the competition. Traeger bests Blackstone and Nexgrill in terms of build quality, though Nexgrill is the most economical offering if you just want to give griddles a try without a big commitment.

The Solo Stove Steelfire is an interesting competitor. It’s more expensive than the Flatrock, but it also offers a stainless steel cooktop, which heats faster and requires no seasoning.

Both the Flatrock and the Steelfire are excellent griddle options, though they’re very different experiences. If you want your griddle to be as low-maintenance as possible, choose the Solo Stove. If a more traditional, carbon-steel or cast-iron cooktop is what you’re after for durability and an easily-non-stick surface, the Flatrock 2 is the solid choice.

Traeger Flatrock 2 Zone Griddle review: Verdict

Traeger really shines thanks to its build quality, wide selection of accessories, and functionality — and the Flatrock 2 Zone Griddle is no exception.

Traeger has done a wonderful job of ensuring you get true 2-zone cooking out of this unit. While it suffers from the same issues as many griddles out there — namely, dead spots in the corners and edges of the cooking surface — the overall heating capabilities far outshine the downsides. It’s an excellent choice for outdoor griddle cooking that will make you want to cook outside more often.

Stair-climbing robot vacuums aren't necessarily a new thing. Last year at IFA 2025, I watched Dreame's Cyber X climb stairs (super quickly, may I add), but I was disappointed with the bulk of the product — and that it's been a whole year and you still can't buy the Cyber X.

Now I'm at IFA 2026 in Berlin, and I've just seen Roborock's stair-climbing contraption — the Rover. While this isn't available yet, you can get the new Qrevo Edge 3 Pro — for $1,499 from Amazon.

Unfortunately, Roborock's representative was unable to confirm a release date or more specs. It was initially unveiled at CES in January — eight months ago. In the meantime, though, let's see it in action.

So what can the Roborock Rover actually do?

Unfortunately, as Roborock's representative was unable to confirm additional information, I know very little. What I do know, though, is that the Rover does climb stairs, and it can manoeuvre down slopes. I saw it with my own two eyes.

As it has two retractable, wheel-based legs, the Rover can climb and clean at the same time. Yes, it took around three minutes to climb the stairs you see in the photos — and get back down again — but the stairs were sparkling after.

Even though it took a while to climb the stairs, if you're simply working from home or out running errands, you won't notice how long it takes. That's the whole point of a robot vacuum — clean so you don't have to!

But I have some major reservations

The Roborock Rover was first unveiled at CES in Las Vegas this past January. It was shown off again in Berlin in September.

And there is still no release date in sight. No specs. No pricing. What is Roborock cooking up behind the scenes? Are there some major issues we're not privy to? Or is it simply waiting for the right time to release it?

Roborock confirmed that they may have more information by CES 2027, but there's no release timeline yet. Why show off a product so far out from release?

I could spend all day speculating, but the long and short of it is this: Roborock has "unveiled" this stair-climbing robot vacuum twice now, but we're still no closer to being able to actually make use of it. Forget watching it at tech shows — I want it in my house!

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In the coffee sphere, a select few brands are so well-respected that they elicit a revered gasp when mentioned. Moccamaster is one, as is Lelit, Acaia, and La Marzocco. Of course, this isn't an exhaustive list, and you've also got the universally adored Mazzer and Comandante, which make the best coffee grinders.

Comandante is what I'm going to discuss today. You may have heard of the Comandante C40 MK4, the Comandante C60 Baracuda, or the Comandante X25 Trailmaster. The C60 Baracuda is the priciest option, at around $500-$650 depending on finish, and the X25 Trailmaster is the closest Comandante gets to "budget" — $250. But let's focus on the midrange option, the C40 MK4.

I've owned this coffee grinder for about 18 months now, and I'm seriously obsessed. I use it every day, multiple times a day, and it's simply perfection. While pricey, ranging from $289-$325 at Amazon, I'd seriously pay it for this performance.

What actually is the Comandante C40 MK4?

The Comandante C40 MK4 is a handheld coffee grinder. This means you have to turn the burrs yourself. The hand crank is easy to grip and it comes with a rubber band you can put around the canister to secure your hold. The rubber band is "supposed" to be a wristband but I use it for holding the grinder steady (I'm weak).

So while other coffee grinders are powered by an electric motor, like the Baratza Encore ESP or the Mazzer Philos, the Comandante C40 MK4 is all you, baby.

Hand grinders are generally cheaper than electric grinders. I've tested some as cheap as $60 —like the Timemore Chestnut C2s — but the Comandante is by far the priciest (and best). Naturally, electric grinders can set you back much, much more than the C40 MK4. The Eureka Mignon Specialita is $699, and the Mazzer Philos is $1,500.

As a hand grinder, its maximum capacity is around 50g, but I would only recommend grinding enough for one or two espressos (so 36g) at once. When the bottom canister gets full, you can't grind any more.

Why is a hand grinder worth $300?

The Comandante C40 MK4 is worth $300 because of one reason: materials. The grinder uses Martensitic steel burrs, which is the same material used in sharp surgical instruments. Oh, and the burrs also come with a lifetime warranty. No biggie.

Naturally, this quality material results in excellent uniformity, minimal retention, and low static. These are the three touchstones of a great grinder. You want all your coffee grounds to be the same size, you want the grinder to retain as little coffee as possible, and you don't want your worktop to be covered in sticky coffee granules post-grind.

Thankfully, the grinder excels in all three. Here's a little insight into the grinder's uniformity. Here, I'm checking if all the coffee grounds are the same size. You want big jumps: 0% 300um to 100% 500um, for example.

As you can see, the consistency is excellent. Most granules are the same size, which will result in a better-tasting coffee. If you've got some grains at >300um, but some at 1400um>, this means the coffee will be half over- and half under-extracted. Ergo, no thank you, I'll just drink my water.

Should I spend $300 on a coffee grinder?

If you have $300 to spare and you're into coffee, yes, you should buy this grinder. All that being said, though, if you don't have $300 lying around, then please don't buy an objectively expensive piece of coffee tech. You can still get a good coffee with a cheaper grinder, like the aforementioned Timemore Chestnut C2s.

I love my Comandante C40 MK4, but it's not for everyone. In this economy, I think there are more important things to invest in. Save your dollars for a rainy day!

But if you've got loads of cash spare, then of course you won't be disappointed by this incredible coffee grinder. It's my favorite grinder of all time... I just wish the military branding wasn't so cringe.

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Subminimal is one of the most “Oooh! Aaah!”-inducing names in the coffee world, and the new Subminimal Nanofoamer Go is no different. Ever looked at a milk frother and thought, “Damn, I wish that came with a carry case?” Well, your calls have been answered — the Nanofoamer Go comes with three impellers, ten color options, and, yes, a carry case.

If you’re the kind of coffee drinker who takes your whole setup to a campsite, Airbnb, or simply to the office, this will be ideal for you. While I struggled to achieve the same velvety microfoam I can make on the Subminimal Nanofoamer Pro, the Go can also whisk cream and eggs, so I guess it wins there.

So, is this the handheld milk frother for you? If you value affordability, fancy colors, and portability, I’m leaning towards yes. Are you a coffee snob? Hm… you might want to splurge on the $159 Nanofoamer Pro instead. To find out the full story, keep reading this Subminimal Nanofoamer Go review.

Subminimal Nanofoamer Go review: Specs

Subminimal Nanofoamer Go review: Price & availability

The Subminimal Nanofoamer Go is considerably cheaper than the brand’s other milk frothers — just $37 from Subminimal U.S. and £34 from Subminimal U.K. On Amazon, it's $34.

Subminimal’s Nanofoamer Lithium is $57, while the Subminimal Nanofoamer Pro (my personal milk frother) is $159. While both of these models are better at making straight-up cold foam and microfoam, if you prioritize budget and portability over pure functionality, you’d likely be better off with the Nanofoamer Go. Personally, I prefer the Nanofoamer Pro — it’s much better at making honest-to-God microfoam than the Go, as I’ll get into later.

Subminimal Nanofoamer Go review: Design

As with everything else made by Subminimal, the Nanofoamer Go looks and feels awesome. Alright, the body is quite plasticky, but I don’t mind because it means it’s relatively lightweight and affordable.

But the best part? The colors. While the Subminimal Nanofoamer Lithium and Pro are both available solely in minimalist black, the Go comes in a huge ten colors. And every single one of them looks gorgeous. As you can see from the images in this review, I tested the sky blue version. Had I chosen the color for myself, I would have picked the terracotta or sage shades. Both are pretty enough to win a beauty pageant.

You also get a carry case! The clue’s in the name, but the Nanofoamer Go is intended to be portable. You’re supposed to take it on trips with you. AeroPress with foamed milk at the campsite? Yes, please. As expected, the carry case is the same lovely blue shade, and all the attachments click nicely into place. It’s satisfying to hold and use. I have nothing bad to say about the design here.

Of course, you get three impeller attachments. One is a whisk for thicker ingredients like cream and eggs. One is for mix-ins, like hot chocolate powder, matcha, so on and so forth, and the third is Subminimal’s patent-pending nanofoam mesh. Now, this is supposed to be the “secret” to barista-quality microfoam… but more on that later.

Subminimal Nanofoamer Go review: Performance

I’m just going to rip the Band-Aid off: I didn’t get microfoam with the Nanofoamer Go at all. I tried with dairy and non-dairy milk, heated to varying temperatures, frothed in various ways. I tried on full power, low power; I tried for ten seconds, thirty seconds, two minutes, five minutes, one minute, everything. Did I achieve microfoam? No. No, I did not. Here’s a photo of the closest I got.

As you can see, there are some relatively large bubbles. This is after banging and swirling the milk as you’re supposed to. I was quite disappointed by this. As mentioned earlier, my Subminimal Nanofoamer Pro can make microfoam, so I expected the same of the Go.

I also struggled to achieve velvety cold foam. I frothed this milk for over two minutes and this is the thickest it got. Of course, I was using the microfoam attachment.

However, I was able to get delicious, perfect sweet cream cold foam in just forty seconds.

As you can see, the texture is thick, fluffy, and creamy. This is perfect, Starbucks-approved sweet cream cold foam. My colleagues and I literally ate this with a spoon.

According to Subminimal’s website, you can actually whisk eggs with the Nanofoamer Go… so of course I had to try it out. For science.

Yes, that’s an egg whisked by a milk frother. I don’t eat eggs, so this is a little gross to me, but great if you’re a regular egg whipper.

Subminimal Nanofoamer Go review: Storage & maintenance

As it’s a tiny milk frother — 1 inch by 8 inches — you’ll have no trouble fitting it in your cutlery drawer. This model comes with a handy carry case, which measures 2.1 x 6 x 1.3 inches, perfect for throwing in a camping backpack or keeping in a cupboard. If you’re short on space, I’d go for this model over the Nanofoamer Pro, which is shaped like a jug.

The Go is not dishwasher safe, and you obviously shouldn’t get the body wet. I cleaned it by simply rinsing it under warm water.

Of course, should your cleaning be sub-minimal (see what I did there? No?), you can buy replacement impellers directly from Subminimal for $6.

In terms of longevity, Subminimal offers a standard warranty of one year, which is a little shorter than I’d like. However, this is pretty standard with other $10-$20 milk frothers on Amazon.

Subminimal Nanofoamer Go review: Verdict

The Nanofoamer Go is more than just a milk frother — it can be a pretty little kitchen assistant, too. While this makes it more versatile than the Subminimal Nanofoamer Pro, it’s also not as coffee-snob-friendly. Even though it uses the same micro-mesh as other Nanofoamer products, it doesn’t seem to be able to achieve the same barista-smooth microfoam.

For $37, this is a neat little frother. I’d recommend it for casual coffee drinkers rather than those practising for the World Barista Championships. I would personally save up for the Subminimal Nanofoamer Pro or Lithium over the Go, but that’s because I take my cold foam seriously — and the Pro is much better at making it.

For generic froth, though, the Nanofoamer Go is great. Obviously, you have to heat your milk separately — microwave, stovetop — but if you want a one-stop for whisking eggs, cream cold foam, and milk, I’d go for the Go.

As any parent will no doubt confirm, one of the things that comes with having children is the need to spend a lot more of your time cleaning. Kids make a lot of mess, and I've found myself spending a bunch more time washing clothes, cleaning floors and sterilizing baby bottles.

You would not believe how much time and effort goes into cleaning those bottles. Like kids themselves, it's shocking to see just how dirty they actually get — and I'm not just talking about the leftover formula they contain. After 9 months of deep cleaning milk bottles, inside and out, I finally caved and got hold of an appliance to do the job for me.

The machine in question is the MomCozy DeepClean Baby Bottle Washer (D8), and it's been such a help that I can't believe I was too cheap to buy something like this a year ago.

How the DeepClean Bottle Cleaner works

The Momcozy DeepClean Baby Bottle Cleaner is exactly what the name suggests. It's a countertop appliance that washes used baby bottles, removing all traces of leftover milk or formula, and then sterilizes them ready to be used later on. It retails for $359, and comes bundles with 60 detergent blocks and four limescale removal tablets.

The appliance has room for up to eight bottles at a time, with a two-tier rack system that lets you wash bottles and nipples simultaneously — aided by 64 water jets capable of spraying 154.4ºF water to help break through whatever leftovers are left on your baby's bottles after use.

The DeepClean also has a built-in 212º F sterilization mode, a 55-minute bottle drying cycle and an integrated fan (complete with HEPA filter) to keep the newly cleaned bottles sterile for up to 72 hours. The general idea is that you slot the bottles in, and let the appliance do all the hard work for you — something that I have grown incredibly grateful for.

Oh, and you don't have to worry about keeping the DeepClean itself clean, since it has a dedicated self-cleaning mode. This 30-minute process can even reduce any built-up limescale — provided that you use one of Momcozy's limescale removal tablets.

Oh, and you don't need to use Momcozy bottles to take advantage of the DeepClean, either. All my baby bottles come from different brands, and they fit into the cleaning rack without issue. However, some of the weird and wonderful shaped bottles you can buy may not slide in quite so smoothly.

It's not just for cleaning bottles

The main benefit is that the DeepClean is not just for washing and sterilizing milk bottles. It's also suitable for all kinds of baby accessories, including gravity bottles and breast pump parts. While Momcozy doesn't specifically approve this, I've also used the machine to clean things like pacifiers and those syringes you use to feed babies medicine without ill effect.

We don't use breast pumps anymore, but there was a point where my wife was using them pretty regularly — and a machine like the DeepClean could have saved us a lot of trouble.

The thing about breast pump parts is that you're not supposed to sterilize them in a microwave, as you can with milk bottles. That's in the manual, but the sleep deprived state new parents find themselves in may gloss over this fact and leave you with a bunch of melted chunks of plastic. That happened to us, and sourcing the appropriate replacement parts was a pretty miserable experience.

Worse is the fact that we had to source a very large pot that was big enough to boil the replacement parts over the stove. Oh and you need to continuously stir the part to stop the plastic melting against the hot metal. The process technically only takes five minutes, but the sheer size of those plastic pieces meant we had to repeat the process multiple times.

Or you can just stick them into a cleaner like the DeepClean and leave them for half an hour as a machine does all the hard work for you. It certainly would have saved us a lot of headaches during one of the most exhaustive periods of our lives.

You're saving more than just time too

The thing about using appliances is that they generally help save you time by doing all the hard work for you. The DeepClean Bottle Cleaner is effectively a miniature dishwasher, or something very close to it, which means it has slashed the amount of time it takes to actually clean my used milk bottles.

The old system of cleaning by hand meant that I had to rinse the bottles, clean them with (fragrance free) dish soap and a brush, rinsing out the suds and then sterilizing them in my 700W microwave for at least seven minutes. The DeepClean does all of that for you; the only thing I need to do to the bottles before cleaning is empty out any leftover formula. In fact, the most time-consuming part of the whole process is filling up the 96-ounce water tank.

The actual cleaning cycle takes at least 28 minutes for the low-powered mode, or 38 minutes for the more intensive clean. That's a lot longer than my old system of hand-washing bottles, but unless you need a clean bottle ASAP, it's not really a big deal. It's not as though you have to stand there and watch the entire cleaning cycle unfold.

Time is only part of the equation, and the 96-oz. water tank is a perfect example of this.

96 ounces feels like a lot of water, and I was admittedly shocked when I saw that almost the entire tank was used in the DeepClean's washing cycle — with the rest being saved to make sterilizing steam. But after that initial outrage, I started to wonder whether it was actually a lot of water.

Frankly, I had no idea how much water I use hand washing baby bottles, and had to find out. It turns out, even if I wash super-conservatively, I could use up around 35oz of water washing a single bottle. So, in the same way that running a full dishwasher might save more water than hand washing, it seems as though the DeepClean might actually reduce your water consumption. More so when you remember that it can clean up to eight bottles (and their respective nipples) at a time without any change in water consumption.

Energy is a little more complicated. Momcozy says that the DeepClean uses 500W of power during the water heating and sterilizing parts of the cycle, which seemed accurate when I tracked by energy usage. Meanwhile the actual cleaning takes up about 55W, and the dryer uses 200W. Meanwhile, my microwave uses around 1,600W, but also only runs for a third of the time.

I'm not good at physics or math, so I know I will mess up the calculations if I try and figure it out. Needless to say, the DeepClean is far from the biggest power draw in your kitchen, and it shouldn't affect your energy bills too much.

It's also worth noting that you should be using the DeepClean with Momcozy's detergent blocks. They cost $20 for 120, working out at around 16.7 cents per cycle. How much that compares to handwashing with dish soap is going to depend on what brand you buy and how much you actually use, but I'd wager that even the fanciest dish soap is going to come in cheaper.

There are some downsides

The first thing I actually noticed about the DeepClean unit is that it's big. 10.6 x 13.78 x 15.35 inches, to be exact, which means it takes up roughly 1.3 cubic feet of space on whichever counter top you've set aside. The only thing I have that comes close is my vertical air fryer, which is so tall it has to be tucked away in the corner.

Placement on the counter matters a lot as well, since the DeepClean doesn't have a tank to store used water. There's a hose at the back of the unit, and that means you need to make sure it drains somewhere appropriate — such as the sink or a bucket. Otherwise you're just going to end up with a very wet floor.

The $359 price tag is also a lot to take in, especially when a microwave bottle sterilizer can be bought for as little as $20. But I have to tell myself that you're buying convenience, and potentially lower bills, which could make that investment worth it — especially if you're still expecting or have a newborn. But if your kid is already moving onto solid food, it's a much tougher sell.

I have found a few other downsides to using the DeepClean at home, though some of these are more about what's going on in my brain than a flaw with the product itself. The big one is that I find it kind of gross to imagine dirty bottles left lying around, waiting for enough of their comrades to justify switching the DeepClean on.

Leftover milk in the height of the hottest summer most people can remember is not a very good mix, after all. Though I will be the first to admit that this is just something I personally need to wrap my head around, and retrain myself to think slightly differently in the face of new technology.

The fact you need to buy extra detergent tablets is also worth bearing in mind, since the DeepClean is not compatible with the usual soaps or detergents you'd use to hand wash dishes. They're not expensive, and you get 60 included with the DeepClean, but it means you will be on the hook to keep buying those blocks for the duration of the appliance's lifespan.

I'll admit I forgot to use the detergent blocks on more than one occasion with no apparent ill effect. But obviously you'll want to make sure your baby's bottles are actually clean, and the detergent is the best way to ensure that.

Limescale is also going to be an issue with any machine that requires water, especially if your local water is as hard as it is in my area. I can't think of a single part of my bathroom or kitchen sink that isn't coated with that pesky layer of white deposit. Momcozy recommends using distilled water, rather than tap water, but to that I say "who has the time for that?"

I've taken to using filtered water instead, and while not perfectly free of excess minerals, it generally extends the amount of time my water-based appliances have between descaling cycles. Momcozy does include descaling tablets in the box, which are compatible with the DeepClean's self-cleaning mode.

Finally, the system that keeps clean bottles sterile for up to 72 hours is all down to a built-in air circulation system. This requires power to run, around 190-200W based on my energy meter, and turning it off means Momcozy can't guarantee the bottles will remain sterile. Such a feature could potentially be useful, especially if you need to clean bottles before going away for the weekend, but it does feel a little like overkill. So if you're anything like me, you'll have the bottles out and packed away safely pretty soon after the cleaning cycle is over.

Verdict

I like using the Momcozy DeepClean Baby Bottle Washer, for the simple fact that it takes all the extra stress and hassle out of the whole bottle-cleaning process. All you need to do is fill the tank, slot the bottles in and turn the machine on. It's an extremely convenient tool to have, and it's something I wish I had back before my son started eating solid food and needed a bottle every couple of hours.

Having handwashed bottles for 9 months does mean that switching to an appliance does take an adjustment. My wife in particular is finding it hard to get out of the habit of washing milk bottles as soon as they're finished. Asking her not to clean up is like asking her not to breathe, so I'm not sure if she's actually used the DeepClean yet.

As for me, I'm coming around to the idea of being much lazier, and not scrubbing used bottles clean. Even if my math is totally wrong, and the DeepClean doesn't end up saving me money on my water or energy bills, I'm at least regaining a little bit more of my time — which is a luxury when you have young kids.

I just wish it wasn't quite so big, because it does take up a lot of space. But I guess that's the price you pay for cleaning up to eight bottles at once.

More from Tom's Guide

• Forget weekend deep cleaning: This 30-second daily bathroom hack saved my schedule
• Expert warns against pouring boiling water down sinks — here's why
• SharkNinja’s AquaReach just reinvented wet-dry vacs with an extendable wand

Only seven days left before Father's Day 2026, which falls on Sunday, September 6 in Australia.

If dad enjoys cooking up a feast, or maybe hosting the occasional dinner party, there's no better way to celebrate him than nabbing a kitchen-inspired gift this year. From small appliances to cookware and drinkware, there's plenty to consider here, as I've spotted 21 of the best kitchen and dining Father's Day gifts below.

All of these items have 4-star reviews on Amazon, KitchenAid, and David Jones, plus they offer same-day or fast delivery, so your preferred gift will arrive just in time for the big day.

I'll stop with the fuss about now — here are the best kitchen-inspired Father's Day gifts available right now.

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• Forget socks — shop these 30 expert-picked skincare and haircare buys for dad this Father's Day
• Forget a new tie — I've found 15 of the best Father's Day tech gifts that will make you his favourite child
• Gamer dad? I've found 11 winning Father's Day gaming ideas to level up your gifting
• Run, don't walk — I've spotted 9 of the best fitness Father's Day gifts that'll help dad work on his #DadBod
• Got an outdoorsy or garden-loving dad? I've compiled 12 of the best Father's Day gifts that your green-thumbed dad would enjoy

The Philips Baristina is an interesting espresso machine. It’s an automatic, but also not quite an automatic. How does that work, I hear you ask? Let me explain.

So, while it grinds, doses, tamps, and brews without any input from you (aside from you clicking the shot button), you also have to empty the portafilter. Isn’t that the worst part of any manual machine? The coffee grounds always get stuck to my hands. Anyway, if you’re after an espresso machine that does most of the hard work for you, the Baristina could be ideal.

However, the espresso does taste pretty mid, and the price is about $200 more than I’d expect. So, could it be one of the best espresso machines? Hm. I don’t think so. But want to find out the full story? Keep reading this Philips Baristina review.

Philips Baristina review: Specs

Philips Baristina review: Price & availability

The Philips Baristina is $449-$529 from Amazon U.S. and £299-£379 from Amazon U.K. While this price is reasonable enough in the U.K., I would not recommend paying $529 if you’re in the U.S. You don’t even get a built-in milk frother — it looks and feels like a Nespresso Aeroccino standalone milk heater/frother. You can’t customize milk texture at all.

Even though I think the Baristina is overpriced, it’s an automatic machine, which means it’s always going to be pricier than manuals. However, I would wholeheartedly recommend spending just a little more for a genuinely decent machine.

Instead of spending $529 on what is effectively an espresso maker and a separate (cheap-feeling, one-trick-pony) milk frother, I’d spend $699 on the Philips 2300 Series, $799 on the KitchenAid KF2, or, heck, even $379 on the Nespresso CitiZ + Aeroccino. It’s a pod machine, sure, but honestly? It makes a better brew.

Philips Baristina review: Design

So, I’m not a huge fan of how the Baristina looks. I think it looks incredibly cheap, like something that costs $200 rather than $530. When I found out how much it costs, I actually gasped.

While it doesn’t look bad, it does look cheap. Whether this is a dealbreaker will depend on your preferences. For me, I’d rather spend a little extra on the KitchenAid KF2 or just get a bog-standard manual like the $300 Breville Bambino.

You get a “portafilter”. I say “portafilter” because, yes, it’s technically a portafilter in that it has a handle and a basket where the coffee goes. But you can’t use it like a traditional portafilter — you don’t dose and tamp manually. All you have to do is push the portafilter over to the grinder side at the start of the brew and then sit back and relax.

While, yes, I loved watching the portafilter snap back into place after the grinder finished (it’s the simple things), I think this is more of a style gimmick than actual function. If you’re after a truly automatic machine, it might even be a major con. Yes, you have to empty and clean out the portafilter yourself.

Philips Baristina review: Espresso

If you’re an espresso aficionado, you won’t want to read this. However, if you’re someone who prioritizes speed, ease of use, and simplicity, you’re the perfect candidate for a Baristina.

As it’s a bean-to-cup automatic — despite having a “portafilter” — you have very little input. Pour your beans in, press the espresso button, slide the portafilter to the grinder side (which is super fun), and you’ve done all the work. The machine snaps the portafilter into place hands-free, and, yes, this is mesmerizing to watch. I don’t care how lame that makes me; I enjoy watching a portafilter careen across a coffee machine like a stone from a slingshot. It’s novel. Sue me.

In terms of espresso flavor… it’s okay. It tastes incredibly average. I tried the machine with both artisan Ethiopian beans and your generic “strong” dark roast, and it tasted better with the latter. I’d recommend using cheaper, darker beans on this machine, as the excessive 16-bar pressure and the tiny (40mm) pressurized portafilter destroys any nuance anyway.

As you can see, this espresso shot is foamy and aerated, which means it was extracted under too much pressure. The crema is fluffy, but it dissipated within seconds. The first Ethiopian beans (which usually taste divine) were overly sour and astringent. However, the second generic Illy-brand beans resulted in a stronger, more palatable coffee taste. Of course, this won’t impress coffee nerds, but this isn’t a machine for coffee nerds.

Even so, I struggle to recommend this machine wholeheartedly considering you can get much better machines for just a little extra. The Philips 2300 is a modest stretch at $699; the KitchenAid KF2 is $799. Considering these machines have built-in milk preparation and zero user input, I’d recommend them if you’re after a totally automatic machine. The espresso tastes much nicer.

Philips Baristina review: Grinder

While the Philips Baristina does have a built-in grinder and therefore demands a standalone ‘grinder’ section, this is going to be extremely short.

The grinder is not adjustable. Yes, you heard me correctly. Not adjustable. The grinder grinds to one size and one size only. Want it finer? Not possible. Coarser? Oh, again, you guessed it, not possible.

Other automatic machines such as the De’Longhi Rivelia have an adjustable grinder, and also the $699 manual bean-to-cup De’Longhi Arte Evo. If you’re interested in actually playing and experimenting with coffee, I’d recommend the Arte Evo over the Baristina. You’re paying an extra $150, but it’s often discounted to $599 (so just $50 more), and you get all the bonuses of a manual machine with the ease of an assisted tamping system.

Philips Baristina review: Milk

As mentioned earlier, the Baristina comes in two variants: with milk frother and without milk frother. If you order the cheaper model, it won’t come with the frother.

Those familiar with something like the Nespresso Aeroccino will recognize this milk frother: the Philips model is essentially just your standard countertop model. It’s not particularly unique or innovative, but damn, it works. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix, right?

Here’s a photo of a milk drink made. Notice how I said “milk drink” rather than latte or cappuccino — the Baristina can only make one type of milk. No wet lattes or dry cappuccinos here. Milk or no milk only!

As you can see, the milk is extremely thick. Don’t get me wrong, the texture is satisfying, with well-distributed, evenly sized bubbles. However, this isn’t going to impress people who are used to barista-crafted beverages. It cannot make microfoam; therefore, drinks like lattes and flat whites are out of the question. You can only make cappuccinos.

Philips Baristina review: Storage & maintenance

Although 15 inches tall, the Philips Baristina feels a lot smaller. This height is solely due to the grinder hopper — its main body is more compact. Of course, you’d need to ensure you have space under your counters for the hopper, but the machine should take up less space than you think.

Due to this size, the machine has a teeny-tiny drip tray. I always recommend cleaning out your drip tray after every use, but in this case, it’s definitely a necessity. If you don’t clean it out every day, it’s going to overflow before you know it.

As with the rest of the machine, the drip tray is incredibly plasticky. This is one of my biggest complaints — a design this plasticky is pretty inexcusable when you’re charging $549 from an aesthetic and longevity perspective.

Speaking of longevity, you get a 2-year warranty as standard, which is the same as Breville, Ninja, and De’Longhi.

Philips Baristina review: Verdict

While I don’t think the Philips Baristina is the worst espresso machine I’ve ever used, I can’t recommend it wholeheartedly. Only a very specific user base should get this machine. If you can’t stretch to $699 for a Philips 2300 Series, you don’t mind mid-tasting espresso, you’re happy with one-size-fits-all milk texture, and you’re happy to spend $200 more than I think you should, then yes, this would be the machine for you.

All other people, though? You’d either be better off with the $699 Philips 2300 Series, the $799 KitchenAid KF2, or even venture into the world of manual bean-to-cups with the fantastic De’Longhi Arte Evo.

As I said earlier, if you want simplicity and ease of use over anything else, I’d even go as far to say you’re the perfect candidate for a Nespresso CitiZ + Milk.

Let me put you onto something weird: the "Fridge cigarette." I've seen this term used to refer to a cold, crisp can of Diet Coke, but recently, another meaning has arisen: Diet Coke + espresso. As director of The Coffee Lab and coffee nerd, I had to try this out. What do you mean, people are mixing coffee and Diet Coke? How can that possibly taste good?

To make it, I bought a simple can of Diet Coke and made a shot of espresso using my Breville Bambino. Then, I mixed them — simple as that. No fiddling with measurements or layering cream on top like Starbucks's Sweet Cream Cold Brew.

So, is the "Fridge cigarette" worth your time? Let's get into it. If you want me to try out more weird recipes, comment them down below, and I'll be sure to include them in the next Coffee Lab video.

How to make a 'fridge cigarette'

As I said earlier, making a fridge cigarette is super easy.

How does it taste?

It doesn't look appealing, but the fridge cigarette actually tastes... good?

If you like Espresso Martinis, you'll love the fridge cigarette. It took me a moment to identify the flavor — at first I thought Guinness, but then realized that wasn't the specific flavor I was tasting. It's sweet and vanilla-y, with a rich, malty afternote rounding it out.

I mean, it's not massively shocking. Diet Coke = vanilla. Espresso = coffee. Espresso Martini = vanilla, coffee. All the same flavors are going on here.

What about caffeine content? I mean, if you're super exhausted, this might be a way to bring you back to life. As soon as I drank about half, my hands started shaking, and I was acutely aware of the fluorescent lights in the studio. This isn't a drink I'd recommend if you're sensitive to caffeine. This is only for hardened caffeinators.

As always, let me know if you have any questions or if there are any other weird coffee drinks you want me to taste-test next. Stay tuned for the next episode of The Coffee Lab, landing at a YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram near you.

More from Tom's Guide

• Overwhelmed by coffee jargon? Here are the 5 key espresso terms you need to know
• I'm an ex-Starbucks barista — you can make the Iced Brown Sugar Oatmilk Shaken Espresso at home for a fraction of the cost
• I tried Lelit's brand-new 'entry-level' espresso machine — and I wish I had $2,000 so I could buy it

Mastering the perfect cup of coffee can be tricky, especially if you're a total newbie to the world of espresso machines. That's where the best fully automatic coffee makers come in, and one brand that simply excels in this category is Nespresso.

If pulling the perfect shot or calculating the grind size yourself is simply too much hassle, then a machine like Nespresso's Vertuo Pop could be the right fit for you. By removing the complexities of coffee bean selection and the excessive cleaning that comes with owning a manual machine, Nespresso's capsule system takes the guesswork out of barista-made cups at home, providing consistent cups with the simple touch of a button.

And right now, Nespresso's Vertuo Pop machine is down to just AU$88 — that's 62% off RRP. This price is exclusive to the Pacific Blue, Lilac, Coconut White and Liquorice Black colourways on Amazon. You'll also need to act fast to score this stunning coffee machine, though — this deal’s only available while stocks last.

It's worth noting that this machine is rather fuss-free, and it's as simple as plugging it in, filling the water tank and hitting the button before sipping on your first brew. More often than not though, standalone Nespresso machines come with a sample pack of pods to try, but they don't always include a milk frother or extras to get your perfect sip sorted.

That said, plenty of Nespresso Vertuo models are sold in bundles, which include Nespresso's Aeroccino3 milk frother and, in some cases, a Nespresso-branded mug or tumbler.

If your budget can stretch to AU$179, you might want to consider nabbing the Nespresso Vertuo Pop and the Aeroccino 3 milk frother, with all the bells and whistles, in a fun Candy Pink bundle. This bundle also has the viral Nespresso Travel Tumbler, which typically retails at AU$42, and a fun canvas carry bag.

Not a fan of the Vertuo Pop's design? You might like the latest Vertuo model, the Up, which is discounted to AU$299 in White or Grey colourways. The Up also includes the Aeroccino milk frother and the sample pods.

I've popped both deals below if you're ready to upgrade your morning routine with this one-touch convenience.

Anyone who knows anything about coffee has heard of Moccamaster. The Moccamaster (specifically the KBGV Select) is the most famous drip machine in the world, and there's very little competition. Few brands can go head-to-head with Technivorm's industrial, hardy stalwart, arguably the best coffee maker of all time.

Mostly unchanged since its 1969 release, the Moccamaster does what many other coffee brands wish their flagship could: it has the best reputation in coffee. Whether this is from the industry-leading after-purchase care or the indestructible machine itself, I'm not sure. But people seriously love this thing. It's irrefutably "cult".

So enter the zippy young upstart — Simply Good Coffee Plastic-Free Brewer. This model launched at the end of last year and was rolled out in 2026. What's the Plastic-Free Brewer got that the Moccamaster hasn't then? Well, the clue's in the name — it's not about what it has, but what it hasn't. Simply Good Coffee uses zero plastic in the brewing process.

Sure, this is all well and good — but what about taste? Let's find out which one makes a better brew.

Moccamaster KBGV Select & Simply Good Coffee Plastic-Free Brewer: What's the difference?

While at their cores, the Moccamaster KBGV Select and the Simply Good Coffee Plastic-Free Brewers are both drip/filter coffee machines, there are a few key differences.

These differences reside in two main areas: design and accreditation.

Obviously, the SGC Plastic-Free Brewer is that: plastic-free (well, low plastic). No hot water touches plastic anywhere in the brewing process — but it does have medical-grade silicone tubing in the water lines. Even so, I don't class this as "plastic" as it's not the kind of polymer that leaches into water or breaks down over time.

The SGC has plastic on the exterior to prevent burns. Seriously, imagine if it were completely steel. You'd need to go to the ER if you accidentally brush up against it after brewing.

Now, the Moccamaster KBGV Select has a plastic filter basket and a plastic destratification tube in the carafe. I personally don't mind this plastic — Technivorm (which makes Moccamaster) is a Dutch company, and the EU has seriously strict regulations on plastic. It's high-quality, non-leaching, BPA-and PFA-free — all the adjectives.

So what else separates them? The SCA (Specialty Coffee Association) accreditation. Now, I don't think this is the be-all and end-all. There are more important things than an SCA accreditation. Taste, feel, emotional connection, secret ghosts inhabiting your coffee maker — whatever floats your boat (stews your brew? No. That's terrible. A career in stand-up comedy is clearly not for me).

If you do care about SCA accreditations, as I know a lot of coffee lovers do, you'll be more inclined to go with the Moccamaster. The KBGV Select has been SCA-accredited since the latter's advent in 2017, but the Simply Good Coffee Plastic-Free Brewer isn't yet accredited.

Moccamaster KBGV Select & Simply Good Coffee Plastic-Free Brewer: So how does it taste?

The Moccamaster KBGV Select and Simply Good Coffee Plastic-Free Brewer both make a rich, comforting, delicious brew with zero silt or bitterness. I would have no qualms recommending either of these machines for serious coffee lovers or newcomers alike.

There are a few main differences in flavor, though. Take a look at these two photos.

The SGC Plastic-Free Brewer has a "Bloom" function, whereas the Moccamaster does not. In simple terms, this function steeps the coffee in water before pushing more water through for a full brew. This allows the coffee to grow more complex and can bring out nuanced flavors in the beans.

As a result, the SGC flavor is a little more juicy and what I would describe as "coffee-snob" territory. The Moccamaster tastes divine, don't get me wrong, but it brews a cup I would associate with "I'm a real coffee drinker because I drink my coffee black" memes.

I know people take water distribution seriously, so here's a comparison shot of the Moccamaster and Simply Good Coffee Plastic-Free Brewer filter baskets post-brew.

Honestly, there's no better or worse here. Both machines brew a delicious cup. I would be happy with either of these in my apartment. The Moccamaster is pure, classic coffee, and the SCG is a little more pure, classic coffee wearing a beanie hat and a flannel.

I would choose the Moccamaster over the SCG purely for the lifetime repairs (and, well, because the SCG isn't actually sold in the U.K. yet), but you wouldn't be disappointed with either.

Which brew appeals to you? Moccamaster or SGC? Let me know in the comments and stay tuned for next Monday's The Coffee Lab, on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube.

More from Tom's Guide

• Overwhelmed by coffee jargon? Here are the 5 key espresso terms you need to know
• I'm an ex-Starbucks barista — you can make the Iced Brown Sugar Oatmilk Shaken Espresso at home for a fraction of the cost
• I tried Lelit's brand-new 'entry-level' espresso machine — and I wish I had $2,000 so I could buy it

I’m a firm believer that having one of the best blenders is the easiest way to level up your cooking at home, and squeeze in some extra nutrients. That means you need a blender that can cope with even the toughest ingredients. The Nutribullet Power Core does just that.

The Power Core costs less than $100, yet provides incredibly impressive performance and is easy to use. The large capacity means you can work in large batches, and the maintenance of the blender is really simple too.

Unfortunately, it’s extremely loud, and the motor creates a lot of airflow in your workspace. The limited speed settings could also put some users off, but I think it’s more than enough for home use. To find out more, you can keep reading this full Nutribullet Power core review.

Nutribullet Power Core review: Specs

Nutribullet Power Core review: Price & availability

The Nutribullet Power Core is available from Amazon U.S. for $99 and Amazon U.K. for £99. This is an incredibly affordable blender, but that's not unheard of from Nutribullet. In fact, they make some of the most affordable high-performance blenders, including the Nutribullet Smart Touch for $99 and the Nutribullet Pro 900W for $84.

If you want the option of smaller capacity blends, look at the Ninja Detect Power Pro with BlendSense for $179, which, like the Power Core, holds 72 ounces but comes with a 24-ounce single-serve cup.

For more control over blend speeds, check out the Tribest Backspin for $499, which has 12 speeds, or the Vitamix Ascent X2 for $549 with 10 variable speeds. In short, if you want more control, you need to pay more because you only get three speeds with the Nutribullet Power Core. That said, for everyday use, this is enough.

Nutribullet Power Core review: Design

The Nutribullet Power Core is a blender that will look good in any kitchen. It only comes in matte black, so if color matching all your appliances is a dealbreaker for you, this may not be the one (unless everything you own is black). But for most people, the simplistic design will be a win.

The jug has measurements up the side, so I found it easy to measure my ingredients as I went. The lid also has a small measuring cap that can be removed to add more ingredients, such as seasonings, as you blend. This was great for making things like dips.

Because of the large handle, the jug is very easy to hold and pour even when it’s full and heavy. Also, the spout makes pouring accurate, and I didn’t have any issues with spilled smoothies.

The blender uses a six-point stainless steel blade, and this was very effective even on tough ingredients like dates and seeds.

Controls

The Nutribullet Power Core is very easy to use. All of the button controls are at the front of the machine, and since it’s so cheap, it’s very basic. For me, this is great because I don’t think blending needs to be complicated.

The power button is in the middle, and to the left you’ll find a smoothie preset and a pulse button. To the right, there are three buttons for low, medium, and high-speed blending.

Nutribullet Power Core review: Blending performance

To test the blending performance of the Nutribullet Power Core, I carried out my usual tests and made a smoothie, sorbet, and hummus. When blending, the noise level reached a high of 101 decibels. This is around the volume you can expect from a lawnmower, and according to Hearing Loss USA, “anything above 85 decibels can damage the small hair cells in your ears and affect your hearing health.”

This is very loud, even for a large blender. In comparison, the Vitamix Ascent X2 reaches about 81 decibels. I would seriously recommend using a pair of Loop earplugs if you’re using this blender often.

That’s not the only thing — the motor base also creates a lot of wind. If it wasn’t for the powerful suction cups keeping it stable on my countertop, I’m pretty sure this thing would have taken flight. It blew around containers and papers on my countertop, which was just plain annoying.

Also, since the jug is so big, it would have been great to have a tamper so ingredients could be directed toward the blades when it wasn’t as full. I ended up having to push the sides down with a spoon intermittently.

Smoothie

I added a bag of berry smoothie mix, dates, sunflower seeds and oat milk to the blender and used the smoothie preset for blending. This did a great job of quickly dealing with frozen ingredients and mincing the sunflower seeds finely.

I was most impressed by how the blender handled the dates, as their naturally sticky texture often clogs blender blades and leaves chunks behind. There was some texture from the fruit seeds, but I was left with a smooth drink, and the blades didn’t clog. For $99, this is an extremely impressive blender.

Sorbet

Next, I blended up a sorbet. This allowed me to see how the blender would perform with frozen ingredients without adding liquid. I added a bag of frozen mango that had been thawed for 10 minutes. I used the medium-speed setting, stopping to push the mango down from the sides intermittently.

Since this is a thicker consistency than the smoothie, I spent a lot of time getting the mixture off the side walls of the blender. The mixture was mostly smooth with a few rogue chunks of mango, but it was good enough for what I needed.

Hummus

Finally, I whipped up a quick hummus — and I mean quick. I added two cans of chickpeas, lemon juice and some seasonings to the blender and used the pulse setting as I slowly added extra virgin olive oil. This only took a couple of minutes.

I was very impressed with the results. I had a mostly smooth dip with only a few whole chickpeas. For the price, I couldn’t ask for more.

Nutribullet Power Core review: Storage & maintenance

Taking care of the Nutribullet Power Core couldn’t be simpler. Everything is dishwasher-safe apart from the motor base. This meant I could just pop the whole jug and lid into the dishwasher and give the motor base a quick wipe down with a cloth. To clean the jug by hand, use detergent and a soft sponge, but be very careful with the blades at the bottom.

You need to be prepared for it to take up a lot of space on your countertop, or potentially a whole shelf in your cupboard. It measures 15.5 x 7.8 x 7.5 inches and weighs 7.5 pounds. The 72-ounce jug detaches from the motor base for cleaning and easier storage.

Nutribullet Power Core review: Verdict

The Nutribullet Power Core is an incredibly affordable blender that delivers impressive performance for under $100. This easy-to-use blender made mixing up large batches of my favorite smoothies, sorbets, and dips an absolute breeze. It completely blended even the toughest ingredients like dates, seeds and frozen fruit, leaving no chunks behind. It’s a must if you need a big blender on a budget, and it’s dishwasher-safe, so very easy to maintain.

However, you’ll need to protect your hearing with some earplugs because it gets incredibly noisy. I’d argue it’s louder than should be possible for a blender. The motor also generates a lot of air, making the surrounding workspace insanely windy.

With only three speeds, some users may feel limited, but for casual blenders, this is more than enough. For reliable and impressive results on a budget, this blender is a great choice.

When I tested the original Casabrews Ultra last year, I was perplexed. It has a PID controller and a built-in timer for under $349? And it doesn’t look overly plasticky or feel flimsy? How? Some major boiler issues, that’s how. Thankfully, these issues have been sorted out on its successor, the Casabrews Ultra Pro, released in July 2026.

So is this enough to make it one of the best espresso machines? Hmm — not if you’re serious about your coffee. While it’s a good entry-level model with premium features like a customizable PID controller and has a built-in timer, its weak steam wand and habit of burning espresso holds me back from recommending it fully.

But might it be worth the $349 price tag? To get the full story, keep reading this Casabrews Ultra Pro review.

Casabrews Ultra Pro review: Specs

Casabrews Ultra Pro review: Price & availability

The Casabrews Ultra Pro is $349 from Amazon U.S. At time of writing, it’s not available in the U.K.

For a Casabrews machine, this is a pretty premium price. I mean, you can probably tell from the name, right? They don’t call it the “Ultra Pro” for no reason. I tested the original Ultra last year and liked it, but it had some flaws, like a weak steam wand and boiler issues. More on that later, but I didn’t experience the same boiler problems.

The $349 asking price is a little too steep for this machine. When you can get the $299 Breville Bambino, PID controller and customizable pre-infusion included, or the $499 Breville Bambino Plus, there’s not a lot of wiggle room.

Casabrews Ultra Pro review: Design

The new Casabrews Ultra Pro looks pretty identical to the original Ultra. I liked the original version, so I like the new version. I didn’t notice any tarnishing issues this time around, so I’m glad to see Casabrews has improved on that; however, there’s still no water tank alert on the screen.

Speaking of the screen, I love it, and it’s by far the best feature on this machine. You don’t have to scrabble with a coffee scale timer anymore. Of course, you still need a coffee scale to ensure you’re getting the proper 36g espresso out, but forget that timer function. It’s redundant to you now. The Ultra Pro times your shot for you — and it’s reliable, every single time.

The screen has a few more capabilities: it shows you the double or single shot, hot water, and steam wand functions. That’s it, but I’m not mad about it. All I need is that sweet, sweet timer function, and I’m happy.

Like the previous model, the Ultra Pro utilizes a steam button rather than a dial, which is good if you need a low-effort machine.

Also like the previous machine, there’s a nice little groove on the top so you can store your tamper. I liked this feature as much as I like the 58mm portafilter basket. This is the coffee-snob standard, so is ideal for getting higher-quality aftermarket accessories… which you will need to purchase, as the Ultra Pro doesn’t come with a milk jug. Many Casabrews machines omit the milk jug, which I’m not a fan of. It’s so stingy. It’s literally a milk jug. All Breville machines come with a milk jug, but the $149 De’Longhi Stilosa doesn’t.

Casabrews Ultra Pro review: Espresso

I didn’t experience any boiler issues while using the Ultra Pro. On the previous version, it took ages for the machine to switch between milk and espresso. The Ultra Pro makes strange clicking noises after brewing espresso, but I was always able to get the steam wand up and running in a few seconds.

Despite these successes, I have a few espresso-related qualms with the Casabrews Ultra Pro. Casabrews claim “this espresso machine ensures consistent 9-bar extraction”, which isn’t true. I know it isn’t true because the Ultra Pro has an LCD screen that literally displays the bar pressure during extraction.

Not once did the bar pressure number stay the same. It fluctuated from 3 to 7 to 9 to 15 at one point, and down and up again throughout extraction. I know pressure is supposed to increase from low to 9-bar during infusion, but it’s not supposed to go back down when only 5g has extracted.

This is not a consistent 9-bar extraction. Casabrews kind of shot itself in the foot here. Why include a digital “manometer” (quotation marks necessary there) only for it to tell on itself?

Despite what Casabrews says on its website, there also doesn’t seem to be a solenoid valve, as all my pucks came out wet. Now I’ve grown accustomed to my Bambino Plus’s solenoid valve, I’m not sure I can ever go back. Cleanup is so much easier with dry pucks.

Here’s a photo of an espresso I made on the Casabrews Ultra Pro.

I wasn’t a huge fan of this espresso. It tasted burnt and overextracted, despite extracting in 25 seconds. This is the “ideal” extraction time. It didn’t pour too quickly or too slowly, meaning it wasn’t over- or under-extracted.

However, perhaps I’m simply too picky. I gave my colleagues many coffees made on the Casabrews Ultra Pro, and the feedback ranged from “really nice actually” to “a nice fruitiness”.

There’s also the (customizable) PID controller (temperature controller to prevent burnt or weak brews) to mention. This is better than Breville’s entry-level models, which have a non-programmable PID. You can easily adjust the brew temperature in intervals from 194°F to 204°F. This is great to see on a cheaper machine.

Finally, there’s a cold brew mode. Here’s a photo of said cold brew.

The cold brew was bright and juicy, but quite astringent. It took 101 seconds to brew 160ml. I wouldn’t use this again, but it’s good if you like juicy, sharp flavors and you’re on a time crunch.

If you’re what you’d consider a “coffee snob”, this machine might not be the one for you. In that case, I’d recommend the aforementioned Breville Bambino or Breville Bambino Plus. You may even want to go for the $499 Gaggia Classic E24 Evo Pro, which has no PID controller but is a coffee nerd goldmine.

Casabrews Ultra Pro review: Milk

My biggest issue with the Casabrews Ultra was the weak steam wand. Seeing as Casabrews fixed the boiler issues, I hoped the steam wand weakness would have been fixed, too.

Unfortunately, I was wrong. It still takes a whole minute to steam half a jug of milk, and said milk is unevenly aerated. I found my milk separated into layers immediately after finishing steaming. I also struggled to obtain the ideal “vortex” while steaming, which is the marker of a low-quality steam wand.

As you can see, the latte art is squashed. This is because the foam wasn’t integrated into the milk, so when I poured, it separated into layers. This is not what I’d want to see.

The De’Longhi Stilosa, Breville Bambino, and Breville Bambino Plus don’t suffer from this issue, so I’d recommend grabbing one of those instead if you value latte art. Even the Ninja Luxe Cafe Mini Plus ($499)’s auto steam wand is better, if you can afford the extra $150 (but you get a grinder).

Casabrews Ultra Pro review: Storage & maintenance

The Ultra Pro is just 13 inches deep and 12 inches tall, which makes it a mid-sized espresso machine. While considerably larger than the 7-inch-wide Breville Bambino and the 5-inch wide Casabrews 3700 Essential, it’s nowhere near as massive as the frankly Titanic Breville Oracle Dual Boiler ($3,000, 18 inches tall).

Obviously, still check it will fit in your kitchen, but it’s not a large model, as far as espresso machines go.

In terms of cleaning, well, Casabrews doesn’t provide you with any accessories, unlike Breville and De’Longhi. You’ll need to buy backflush tablets and descaler yourself, which is around $20 for a huge bottle on Amazon.

In terms of warranty, it’s also pretty slim pickings here. Casabrews offers just one year, while Breville, De’Longhi, and Ninja offer two as standard.

Casabrews Ultra Pro review: Verdict

I gave the Casabrews Ultra Pro 3 stars. Yeah, I know. “You gave the Ultra 3.5 stars, so how does that work?” The most egregious issue — the steam wand — has not been fixed. Even though Casabrews has had time to fix this, it didn’t, hence the lower rating this time around. Do I think the Ultra Pro is worth $349? No. No I do not.

When you can get the Casabrews CM5148 Pro for $199 — PID controller included — I really cannot see why the Ultra Pro is so much more expensive. The on-screen timer is a nice addition, but is it worth an extra $150? I think not.

So while I’m sure you won’t be majorly disappointed by the Ultra Pro, I simply can’t recommend it when there are similar machines for cheaper, or much better machines for a little extra. Treat yourself to the $499 Breville Bambino Plus or Gaggia Classic E24 Evo Pro, or save a little and get the Breville Bambino or Casabrews CM5418 Pro. It’s a no-brainer.

Ever since my dad got a fancy espresso machine, I’ve dreamed of brewing my own crema-topped coffee at home. But most at-home, coffee makers don’t offer this feature — unless you want to pay hundreds of dollars and sacrifice a large chunk of your kitchen’s counter space.

When I saw that Keurig was coming out with the K-Crema, I wondered if it could be a good lower-cost option to my dad’s top-of-the-line model.

Ultimately, the K-Crema brews a tasty cup of coffee with a layer of foamy crema on top. It might not stack up to an espresso shot from a pricier machine or a coffee shop, but for those of us who want to save money while still enjoying a delicious shot of coffee, the K-Crema is a decent pick.

Read this Keurig K-Crema review to find out how it performed over several weeks in my kitchen, and why I think this is a top pick in the Keurig coffee maker lineup.

Keurig K-Crema review: Price and availability

The Keurig K-Crema is available for $219 at Keurig and Amazon. You can also buy it at Target, Kohl’s, Walmart, and other major retailers. Plus, the machine is available in a single color: Black.

You can use any K-Cup pod in the K-Crema, though mine came with Global Trek medium roast pods. The machine doesn’t come with a reusable pod, but you could buy one and use your own coffee if you prefer. For this review, I stuck with the provided K-Cups.

Keurig K-Crema review: Design

After initially unboxing the Keurig K-Crema, the first thing I noticed was its size. It’s bigger than your basic Keurig machine, like the K-Slim or the K-Mini, yet smaller than most coffee machines.

The K-Crema has a removable water reservoir that sits to the right of the machine, making it wider than some other single-brew coffee machines. But the reservoir was easy to fill: simply pick it up using the handle, fill it with water, and pop it back.

The K-Crema has six size options, from a single shot to a 12-ounce brew. The “Pressure” button brews coffee at five times the pressure of a standard cup, resulting in a silky layer of crema. That’s what sets the machine apart from other Keurigs, but can it justify the higher price tag?

Keurig K-Crema review: Performance

To determine whether or not the Keurig K-Crema is a good buy, I put it to the test in my kitchen over several weeks. I timed each drink setting and took the temperature of multiple cups to gauge the average hotness of a cup of coffee.

Here’s how the Keurig K-Crema performed:

These brew times are comparable to other Keurig machines, though it was interesting to note that the machine brewed faster when I used the pressure setting. Coffee temperature was a little colder than I expected, especially for the shot and double-shot sizes.

I measured brew temps from a low of 163 degrees to a high of 174 degrees. Experts recommend a water temperature of 195 to 205 degrees for the best-testing coffee, but that’s not realistic from a single-serve machine like the Keurig K-Crema.

Noise-wise, I measured a high of 68 decibels for both the Classic and Pressure settings, with an average in the 50 to 60 decibel range. That’s considered to be in the moderate range — and since the machine brews most sizes in under two minutes, it’s unlikely to cause much disruption.

Now for the most important factor: taste. My only prior experience of a crema machine is in my dad’s kitchen, where he has a fancy (and expensive) espresso machine. I didn’t expect the K-Crema to measure up, yet I was still pleasantly surprised by the taste of the resulting cup.

In the past, I’ve found K-Cups to taste too weak or artificial, but the Global Trek pods I tested were just right. I liked the addition of the crema, though it didn’t quite hold up when I mixed in milk and sugar.

Keurig K-Crema review: Comparison

The Keurig K-Crema is a solid single-serve coffee maker, but how does it compare to other Keurig models? I have previously tested the K-Mini Mate, and the K-Crema definitely brews a superior cup. But it comes at a cost: The Keurig K-Mini Mate costs $59.99, compared to $219.99 for the K-Crema.

You might also consider the Keurig K-Cafe, which comes with a milk frother. This machine is ideal if you like coffee drinks, like lattes and cappuccinos. But if you prefer to drink straight shots of espresso, the K-Crema is the right choice.

Ultimately, you’ll want to consider what you want out of your coffee machine. If you’ve always wanted an espresso machine but don’t want to spend the money, the Keurig K-Crema is a good budget-friendly option.

Keurig K-Crema review: Verdict

If you’re looking for an affordable coffee maker that can brew a decent cup of coffee or a shot of creamy espresso, I recommend looking into the Keurig K-Crema. While it doesn’t quite measure up to the expensive espresso machines on the market, it’s available for a fraction of the price, and the resulting coffee is smooth and enjoyable.

It’s the ideal middle ground for someone who wants to brew coffee drinks at home, but isn’t ready to commit to an espresso machine.

As a tea-drinking Brit, I have big opinions on kettles, and the Dualit Design Series Kettle is a good option for most people’s homes. It has an aesthetic stainless steel design which is easy to maintain with regular cleaning. It has good heat retention and is easy and accurate to pour with.

Unfortunately, though, the window design makes it hard to read the measurements when filling the kettle. The boiling is also a little slow when compared to other kettles.

To find out more about the kitchen appliance, you can keep reading this full Dualit Design Series Kettle review.

Dualit Design Series Kettle review: Specs

Dualit Design Series Kettle review: Price & availability

The Dualit Design Series Kettle is available to purchase from Amazon U.S. for $178 or directly from the Dualit online store for $179. You can also purchase the kettle in the U.K., where it’s called the Dualit Architect Kettle.

The kettle has a stainless steel finish, but you can purchase interchangeable panels for the bottom section from the Dualit store to make it your own. These include the colors Shadow, Metallic Silver, Copper, Brass, Evergreen and Eucalyptus.

Dualit also sells the Classic Kettle for $249, which is more of a fashion statement than a standard kettle. Its curved shape is much more interesting than the Design Series — the irony is not lost on me.

But you don’t need to spend the best part of $200 for a good kettle. I have also tested the Cosori Electric Glass Kettle, which, while not as dashing, is a fraction of the price at just $27. And honestly, it does just as good a job as the Design Series Kettle — you just have to be willing to put up with the odd leak while pouring, which isn’t a worry with the Dualit.

While the Dualit has a Pure pour spout to ensure zero leaks when pouring, if you need even more precision for drinks such as pour-over coffee, you may want to consider a gooseneck kettle such as the Fellow Stagg EKG for $165. If you take your brews seriously, I’d recommend the Fellow over the Dualit.

Dualit Design Series Kettle review: Design & features

The Dualit Design Series Kettle is certainly eye-catching. It measures 9.4 x 8.6 x 5.5 inches, weighs 3.2 pounds, and has a reflective surface that will have you checking out your hair while the water boils.

It can boil a maximum capacity of 1.5 liters, enough for six cups. However, you’ll find yourself playing a guessing game when filling it because of the design and positioning of the measurement window. The window has a fish-eye effect, warping the water as you peer through, and it sits directly in line with the handle, so you need to look around that too.

The handle extends down most of the body, making it easy to hold. At the top of the handle there’s a button to release the flat, hinged lid. This means you can open it without touching it, but to close it you’ll need to push it down. If you’ve already boiled the kettle once, be wary as this part can get very hot.

The power switch is just below the handle at the base. This base is very cohesive with the rest of the kettle — it looks like one whole unit with the kettle on top. It has a three-foot power cord, so it is best set up near a power outlet. If you need to make this shorter, you can store the excess in the base.

Dualit Design Series Kettle review: Performance

I have to say, when testing the Dualit Design Series Kettle, I was a little confused. After testing the Dualit Classic Kettle, I was impressed at how fast it boiled the water. It boiled five cups in just two minutes and 35 seconds. The Design Series Kettle took three minutes and 11 seconds — a stark difference.

All of my testing conditions were the same, so if you want an appliance that won’t have you waiting around all day, spring for the more expensive Classic. You may be spending a little extra, but hey, you’ll get to enjoy life with your fresh brew instead of staring into your lifeless eyes in the kettle’s reflection as the water boils for an extra minute. Just me? Well, as a tea-drinking Brit, by the time I’ve made my daily quota, all of those minutes add up.

I measured the temperature of the water immediately after boiling and got a reading of 209.3ºF/98.5ºC. This was very slightly cooler than the 210ºF/99.3ºC reading I got from the Classic Kettle. But the Design Series holds heat pretty well. After an hour, I got a reading of 161.1ºF/71.7ºC. So, if you wanted to reboil the water, you won’t be waiting for the full *checks notes* three minutes and 53 seconds — yikes.

Pouring with the kettle is a dream. If you’re a little shaky when pouring, I would fully recommend this kettle. I encountered no spillages. And the water went exactly where I needed it to. It can be a little heavy when you fill it to the top, so I only ever filled it about halfway so I could still use it with ease.

The kettle isn’t too loud either, and gave me a reading of 76dB on the Decibel X app.

Dualit Design Series Kettle review: Storage & maintenance

The Dualit Design Series is a kettle, and as such, this is a generally straightforward affair. It’s easy to maintain; you’ll just find yourself wiping down the exterior more than your usual kettle given its reflective nature.

If you live in a hard water area, you’ll also need to descale the kettle regularly. You can purchase descaling tablets for this or use natural methods such as lemon juice or baking soda. The spout of the kettle also has a removable limescale filter which is easy to remove, clean, and refit.

Dualit Design Series Kettle review: Verdict

The Dualit Design Series Kettle is undeniably good-looking. The stainless steel finish is slick and will fit in with any kitchen. The kettle is also easy to maintain (if you don’t mind wiping it down a lot). It has good heat retention and is very easy to pour with. There were absolutely zero drips thanks to the Pure pour spout.

Unfortunately, it’s tricky to tell where the water has been filled up to because of the poor window design, and boiling is a little slow. It took a whole minute longer to boil the same volume of water as the Dualit Classic Kettle.

If sleek looks are your priority, this is a great kettle, but $178 is a lot of money to spend on a kettle that takes so long to boil.

The Smeg Retro Coffee Maker is certainly gorgeous enough to be on the catwalk model of coffee machines. As with seemingly everything else made by the Italian coffee brand, the Retro (DCF02) looks sleek, sophisticated, and effortlessly cool.

But is appearance enough to make it one of the best coffee makers? Thankfully, this time, the Smeg Retro Coffee Maker isn’t style over substance. I wasn’t a huge fan of the Smeg ECF02’s performance despite a premium appearance — but the Retro Coffee Maker can walk the walk and talk the talk. It brews clean-tasting, balanced coffee with minimal silt and zero bitterness. And all you have to do is press one button.

So, want to find out more about this gorgeous coffee machine? Spoiler alert: it’s an absolute treat. To get the full story, keep reading this Smeg Retro Coffee Maker review.

Smeg Retro Coffee Maker: Specs

Smeg Retro Coffee Maker review: Price & availability

The Smeg Retro Coffee Maker is $259 from Crate&Barrel in the U.S., regardless of color, and £199-£219 from John Lewis in the U.K. The Moonlight colorway, the model I tested, runs for £20 more than the standard colors: cream, navy, black, pastel blue, pastel green, silver, gray, red, and white.

In the U.S., though, Moonlight is the usual price of $259. Functionally, the “standard” colors and Moonlight are the same, so if you’re looking to save as much as possible, I’d go for the older colors. But isn’t the Moonlight oh so pretty? Just look at it!

In keeping with Smeg’s back catalogue, the Retro Coffee Maker is pretty pricey for what it is. This is a common theme with Smeg, though: you pay a premium for the style.

For $369, you could get the Moccamaster KGBV Select, which has a 5-year warranty and lifetime repairs. For $250, you could get the single-serve Moccamaster Cup-One, complete with the same after-purchase benefits.

I’ve also tested the SCA-accredited $329 Breville Luxe Brewer and the low-plastic $319 Aarke Coffee Maker, alongside the low-plastic Ratio Four ($259), an automated pour-over. Although it’s not available in the U.K., so I haven’t tested it, I can assure you that the budget $90 Ninja 12-Cup Drip Brewer is a crowd pleaser in Tom’s Guide’s New York office.

Bonavita and Braun have also mastered the budget drip coffee maker: Bonavita’s SCA-accredited 8-Cup Brewer is just $189, the 5-Cup is even cheaper, at $149. The 12-Cup Braun Drip Coffee Maker is $129. This is where I’d like to see the Smeg Retro Coffee Maker’s price due to its lack of SCA accreditation and mostly plastic build.

Smeg Retro Coffee Maker review: Design

As with everything else under Smeg’s belt, the Retro Coffee Maker looks really cool. Per the name, it’s certainly retro, and would look at home in either a diner on a cheesy high school drama (I’m thinking Riverdale, anyone?), or in any sleek, sophisticated home kitchen.

I tested the gorgeous Moonlight shade, which has the same muted gray buttons as the rest of the color line. The buttons control power, brew amount, auto start, and flavor intensity. The lever is solely for adjusting the machine’s time display and the auto start timer. At first, I thought this was an unnecessary use of space, but it’s actually really fun to use.

It’s worth noting that the Retro Coffee Maker is bigger than it looks online: it’s 14 inches tall, 10 inches wide, and 10 inches deep. If you’ve got a small kitchen, I’d measure your space before purchasing. Comparatively, the Moccamaster KGBV Select is 6.5 x 12.8 x 14 inches, the Breville Luxe Brewer is 14.7 x 7 x 16.1 inches, and the Ninja 12-Cup is 8 x 10 x 14 inches. The Moccamaster is the narrowest, but it’s longer and the same height as the Smeg.

As for accessories, the Retro Coffee Maker comes with just two: a scoop and a permanent mesh filter. You can use single-use #4 conical filters, but I tested with the reusable filter as provided.

Smeg Retro Coffee Maker review: Performance

The Smeg Retro Coffee Maker is supremely easy to use. All you have to do is put your coffee in the filter, add your water, and press go.

Smeg recommends a recipe of one scoop per cup, so if you’re making a full batch, that would be 10 scoops. A half-batch requires 4 scoops. Of course, you can adjust this recipe to your tastes.

A full batch sometimes took seven minutes, sometimes eight, and a half batch took around three minutes. This is a little slower than the Moccamaster KGBV Select, but not by much at all.

The water tank isn’t removable, so I poured water in using the carafe. I have two qualms with this: one, the carafe is angled in such a way that it’s tricky to get the final dregs of water, and two, the water tank opening is on the right side, so if you’re left-handed like me, this will pose an issue. Alas, this will only irritate 11% of the population, so it’s not enough to knock half a star off (but justice for us devil-worshippers [for legal reasons, this is a joke]).

Here’s how I made delicious coffee on the Smeg Retro Coffee Maker.

My go-to Smeg Retro Coffee Maker routine

Smeg recommends one scoop per cup. One scoop was between 8.5-10 grams depending on if I levelled it or not.

I used 87g of coffee (10 level scoops) for a full carafe, which works out to a ratio of 1:16.

1. Fill the water tank to max.
2. Grind your coffee to a medium size. I used my Mazzer Philos, the best grinder in the world.
3. Put your desired amount of coffee in the filter. I used 87g for a full batch, a 1:16 ratio.
4. Select your desired intensity level. I used level 1.
5. Press the power button to start your brew.
6. Wait 7-8 minutes!

And that’s it!

Here’s a photo of the grounds after brewing. As you can see, there’s very little funnelling here.

The Retro Coffee Maker brews clean, fresh-tasting coffee. You can obviously adjust the intensity using either the on-machine button or increasing the coffee dosage (or grinding finer), but the out-of-the-box flavor is great.

Smeg Retro Coffee Maker review: Storage & maintenance

I was pleasantly surprised to see the Smeg Retro Coffee Maker come with a 2-year warranty. This is better than Ninja’s 1-year warranty, but still not comparable to Moccamaster’s 5-year warranty (and lifetime repairs) or Simply Good Coffee’s new 5-year standard warranty.

To keep your Retro Coffee Maker lasting as long as possible, do not put the carafe in the dishwasher. I put the mesh filter in the dishwasher and it survived, but I’d recommend only washing by hand.

As mentioned earlier, the Retro Coffee Maker is pretty large — so make sure you’ve got enough counter space before buying!

Smeg Retro Coffee Maker review: How does it compare?

The Smeg Retro Coffee Maker looks just as cool as the industrial-chic Moccamaster, so I’d recommend either of these brands if you’re after that vintage vibe. I’d also put Simply Good Coffee’s Plastic-Free Brewer in this category — it looks sleek and effortlessly cool.

The Retro Coffee Maker isn’t as fast as the Breville Luxe Brewer, but it is $70 cheaper, so you win some, you lose some. It’s also considerably cheaper than the $319 Aarke Coffee Maker — but the Aarke is low-plastic, which is what a lot of consumers want these days.

But, and that’s a relatively big but, I would say the Smeg Retro Coffee Maker is a touch overpriced for what it is. The Moccamaster is $369 because it has lifetime repairs and is SCA-accredited. The SGC Plastic-Free Brewer is $469 because it’s made almost entirely from glass and metal. The Breville Luxe Brewer is $329 because it brews in three minutes.

As mentioned earlier, I’d like to see Smeg’s pricing fall more in line with Ninja’s, Bonavita’s, and Braun (or get SCA accreditation or improve the materials/after-purchase care). Ninja’s 12-Cup Drip Brewer is just $89, and Bonavita’s SCA-accredited 8-Cup Brewer is just $189. The 5-Cup is even cheaper — $149. The 12-Cup Braun Drip Coffee Maker is $129.

The Smeg doesn’t really have any USPs other than looking really cool. While I do objectively like this coffee maker, I’ll be the first person to admit it falls into Smeg’s main pitfall: it’s expensive for what it is.

Smeg Retro Coffee Maker review: Verdict

Despite being a little pricey for what it is, the Smeg Retro Coffee Maker gets a big thumbs up from me. I thoroughly enjoyed testing this machine and would recommend it for people who value style and ease of use.

Yes, it’s expensive considering its plastic build and lack of SCA accreditation, and no, it doesn’t have any unique features like a lifetime repairs warranty or an SCA accreditation. The auto-start timer is cool, but the $89 Ninja 12-Cup has this, too. However, just look at it. Doesn’t that speak for itself?

So, if you want a kitchen centrepiece that’ll have guests going “Ooh” and “Aah” and “Where did you get that from?” then you’ll get on just fine with the Smeg Retro Coffee Maker. It’s literally plug-and-play, and tastes as good as it looks.

Getting into coffee can feel impossible at first. But fret not! I'm here to help. I'm an ex-barista and now a professional coffee tester, so I can help you understand the most important parts of your espresso machine.

If you're a total newbie, forget everything you've learned so far. These five key terms are all you need to know right now. Of course, the more your confidence grows, the more you'll absorb and retain, but if you're pulling out your hair and stressing over niche jargon on the daily, you're doing yourself a disservice. You don't need to be perfect on the first try! All you need is an espresso machine and a clear head. I can take care of the rest.

So strap in as I teach you exactly what you need to know to start pulling shots like a professional barista. And, most importantly, have fun! Coffee is all about enjoyment. If you're doing things "wrong" but having fun, go you! That's all that matters.

What's a portafilter?

A portafilter is the handle of the basket. I've also seen this called a group handle.

A portafilter basket is where you put your coffee. This is where the espresso machine will send water to extract your espresso.

That's it! I told you it was easy.

What's a tamper?

The tamper is the circular accessory you use to tamp (press down on) the coffee grounds. If you hear someone say tamp the coffee, this is what they're referring to. You want to apply around 20kg of pressure — which basically means just push hard, but be mindful to keep the coffee level.

This is to flatten and compact the coffee grounds and create an even surface for the water to flow through (preventing channeling).

What's channeling?

Channeling is where water flows through channels in the coffee rather than saturating the entire portafilter. This is caused by an uneven grind, uneven tamp, or an uneven dose. When you put coffee in the portafilter basket, you want to make sure it's flat, evenly distributed, and there are no major clumps.

A channeled espresso will taste sour and bitter and generally unpleasant. Nothing you wouldn't be able to mask with syrups, though!

What's puck prep?

Puck prep is kind of a coffee snob term. It refers to everything you do to prepare your espresso. When people say, "Make sure you do your puck prep right," they're referring to the following:

• Grinding your beans evenly, using one of the best grinders
• Weighing out the right amount of ground coffee, using one of the best coffee scales
• Putting the coffee in your portafilter basket and making sure there are no huge clumps
• Tamping with proper pressure

What's overextraction/underextraction?

Both are bad!

Overextraction is where the coffee has spent too much time with water or pressure, resulting in a burned, bitter coffee. You have probably ground your coffee too coarsely.

Underextraction is where the coffee hasn't spent enough time with water or pressure, making a sour, acidic coffee. You have probably ground your coffee too finely.

If your coffee is coming out really slowly, that's overextraction. This will taste incredibly intense and burned, like charcoal.

If your coffee is coming out quickly, that's underextraction. This will taste like lemon juice. Nasty!

Did I answer all of your jargon-related questions? Let me know in the comments if you want me to explain anything else.

I release new episodes of The Coffee Lab every Friday, so be sure to check back next week for the next coffee adventure.

More from Tom's Guide

• I tried the new Nespresso summer flavors — here's my favorite
• I'm an ex-Starbucks barista — you can make the Iced Brown Sugar Oatmilk Shaken Espresso at home for a fraction of the cost
• I tried Lelit's brand-new 'entry-level' espresso machine — and I wish I had $2,000 so I could buy it

Founded in 1956, Tefal is a major brand in the kitchen and dining market, renowned for its non-stick pots, pans and home appliances. More recently, though, Tefal has entered into the realm of floorcare with its wet-and-dry vacuums, otherwise known as the X-Clean line.

The latest entry is the Tefal X-Clean 7, which debuted earlier this year. The machine is touted as able to clean hard floors faster with 20,000Pa suction power and weighing just 1.9lbs / 0.9 kg in the hand.

I was particularly intrigued by the brand's foray into floorcare, as it is synonymous with great kitchen appliances and cookware — I swear by my Tefal Non-Stick Fry pan — so the move felt left-of-field. However, there are only so many pans, pots and cooking utensils one company can make, and the brand prides itself on innovation, so it's only fair to switch things up. (And spoiler alert: the X-Clean 7 adds another good impression on the brand's name.)

As someone whose home features predominantly hardwood floors, which are regularly covered in muddy pawprints and kitty litter, I am no stranger to floorwashers. And after reviewing a few floorwashers and consequently ditching my mop bucket for the wet-dry life, I knew I was well placed to take on this review. But could the X-Clean 7 tackle stubborn stains, puppy accidents and everyday maintenance of my hard floors? I tested it for three months to find out.

Tefal X-Clean 7 review: Price and availability

In Australia, where I'm based, the Tefal X-Clean 7 retails at AU$799. At the time of writing, it has been discounted at various retailers to AU$599, including on Tefal's website. In the U.K., it retails for £449. Unfortunately, it is currently not available in the U.S. The Tefal X-Clean 7 sits in the mid-range price bracket for floorwashers, fitting snugly between most Tineco and Dreame models.

Tefal X-Clean 7 review: Design

After reviewing several floorwashers, I can confidently say this is the lightest one I've ever used. Weighing only 1.9lbs / 0.9kg in the hand, the Tefal X-Clean 7 is easy to push around, carry up stairs and get under furniture with its 180° lay-flat design. However, when both water tanks are full (the dirty tank holds 17 fl oz / 500ml and the clean tank holds 22 fl oz / 650ml), the weight does, of course, increase.

Tefal's design mimics newer floorwashers of late, with a flush-sitting clean water tank atop the brush roller and the dirty tank located at the front of the machine. Tefal's machine eliminated a gripe I had while testing the Tineco S9 Artist Pro, as the opening for the clean water tank sits on top, rather than the side. This caused fewer leaks — you'll always have a small leak if the tank is too full when closing — but I had no issues with it leaking on the floor or during transit. Optionally, you can also purchase Tefal's cleaning solution for the clean water tank, but it's not necessary.

There's a round LED screen above the dirty water tank that displays battery life, cleaning modes and system alerts. The screen has an always-on setting and displays charging and battery life when on the dock. There are two accompanying buttons on the handle — the power button and the mode button, which cycle through the cleaning functions — above the LED screen, alongside the self-cleaning button at the very top of the handle. There's also a voice assistant — which can be switched on and off using a button on the back of the device — that provides alerts. I always knew which mode I was using, how much battery was left and when I needed to clean the dirty water tank.

However, I found the voice assistant was a bit limited in its responses (more on that later) and was rather loud during my first few uses. There is a volume button on the side of the device, and if you're sensitive to noise, I'd suggest cranking it down (or turning it off entirely).

There are three modes on the X-Clean 7: Auto, Max and Eco. If you're not sure which one to use, I'd suggest opting for Auto to begin with, as the X-Clean 7 will automatically detect dirt and adjust water flow and suction power to clean your floors. As per the manual, Max mode is for very dirty surfaces, with maximum suction and water flow levels, and Eco mode is for moderately dirty floors, with medium suction and water flow.

While cleaning in any mode, the X-Clean 7 uses 20,000Pa suction power and claims to deliver up to 50 minutes of runtime in Eco mode and up to 27 minutes in Max mode. Both of these claims are pretty standard for floorwashers. The X-Clean 7's roller also comes with an anti-tangle comb, which uses 164 metallic teeth to prevent any tangles.

The X-Clean 7 also offers great maneuverability, thanks to some seriously speedy self-propulsion. It's similar to an electric bike or e-scooter — it won't drive itself, but it can give you noticeable assistance when removing tough stains without overexerting yourself. The wheels are super durable and have a great range of motion for getting under furniture and into all the nooks and crannies of your home. Plus, when completely flat, it measures at 13cm high, so it'll easily fit under most couches or tables. It'll even light up any hidden dust bunnies, thanks to a strip of seriously bright LEDs on the front of the brush head.

Additionally, the box also contains the dock, a cleaning brush, an extra brush roller, and a new filter for the used water tank. You'll need to set up the dock before use, as it charges the device and runs the self-cleaning and drying programs. Do keep in mind that the dock requires a fair amount of floor real estate, so you'll need a dedicated room (or cupboard) for it.

Tefal X-Clean 7 review: Performance

Over the past three months, I've used the Tefal X-Clean 7 daily on my hardwood floors and tiles in my home. It's helped clean up everyday messes in the kitchen, including spilt coffees, as well as the occasional accident of my not-fully-housetrained puppy. The X-Clean 7 has excelled in every situation it faced.

Before the first use, I popped it onto the dock, and it took 3.5 hours to reach a full battery. After charging, I put it to the test with some (inconveniently) spilled coffee in my kitchen after missing my cup while making my morning brew. And sure enough, Auto mode easily sucked it up without worry. It left a slightly damp patch in its wake; however, it was much less damp than grabbing my mop and swirling it around (and making more of a mess).

After a few minutes, the floor was rather dry and fine to walk on, so I cleaned the rest of my kitchen and connected living room floors. These are the most high-traffic areas in my house, and my floors are often covered in muddy pawprints, crumbs and copious amounts of dog hair left behind by my two Border Collies. I easily cleaned the entire area within 15 minutes on Auto mode, and still had plenty of battery life to spare.

Case in point, our puppy, who hasn't fully taken to housetraining just yet, would have the occasional accident inside, and I found Max mode tackled pee puddles with ease. The maximum suction completely vacuumed up puddles without a trace. And if there was any dog hair lying around, the roller didn't tangle or have any blockages, with most stray hairs sitting in between the teeth of the metal comb. Not only that, I could easily take on any spilled liquids in two passes on Max mode and call it a day, which was very much a win in my book.

Sticky messes took some extra pushes, but overall, the Tefal X-Clean 7 could just as easily tackle a stuck sauce stain. It also did a commendable job of collecting kitty litter and smaller wet crumbs in all three modes.

That said, I didn't opt for Eco mode much — I largely used Auto or Max mode depending on what I needed to clean — but I did use it a few times on my tiled bathroom floors and in my shower when I didn't want to break out my mop. I didn't notice any major differences between Eco and Auto modes in this instance, but it's a nice mode to have if you're conscious of conserving the battery life.

I also don't own a mansion — rather a two-bed, two-bath apartment — and I could easily clean my hard floors in 15 minutes on Max mode, if not less. If you're mindful of which mode you use, you could easily clean your entire house on a single charge. That said, I did have to frequently refill the clean water tank after every second clean, as it is considerably smaller than other floorwashers I've used. This isn't a big drawback — even high-end models, like the Dyson Wash G1, have smaller water tanks — but if you have a bigger home, you may need to refill it more regularly.

The X-Clean 7 can leave a bit of streaking on darker floors, but it didn't bother me too much and would easily fade a day or two post-clean.

Tefal X-Clean 7 review: Ease of cleaning

Like other wet-dry vacuums, the Tefal X-Clean 7 requires regular cleaning and emptying of the water tanks to avoid odor and bacteria build-up. If you leave the voice assistant on, it will remind you to empty and clean the dirty water tank after each use and after a self-clean cycle.

However, I found the voice prompts aren't that detailed and will revert to using the same phrase for at least three manual cleaning tasks. In my case, the device would consistently alert me to empty the dirty water tank after emptying/self-cleaning, and wouldn't let me use the device. In most cases, I had emptied the tank, and the clean water tank was full, so in essence, it should have switched on just fine. However, some of these alerts meant I needed to clean the filter or the pipe underneath, rather than just empty the tank.

I'm not sure why the brand hasn't differentiated these tasks via the voice prompt — or at least provided a different alert on the LED screen — as they are completely different and largely separate from emptying the dirty water tank. Regardless, I just made sure to check all variables after each voice prompt from then on, as I couldn't rely on the machine just needing the dirty water tank emptied. However, this could be an issue with my particular unit and not impact all users.

Aside from this inconvenience, the self-cleaning and drying functions were easy enough to do by pressing the self-cleaning button on the handle. The self-clean function lasted about 3 minutes, and the dock rinsed the roller brush. Afterwards, the self-drying function dries the roller, and the whole process lasts around 30 minutes.

Tefal X-Clean 7 review: Verdict

Overall, I was thoroughly impressed by the Tefal X-Clean 7 for its powerful suction modes and lightweight maneuverability. It's easy to use, has speedy self-propulsion, and you won't wait long for your floors to dry after a clean. It can easily clean up spilled liquids, stuck-on stains and the occasional hair or crumb under its roller too, making it perfect for homes with pets or kids.

However, it could benefit from larger water tanks and an intuitive voice assistant with more detailed prompts. But if you regularly clean it and keep maintenance low by doing so, you'll have no trouble washing your hard floors with Tefal's X-Clean 7.

As a kitchen appliance reviewer, some of my favorite and top-rated products hail from KitchenAid. I've owned an Artisan Stand Mixer for years now, and use many KitchenAid appliances and accessories on a daily basis, so it's no surprise that when the opportunity arose to review the brand's new fully automatic coffee machine range, I volunteered immediately.

Now, I'm no stranger to a manual espresso maker — I love my Ninja Luxe Cafe more than anything else — so I really wanted to switch it up to see how a fully automatic machine compares to the manual control I'm used to. After all, these automatic coffee machines claim to deliver the perfect espresso in one touch, without worrying about grinds, milk or the like, so my curiosity was definitely piqued. (And spoiler alert: the KF2 did not disappoint).

Launched earlier this year, KitchenAid's new machines — the KF2, KF3 and KF4 — each have different functions, prices and colorways to suit every kind of one-touch coffee-lover. The machine reviewed here, the KitchenAid KF2, is the most affordable option and offers some hands-on time for hobbyist baristas who want manual control over their milk.

Over the course of a month, I put the KitchenAid KF2 through its paces and used it to make hot, iced and milk-based drinks.

KitchenAid KF2 review: Specs

KitchenAid KF2 review: Price and availability

The KitchenAid KF2 in Australia, where I'm based, is priced at AU$1,099. For those in the UK, it's £699 and in the U.S., it's $799.99. When compared to the other coinciding releases of the KF3 ($999.99 / £749 / AU$1,349) and KF4 ($1,299.99 / £899 / AU$1,599), this is the "budget" or entry-level option in KitchenAid's new fully automatic lineup.

Now the word budget is a bit of a stretch — it's still pretty expensive — and it doesn't quite dazzle compared to similarly priced automatic machines. I’m talking largely about De’Longhi here, as you can often pick up one of the esteemed brand’s machines for less, in return for more extensive features, like one-touch drink presets and automatic milk-foaming systems. That said, the KF2 offers six drink presets and a steam wand (which some 5-star automatic machines neglect entirely). And, I won't lie, the KF2's sleek, matte black design is nice to look at.

KitchenAid KF2 review: Design

KitchenAid's newest fully automatic machines, including the KF2, have a much smaller footprint than their predecessors. Measuring just 14.2" x 7.7" x 18.5" / 36.07cm x 19.56cm x 46.99cm, the KF2 takes up very little counterspace, making it ideal for those with smaller kitchens. The KF2 has five function buttons on the front of its backlit LED screen, as well as a power button on the right side. It also features a 1.8L water tank at the back, a Pannarello steam wand, a drip tray and a concealed 250g bean hopper.

Unlike the KF3 and KF4, which are both available in matte black and KitchenAid's signature Porcelain white, the KF2 is limited to the former. I quite like the simplicity of the black colorway, but it isn't as visually appealing as the white or Juniper green colorways that the KitchenAid KF8 offers, in my opinion. The stainless steel accents in the drip tray and the steam wand are a nice contrast to the matte machine body, but I didn't love the feel of the function buttons.

A fun surprise discovered during set up were two wheels under the machine, making it easy to move around if you needed to fill the water tank. It's also not that heavy, at just 22lbs / 10.1kg, so I could easily lift it and move it into place.

KitchenAid KF2 review: Performance

Grinder

The KF2 uses KitchenAid’s Intelligrind technology, which aims to take the guesswork out of selecting the best grind size for your chosen beans. For most users, it allows for a hands-off approach, just pour your beans into the top-mounted hopper and select a drink. If you do want to make some finer adjustments, you can open the machine's side panel, where you’ll find a slider to make the grind finer (to the left) or coarser (to the right). However, for most users, I don't think any adjustments would need to be made, as the automatic function takes away any manual hand tamping or grinding.

Regardless of whether you make adjustments or not, the KF2's grinder is so quiet. That's largely due to its Quiet Mark certification, meaning it won't make too much noise while you're brewing your early morning coffee.

If you prefer decaf or coffee grounds, the KF2 also has a 250g ground coffee section next to the bean hopper. It is worth noting that when you add in ground coffee, the machine will switch into its ground coffee mode and exclusively use it over any beans in the hopper. To fix this, you'll need to toggle the bean setting before every use.

Espresso

The KF2 can truly customise your coffee to your liking, thanks to its drink, strength and dosage settings. Once you choose your drink recipe — e.g. either an espresso, coffee or over ice — you can make your coffee or espresso shot as weak or strong as you'd like using the strength and dose buttons. If you make adjustments to the strength, the KF2 will grind fewer or more beans, resulting in a dose that’s between 7g and 14g.

Regardless of the strength setting you choose, the KF2 excels at pulling a consistently well-extracted shot of espresso. For the test brew, I used the double strength on the espresso setting to extract a single shot, and it was perfectly balanced. Just look at that crema! This was using medium-dark roast beans with notes of rich caramel, butterscotch and sweet red fruits. I'm not one to drink straight espresso — I prefer iced coffee all year round — but I really enjoyed the deep caramelly notes I achieved with the KF2.

When extracting an americano, I used the coffee setting with double strength, single cup dose, and it was pretty spot on for a black coffee. There was a bit of trial and error — initially, I opted for triple strength, and it was too strong for my liking — but the second time around, it worked a charm.

Milk

If you have milk with your coffee, then you’ll likely want to know how well the KF2 can froth milk. You may also have an opinion as to the best method for foaming milk. For me, the fact that the KF2 uses a conventional steam wand as opposed to a hose system on the KF3 and KF4 is a huge plus point. While it might not be as hands-off as the other KitchenAid models — you have to pour the milk into the jug (sold separately) and then pour it into your mug — the result, in my opinion, is much better milk foam. Conversely, when using the KF3 and KF4, milk was silky in texture and did have some froth, but it paled in comparison to what the KF2 could achieve.

What’s more, having manual control means the KF2 inherently performs better with plant-based milks. This is because you can easily check the temperature whilst milk is heating up and turn it off when it reaches the optimal heat.

I am a big fan of manual control when milk frothing, so I was very eager to try the steam wand, and as a plant-based milk drinker, I preferred the wand to the milk jug/hose set-up. I could easily check the temperature and make sure my almond milk didn't burn, as most plant-based milks will burn at lower temperatures than dairy. The wand also has a side toggle where you can adjust the foam to your liking, so you don't have to second-guess too much when heating milk to your preferred foaminess.

Before using the steam wand, you need to wait a short while for the internal water system to preheat. It’s not a long process, just something to be aware of. When you’ve finished frothing your milk, you’ll want to purge the steam wand to remove any residue. The purge process can get quite messy as the wand is rather powerful and sits an inch or so above the drip tray. I resorted to purging it a few times inside an empty milk jug, just to avoid powerful steam explosions.

My first test was an Aussie staple, a flat white, which is typically made from steamed milk with very little foam. To do this, I flicked the foam setting to ‘less’ and put the wand in just below the surface.

The result clearly speaks for itself, as I made the most perfect flat white to ever exist. Even in my teenage barista days, I've never made glossy steamed milk like this, so it was a true feat to be admired for KitchenAid's steam wand.

Next up was a latte, so I moved the toggle to the highest foam setting and made sure to keep the wand under the surface of the milk. There were some bubbles initially, but after a few attempts, I ended up getting an equally perfect latte with some great microfoam. (My latte art definitely needs work, though.)

Iced coffee

KitchenAid has given its new compact trio of coffee machines the ability to make iced drinks, although the method in which they make them gave me a little cause for concern, as they’re made ‘over ice’. By this, it means you still need to put ice in your cup or glass first, and the KF2 will then pour a shot of espresso over it. The company says it brews at a cooler temperature than a ‘regular’ shot of espresso, but it’s not quite the same as the Ninja Luxe Cafe I use daily, for example, which has dedicated settings for brewing cold shots of espresso.

The results were interesting to say the least. I was a little anxious before making my first iced drink, because I'm picky about iced lattes, and if it's too watery, I don't want it. The fact that an iced latte made with the KF2 has to include a few ice cubes indicated that it may indeed end up being a bit weak.

Fortunately, my worries weren’t necessary, as the KF2 did a commendable job of making an iced coffee. When coupled with cold milk and ice, it was particularly delicious, although it was, admittedly, on the weaker side due to the melted ice.

After the first try, I tweaked the strength higher as the machine automatically selects the lowest setting, and it made a better improvement to the taste. I also opted most days to not brew it immediately over ice to avoid watery shots, and that made the experience much more pleasant.

KitchenAid KF2 review: Storage and maintenance

When it comes to everyday maintenance of the KitchenAid KF2, it was pretty straightforward and I didn't need any handholding to keep the machine running. The drip tray has a handy full alert sign when it needs emptying, and can be easily removed. And if you need to add more coffee beans, the backlit screen will give you a helpful alert.

The KitchenAid KF2 comes with a couple of cleaning tablets for cleaning the brewing group and water filter inside the box. It also comes with a handy water filter insertion tool, which doubles as a ground coffee scoop. As per the manufacturer, the water filters will last two months if using tap water, but could last up to 6 months if you use filtered water. You will need to buy descaling solution separately.

KitchenAid's routine cleaning and maintenance is pretty easy, as the machine rinses itself before and after each use. This also clears the system of any blockages as well as warm the internal pipes to the right temperature before making a coffee.

If you need to descale the machine, clean the steam wand, add beans or water, the screen will give you an alert and guide you through the process if needed. Now, during my review period, I didn't need to descale the machine at all; however, I am certain that the machine would let me know if it needed an extra clean.

KitchenAid does sell additional water filters and brew units if you need more, and offers a 3-year limited warranty.

KitchenAid KF2 review: Verdict

If you prioritise time in the mornings, then the KitchenAid KF2 is something to consider and add to your routine. It's easy-to-use, delivers excellent crema, and offers some hands-on control for your milk. All you need to do is add your preferred beans (or grounds), and you've got the perfect morning brew.

That said, it doesn't offer full one-touch convenience — you'll need to tweak your strength and dose settings with each use — however, that doesn't knock too many marks off for me. And iced lattes could be better, but that won't matter to most non-iced coffee drinkers.

That being said, if you're interested in a fully automatic, low-maintenance coffee machine, the KitchenAid KF2 is hard to beat.

The De’Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic is an ambitious superautomatic coffee machine. It can make 38 drinks and is even app-compatible, so you can control it from your phone (in theory). Is this enough to make it one of the best espresso machines?

Yes and no. The PrimaDonna Aromatic is extremely pricey, at a whopping $2,500, and I’m… not really sure why. You can get 80% of the same performance with the $1,500 De’Longhi Rivelia and — checks notes — 99.9% of the same performance with the $2,000 De’Longhi Eletta Explore. I’m not saying don’t get the PrimaDonna Aromatic — I’m saying you might be able to save your money without sacrificing quality here.

But, I digress. The PrimaDonna Aromatic is a fun, consistent, and functional coffee machine. Want to find out more? Keep reading this De’Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic review.

De'Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic review: Specs

De'Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic review: Price & availability

The De’Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic is objectively expensive. You’ll find it for $2,499 from De’Longhi U.S. and £1,549 from Currys in the U.K.

If you’re wincing, you’re not alone. $2,499 makes the PrimaDonna Aromatic the most expensive fully automatic coffee machine made by De’Longhi. Yes, the most expensive. As you might already be able to guess, this is markedly more expensive than the De’Longhi Rivelia ($1,499/£749), De’Longhi Magnifica Duo ($999).

However, it’s only (only, she types, while wincing) $499 more expensive than the KitchenAid KF8, which I reviewed a couple of years ago and loved.

If you’re familiar with the world of superautomatic coffee machines, you might’ve come across Jura — its fully automatic models can go up to $5,499. I’ve tested the $2,699 Jura E8, and let me tell you — the PrimaDonna Aromatic is much better.

De'Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic review: Design

Like other automatic De’Longhi machines, the PrimaDonna Aromatic is a somewhat narrow but incredibly deep machine. It stretches a whopping 18 inches deep, so you’ll need to check your kitchen countertops can fit this behemoth before purchasing.

Even so, the 10-inch width is pretty good, even with the water tank on the side. You shouldn’t need to clear too much space if your counters are deep already.

And the PrimaDonna Aromatic also looks like other De’Longhi superautomatics. If I didn’t read the name, I could believe it was the Magnifica Duo or the Dinamica or the Eletta. All these machines are effectively big shiny squares. They’re not massively gorgeous, but they’re functional, unobtrusive, and get the job done. It obviously works, because De’Longhi machines are everywhere.

There’s also a bright LCD screen on the machine. Here, you can select your desired beverage — 38 recipes, some of which I’d never heard of — and customize your intensity and volume. Two buttons on either side of the machine configure hot and cold, so you can view only cold or only hot drinks.

App

I like apps when they’re actually useful. I like the Fellow app. I like the Acaia Brewmaster app. I like the apps for all the earbuds I test. But I do not like the De’Longhi My Coffee Lounge app.

I was prompted to complete a “coffee taste profile”, which told me I should get fruity coffee with notes of citrus, forest berry, and florals. I already knew this, though. It’s why I buy the same Ethiopian beans every time.

I suppose this is helpful for complete newbies — but I wouldn’t recommend complete newbies spend $2,500 on a coffee machine.

The app was also riddled with connectivity issues: There’s a Spotify-Wrapped-esque “Statistics” setting. This never loaded for me. You’re also supposed to be able to make your own recipes, but, again, these never loaded for me. The app just said “Couldn’t load any drink”. Hm, maybe because you won’t let me make any recipes?

I like two parts of the My Coffee Lounge app: One, the “Health status” setting. Here you can see how many uses you have until you need to descale, how empty your water tank is, and how full your grounds drawer is. I love this. This is great for newbies. And “experts”. Everyone, actually.

And two: Suggested recipes. I got some super cool, super unique offerings here: Iced orange coffee, Iced raspberry tonic espresso, Iced espresso Mojito. Yes, please! I want more of this and fewer connectivity issues, thank you!

De'Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic review: Espresso

The De’Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic espresso tastes like an automatic coffee machine’s espresso. That’s neither a good nor a bad thing depending on your preference. If you know you dislike automatic coffee, this wouldn’t be for you. If you know you like it, then great!

Here’s a photo of a shot of double espresso.

As you can see, the coffee has a lovely bright caramelly color, and there’s a layer of fluffy crema. Did it taste like the most nuanced, complex, scintillating coffee in the world? No. It was a little weak, but it had enough of a coffee flavor to be devoured by straightforward coffee fans. I would not recommend this machine for coffee snobs or espresso lovers, but if you’re a general coffee drinker who prioritizes ease-of-use over messing around with doses and flow rates, this would get the job done.

I also made a cold brew, which was, in all honesty, pretty nasty. I wouldn’t recommend this for cold brew aficionados. The coffee was actually hot as it extracted, which means it’s also not “cold brew”. It’s more like an iced Americano.

De'Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic review: Milk

Milk performance is what (mostly) separates the PrimaDonna Aromatic from other De’Longhi models. The PrimaDonna Aromatic comes with both a hot and cold milk frother, so you can have hot microfoam or cold foam.

The De’Longhi Eletta Explore ($1,999) also has this capability, so it might be worth checking out that model if you want to save some $$$. However, the Eletta Explore has a smaller water tank capacity. Again, not sure that’s worth an extra $500, but some food for thought.

Here’s a photo of a drink.

As you can see, the milk is smooth and evenly textured. Hot foam tends to deflate quite rapidly, so I’d recommend not leaving your cappuccinos around before drinking. Get ‘em while they’re hot!

This milk texture is around the same quality as the De’Longhi Rivelia, but that model doesn’t come with cold and hot — you’d have to buy the cool version separately ($129).

I really like the milk function on the PrimaDonna Aromatic. It has great texture, it’s easy to clean, and it comes with all the necessary accessories (unlike Jura).

De'Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic review: Storage & maintenance

The PrimaDonna Aromatic is easy to clean. The app tells you exactly when to clean, and I would recommend cleaning out the drip tray every day at a minimum.

My only major qualm is that you have to empty the grounds drawer more often than you think. I emptied it after around 3-4 drinks each time, and the drawer was full of ground beans each time. I don’t think this machine is particularly economical in terms of coffee and water usage, but that’s true of almost all automatic machines.

In terms of longevity, you get a 2-year warranty as standard, which goes up to 3 years with registration. Comparatively, Breville offers a 2-year warranty, as does Ninja.

De'Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic review: Verdict

The PrimaDonna Aromatic prioritizes simplicity and speed over coffee snobbery. It’s perfect for automatic machine users who want coffee and want it now. Would I buy it? Probably not. Would I recommend it for people who love Starbucks and Dunkin’ coffee and want to make drinks easily at home? 100%.

However, I’m still not totally sure what separates it from De’Longhi’s $1,999 Eletta Explore — it has Bean Adapt, De’Longhi’s My Coffee Lounge app connectivity, and 50 recipes compared to the PrimaDonna Aromatic’s 38. I think I’d recommend saving your $500 and getting the Eletta Explore — or save $1,000 and get the De’Longhi Rivelia.

But if you have $2,500 to spend, by all means, go for it. The PrimaDonna Aromatic is a great machine capable of making consistent espresso over and over. It’s just very expensive.

The oil sizzled as I placed the scallops in the pan. On the counter next to me sat a tray of just-baked chocolate chip cookies, their aroma wafting through the air. In the oven, a tray of chicken thighs was slowly baking atop a mixture of Chinese vegetables, their juices infusing with the cabbage and boy choy beneath.

I was cooking it all on the Copper Charlie, an innovative induction stove that doesn’t require any special installation, thanks to a massive battery. And while it's an early adopter in the world of early adopters, it could represent the future of home appliances.

Renovation is the mother of necessity

I tested out the range in the Brooklyn apartment of Ted Booth, who switched from a traditional gas oven to the Copper about a year ago. At the time, his building was facing a million-dollar renovation bill to upgrade the ancient gas pipes leading into, and threading through, the entire 33-unit building.

Rather than forcing the entire building to front the cost of fixing each unit’s gas line, the condo board gave each owner an option to switch to an induction stove. However, most induction stoves require a 220-volt electric line — which would have meant an equally expensive bill.

But there was an alternative: the Copper induction stove. This range has a large battery in the bottom, where the warming tray would sit. Not only does this provide a steady source of energy, even when the power goes out, but it also allows the stove to use a regular 110-volt outlet, so you can plug it in almost anywhere.

“To me, it was an opportunity to get off gas,” Booth said. “And, you can call me a bit of an early adopter, so it appealed to me that way.”

Modern but retro

While the Charlie uses a very new type of technology, and has Wi-Fi and can be updated over the internet, it’s surprisingly low on connected features.

“I like how simple it is,” Booth said. “It's connected to the Wi-Fi, it has a battery, but it's the most analog experience I've had with a tech product. You have the little light indicator on the side, and the screen shows you what it's doing — it's 350 degrees. That's all you need to know. It's great. 
And then the two little switches for the light and convection.”

The cost of upgrading

The Copper Charlie isn’t cheap. The base model, with black plastic knobs, costs $6,000, while the model with black walnut knobs is $6,300. That’s more than twice as expensive as some popular models from LG and GE — though it should be noted the GE Cafe series can get up to $5,000.

The Charlie is not Energy Star-certified, so you can’t get any government rebates from that program, but there are several other local clean energy tax credits that can help ease the cost.

However, it did get the seal of approval from the New York City Housing Authority, which is installing 100 Copper Charlie stoves in apartments throughout the city as a pilot program for lower-income residents, as all city-owned apartment buildings get converted from gas to electric.

“There are so many families that haven't had the ability to cook for years because they had their utility to get the gas shut off,” said Lisa Pickney, a professional chef who created the Official Dessert of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, served on the Obama White House culinary team, and now works for Copper.

“And so they just gave them a hot plate and a rice cooker and a teapot.
And it's just not right. They can't make a Thanksgiving turkey. So that kind of broke my heart. And now they'll be able to have Thanksgiving and do proper cooking now.”

The Copper Charlie isn’t the only induction stove of its kind; a rival company, the Electra Induction Stove, works in much the same way. Rather than the lithium ion batteries you might find in your phone or electric scooter, these stoves use a lithium phosphate battery, which is more stable, and more suited for how it’s used with the stoves.

Now we're cooking

As I (well, mostly Lisa) were cooking, I was impressed with how fast the oven heated up. While I didn’t time it, the Copper Charlie seemed far shorter than my oven at home. Similarly, its cooktop element warmed up the pan in no time, and put a sear on the scallops as good as I’ve ever done on any range, gas or electric.

Booth said that his cooking game has improved since getting the Charlie. “I like to make a Spanish potato omelet,” he said. “I like it because you can get a really nice, low temperature, so it doesn't brown too quickly. With the gas, I could get a low flame, but then the heat doesn't distribute quite as well, and so it's like cooking more in one spot and less on the edges.”

Booth said he could no longer do the Mark Bittman trick of cooking a steak by placing a pan on the very bottom of the oven, but the Charlie proved its worth when the outlet behind the stove stopped working.

“At first, I was like, what are we gonna do?” he said. “It's gonna take a while to get an electrician to come, and then I was like, oh, no, wait, it's fine. We have an outlet behind that cluster of little appliances in the corner is a four-prong outlet with a GFCI. So I just plugged it into that.”

“That to me really proved to me how much power this draws, because we've got an Instapot, we've got a kettle, we've got an espresso machine. 
And we never had an issue, it never popped the GFCI.”

How it's working out

Ultimately, eleven owners in Booth’s building ended up getting a Copper Charlie. It proved to be more expensive than those who merely opted to replace their gas line, but Booth said it was worth the expense.

“We're gonna spend all this money for these pipes in the wall, and all I get is to get a blue flame?” he asks. ”I want something better than that.”

More from Tom's Guide

• I used an induction cooktop for the first time — here are 3 things I learned
• 5 mistakes I made when I switched to an induction cooktop
• We tested 3 portable induction cooktops from $50 to $1,500

Starbucks is expensive. There's no getting around that. Some drinks can cost as much as $10 in certain states these days, which is simply ridiculous. If I were to order a Grande Iced Brown Sugar Oatmilk Shaken Espresso at the Starbucks closest to Tom's Guide's Manhattan office, it would cost me $7.57. Yes, almost 8 bucks.

Fortunately, you can make it yourself, for far less.

I was a Starbucks barista for years, and learned how to make the delicious Starbucks Iced Brown Sugar Oatmilk Shaken Espresso at home. I've even done some coffee math down below to show you how much better this version is for your wallet (and your health, if you use homemade syrup).

You only need three ingredients (four if you count ice as an ingredient, and five if you include the optional cinnamon) to make a delicious iced espresso at home. And the best part? It takes about two minutes. Here's my step-by-step guide to making the Starbucks Iced Brown Sugar Oatmilk Shaken Espresso at home, using the Nespresso Vertuo Up, Oatly Barista oat milk, homemade brown sugar syrup, ice, and cinnamon.

The coffee math

I hate math, but I love coffee math. Let's see if making your own Starbucks Iced Brown Sugar Oatmilk Shaken Espresso actually is cheaper — and how many times you have to make it yourself to break even.

With a Nespresso machine

1. Nespresso Vertuo Pop+: $130 from Amazon
2. Oat milk: $3.32/52 fluid ounces from Walmart | 0.19 per drink
3. Brown sugar: $2.02/32 ounces from Walmart | 0.01 per drink
4. Coffee: Starbucks Blonde Nespresso Vertuo pods: $12.97 for 10 | 1.30 per pod

So that's $1.50 for the ingredients, $130 for the machine.

You’d need to drink 22 drinks to start making a profit. After that, it’s $6.07 in savings per drink.

With an espresso machine + grinder

1. Breville Bambino: $299 from Amazon
2. Baratza Encore ESP: $199 from Amazon
3. Starbucks Blonde whole bean coffee: $17.13/18 ounces | $0.57 per drink
4. Oat milk: $3.32/52 fluid ounces from Walmart | 0.19 per drink
5. Brown sugar: $2.02/32 ounces from Walmart | 0.01 per drink

This version has a higher initial cost but cheaper overall ingredients: $0.77 for the ingredients, $498 for the machines.

You'd need to drink 74 drinks to start making a profit. After that, it’s $6.80 of pure savings each time.

If you already have an espresso machine, you're saving almost 90% on every drink.

So, are you going to skip Starbucks and try making the Iced Brown Sugar Oatmilk Shaken Espresso at home? I only ever make it myself — I haven't been into a Starbucks in years.

Are there any other Starbucks drinks you'd like me to simplify? Perhaps the Pumpkin Spiced Latte in September? Or the Eggnog latte in December? Let me know in the comments!

I post new episodes of The Coffee Lab every Friday, so be sure to check back next week.

More from Tom's Guide

• I tried the new Nespresso summer flavors — here's my favorite
• Non-plastic coffee makers are trending — and this low-plastic Ratio model is my favorite for coffee snobs
• I tried Lelit's brand-new 'entry-level' espresso machine — and I wish I had $2,000 so I could buy it

As much as I consider myself a whiz in the kitchen, for me, there's nothing worse than having to think about what's for dinner every night. I'm frequently indecisive, can't commit to meal prep for fear of taste bud boredom, and I would much rather scroll through DoorDash than try to piece together a meal from ingredients in my pantry.

When the opportunity arose to try out HelloFresh Australia for a month, I was ecstatic. I'm no stranger to HelloFresh (and its subsidiaries, YouFoodz and EveryPlate), as it consistently ranks as one of the best meal kit delivery services globally. It takes the hassle out of dinnertime by menu planning and food shopping for you. The service handpicks ingredients, organises timely deliveries and offers you meals from an expansive catalogue of weekly recipes.

To put HelloFresh to the test, I whipped out my chef hat, dusted off my somewhat dormant cooking skills and selected a variety of recipes for my two-person household. Do note, though, HelloFresh expects that subscribers have some culinary staples and cooking experience in the kitchen to get the most out of it. That said, if you've cut a carrot or minced some garlic before, you've surely got enough skill for this beginner-friendly meal kit.

I'll stop with the waffling now — here's how I fared during my monthlong review of HelloFresh AU.

HelloFresh Australia review: price and availability

Much like other meal-kit providers, prices for HelloFresh will differ depending on how many meals per week you order and how many people you need to feed. The total per-serve cost typically goes down when you opt for more meals.

HelloFresh offers meal kit subscriptions for two to six people, with options of two to six recipes. I purchased six meals for two people to get the most out of HelloFresh's huge weekly menu. It cost AU$136.50 plus shipping per week, which worked out to AU$11.37 per person per serve.

You can add bonus meals to your plan for an additional out-of-pocket cost. For example, one week, I opted to include another meal on top of our six recipe plan. It worked out to AU$157.68 or AU$11.26 per person, per serve. It's not the biggest saving — 11 cents per serve — but if you had more mouths to feed, the cost per serving would be significantly less. As per HelloFresh, the cost per serve for a four-person, six-meal week is AU$9.29 (or AU$223 total) and the cost per serve for a six-person, six-meal week is AU$8.83 (or AU$318 total).

You can also add one-off desserts, sides, snacks and family-style catering meals to your plan for an additional fee. HelloFresh owns YouFoodz, a convenience-based meal subscription service, so there were a few ready meal options to choose from in the weekly menu as well.

When compared to the cost of groceries, HelloFresh costs slightly less than our usual AU$200 two-person weekly shop, and it is definitely cheaper per serve than getting our local Chinese takeaway, which is AU$35 for our order. We still had some change leftover to nab our weekly essentials, lunch and snacks.

That said, larger families might get more bang for their buck by heading to the supermarket, as there are more meals than dinner to consider. According to Finder, the average cost of groceries for a family of four is AU$274 per week, so the AU$223 HelloFresh box cost that only covers dinnertime meals might not provide the best value for money.

It is also worth noting that HelloFresh frequently provides discount codes and free delivery for new subscribers. These discounts usually knock off savings over the course of four deliveries, making prices more affordable to try out for a short period.

HelloFresh Australia review: Delivery and customer service

Delivery for HelloFresh is a rather seamless process. Deliveries can occur on any given day during the week, depending on your area, and are conducted via a third-party service. You also don't need to be home to accept the delivery, as the service will leave your box in a safe location. HelloFresh delivers to most metro, regional and rural suburbs around mainland Australia, but it doesn't currently offer delivery to Tasmania.

In my case, I could organise delivery for either Wednesday or Sunday, during two timeframes of either early morning (between 12am and 4am) or during the day (between 8am and 12pm). For greater context, my colleague in a neighbouring suburb could only select the early morning timeslot on a Sunday, so I’d highly recommend researching delivery days and times available in your area before you commit to HelloFresh. Additionally, I paid AU$11.99 on top of my boxes for delivery. The fee was initially waived for my first two boxes, as part of a free delivery promotion.

Subscribers can also adjust or skip weekly orders any time up until five days before the expected delivery date. This is particularly useful if you’re away from home for any period of time and simply want to hit pause on your HelloFresh subscription.

In the highly unlikely event that anything happens to your subscription box — such as it arrives with out-of-date ingredients or missing items — you can contact HelloFresh's customer support team. It is worth noting that you won't necessarily receive a replacement box or ingredient; however, the team will likely give you a credit or refund should anything go awry.

HelloFresh Australia review: Meals

HelloFresh Australia offers over 45 fresh recipes to choose from in its weekly menu and it varies week to week. Meals fall into different menu categories to cater to dietary needs and preferences. These include: Classic, Vegetarian, Family-friendly, Calorie Smart, Quick & Easy, Carb Smart, Flexitarian and Protein Rich. You can also opt for air-fryer-friendly options or dinners that will take 30 minutes or less to prepare for the ultimate convenience factor.

I selected meals from the Carb Smart and Calorie Smart menus, which feature a variety of cuisines and cater to those who want more balanced dinners with lower carbohydrates and calories. I also selected some heat-and-eat options (more on that below) for late nights when I craved a lazy, decision-free dinner.

Your menu each week is automatically populated with preselected meals that HelloFresh recommends according to your chosen menu and previous orders. However, you have free rein to chop and change meals as you see fit by unselecting them and choosing another option from the recipes on offer.

You shouldn’t expect an entirely fresh menu each week, as HelloFresh will reuse the same dishes week to week. For example, there were some repeat preselected meals in the final week of my subscription, but I simply opted not to include them. For the most part, there were few, if any, duplicate recipes each week, which was ideal for my foodie taste buds.

I gravitated towards Asian-inspired dishes, quick dinners and easy, but delicious protein-based recipes throughout my review. Out of the 26 recipes I made, my favourites included Chermoula Honey Roast Lamb, Salt'n'Pepper Salmon and Lemony Greens, Homestyle Chicken Schnitzel and Mustard Mayo and Singaporean Prawn and Noodle Stir Fry.

It’s also worth mentioning that HelloFresh does an excellent job with clearly listing allergen information for its recipes, with details on its website and app for each recipe.

On the subject of allergens, when you browse the menu on either the website or app, not only can you filter dishes by cuisine, but you can select ingredient types to not include. The only slight issue I found with this is that nuts, for example, is listed as a singular category. If you’re allergic to peanuts, say, but can eat cashews and almonds, you can’t filter to such a granular level.

You can also swap out the default protein in the meals for something else, if you'd prefer. For our chosen menu, our preselected options usually included chicken, so we opted to swap for pork or salmon a few times. You can also swap chicken thigh for chicken tenderloins or breast, for example, if you prefer white meat.

HelloFresh Australia review: Recipes and ingredients

Inside the box, HelloFresh ingredients are packaged in brown paper bags with a corresponding number for each recipe card. The cold ingredients — i.e. meat and dairy products — are stored separately in an insulated cold bag with ice packs. This bag isn’t sealed, which I found a little disappointing, because if you’re able to receive the box for some time and it’s left outside, it could be more susceptible to warming up. The box also includes some discount codes for friends and family, as well as discounts for other businesses supported by HelloFresh. All the ingredients I received came fresh with no issues and didn't go to waste.

Each bag provides most — but not all — ingredients for the recipe. You'll need to have some basic kitchen staples on hand, like butter, oil, salt and pepper. You'll also need utensils, like sharp knives, pots, pans and cooking utensils to make each dish. For most recipes, I had everything I needed, but I had to purchase white wine vinegar before making two meals. You can also check the recipes online to make sure you have any extra ingredients ready to go.

The recipe cards are pretty straightforward and easy to follow, with some even offering handy kitchen tips. There's a handy picture guide that walks you through step-by-step, and there's even a QR code so you can read the recipe online if you'd prefer. And, while it didn’t apply to my household, I appreciated HelloFresh offering tips aimed at children who may want to get involved with the cooking process.

Throughout my review, I found estimated prep times to be accurate, but you might need to budget more time if you're new to cooking or specific techniques. There was only one instance where I felt it was a bit off. For example, when roasting lamb for the Chermoula Honey Roast Lamb recipe, I was instructed to sear the lamb rump for 12 minutes in a pan before transferring it to the oven for an additional 25 minutes.

At the time, I had not roasted or seared lamb before, so I had little experience of what it should look like. It took me a while longer — around 16 minutes to full sear — pushing out the prep time to around 57 minutes, instead of the budgeted 40 minutes. Despite this minor hiccup, the meal turned out perfectly.

Another meal we particularly enjoyed was the Crumbed Mexi-Spiced Chicken & Corn Tacos, which came with a small bottle of Cholula hot sauce. This meal was made easy by using an air fryer to cook the chicken, and came with a can of sweet corn for ease. If you don't own an air fryer, the recipe also provides details on how to pan-fry the chicken.

The recipe gave me great advice on how to crumb the chicken without making too much of a mess — by separating the crumbs, spices and egg into separate bowls — and how to chargrill the corn with a pan without burning it. This recipe budgeted 25 minutes from start to finish, and it was pretty accurate.

Further, I did opt to include some ready meal pasta dishes to our weekly boxes and it was very interesting to say the least. As someone who had tried YouFoodz before, I was familiar with some of the recipes, and the options that HelloFresh had to offer were very much in line with the previous YouFoodz I've had. I did use these for a lazy dinner on a few evenings, and the instructions were as simple as expected — peel back the lid and pop it in the microwave for 3 minutes on high. Flavour-wise, the meals were pretty good and satisfied my hunger, but they definitely weren't Michelin-rated.

The only real gripe we had was flavour and portion sizes. We're self-proclaimed foodies, and love trying new dishes, so we were thrilled to have such a range of cuisines to choose from. However, we found we need to add more than just the provided spice mixes to enhance dishes. The flavour depth was slightly lacking, which might disappoint those who prefer bold, heavy seasoning.

The other niggle we had was portion sizes. As you can imagine, being foodies means we like to eat and some of our protein portions didn't quite sustain us. In some cases, we ended up making two meals and eating them family style to feel fulfilled. Now, HelloFresh suggests opting for a larger meal kit size if you're worried about this, but you can always upgrade or downgrade your plan at any time. There are some recipes that come with 'premium' protein ingredients for an additional fee, too, with larger meat/protein allocations, but we didn't feel the need to pay for these recipes.

HelloFresh Australia review: Verdict

HelloFresh does exactly what you expect — takes the stress out of figuring out weekly dinners and offers the convenience of handpicked ingredients. I still had plenty of choice in what meals we got in every week, but it took immense pressure off hitting the shops after a long workday. Plus, with constant coupons offering savings for new subscribers, you could spend less than you would on takeaway every week.

Aside from that, the delivery was pretty seamless and I had no issue with editing meals or my order at any time in the lead-up to my next box. That said, I did spend some extra time prepping than allocated in some recipe cards, and portion sizes felt small, but overall, HelloFresh's meal kits didn't disappoint. And now with a more expanded range that includes air fryer-friendly meals and heat-and-eat dinners, there's much more accessibility on offer with HelloFresh's service.

So if you're looking for a simple and easy alternative to indecisive dinners, HelloFresh is a subscription box to consider.