Mr. Coffee ECMP40 Pod Pump Espresso & Cappuccino Maker
by Mr. Coffee
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List Price: Category: Kitchen See more product details |
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Mr. Coffee ECMP40 Pod Pump Espresso & Cappuccino Maker
Customer Review: Moderate performance but good results
Summary: 4 Stars
I've had this machine for two months now. While some people in these reviews mention using their's once or twice a day, I use mine about 4 times per week. Admittedly, I still go to Starbucks or a local coffeeshoppe if it is convenient while I am out and about.
My experience has been positive, but I'll mention the poor side as well.
First off, say goodbye to that drip tray. It takes up way too much space and hardly leaves you any room for even an espresso shot glass. I think the machine looks better cosmetically without it, anyways. One thing that was repeatedly run into my brain by barista friends is that it is Important to take care of the machine. I clean the steam wand after every use and clean the dripping/pressure area after every use to remove excess espresso grinds. Additionally, I would recommend running a cycle of water through the machine (pressure and steam wand) every week or so; I only wish I had done this from the beginning - I am noticing an improvement of performance now that I have started this routine.
As far as the results of drinks, I am very pleased. I have succeeded in making lattes equal if not better to the local coffeeshoppes around here; and my barista friends who have experienced my drinks thus far have given me their praise. I know Mr. Coffee, as a brand, doesn't stack up against the other espresso maker companies, but this is a contender. A very cheap contender at that. The price was the huge motivating factor for this purchase, but also it has shown to be a weakness as well.
This machine doesn't have that much pull. Or push, rather. I recently switched to a very, very fine espresso grind and have noticed that hot water now almost pours out of the steam wand when I am brewing the espresso. Before, when using the Starbucks Espresso Grind, that did not happen; but after my switch to a much finer grind (not Starbucks this time), the hot water that apparently is supposed to be pressured through the espresso, is just ending up out the steam wand. This is disappointing. But understandable. This machine was only $60 for me; which is dirt compared to the exuberant espresso maker competitors. As a fix, I put a bowl underneath the steam wand when I am brewing, just to catch that water. Easy fix, doesn't make me fret. I still get great espresso.
Overall, I am pleased. This is no lavish espresso maker, and it wasn't intended to be, but it gets the job done for $60 (quickly saving me money from my 5-6 trips to coffeehouses every week).
And watch out for that steam wand after you use it. It has no protective covering, so the exposed metallic portion will be quite radiant to the touch after you've warmed the milk. Oh, and don't forget to warm the milk up first (140-150 degrees Fahrenheit) because this machine can't brew and steam at the same time, or at least I seriously don't recommend you trying.
Customer Review: The goodnews is . . . . the bad news is . . . .
Summary: 1 Stars
The good news is . . . We bought the first machine for Christmas and were more than pleased with it's operation and the espresso was fantastic!
The bad news is . . . .Since then we have had three of these machines. The first lasted 4 months before the steam valve would no longer shut off. It almost scalded my wife and now it is in the shop for repair, the other two which were bought within the last 2 days, both failed out of the box.
The last two, one returned for the next, both had the same problems in that right out of the box, during the initial internal rinse cycle, neither unit's ready light came on, both units started getting extremely hot to the touch, over 130 degrees and climbing, and steam started spewing from inside the unit. In all cases each unit failed to an unsafe condition that could have caused severe burns if we hadn't been paying close attention.
The out of box failure rate for the units we bought is 2 out of 3!
The only reason we tried buying the second two units was that we couldn't wait for our first unit because we loved the espresso they make so much!
I would highly recommend that Mr. Coffee, Amazon, and Target, or any other store selling these units, take these units off the market until Mr. Coffee can fix these problem or they may soon be looking at a law suit for personal injury from some not as cautious as we are!
DON'T BUY ONE, until they have been corrected!!!!
Customer Review: Decent For The Money
Summary: 4 Stars
First off many of the complaints voiced here are inherent in cheaper expresso machines. Additionally many can be attibuted to not knowing how to the use the machine(this is not a coffee pot and it doesn't work like on either. I've owned 3 different brands over the years and unless your willing to pay in excess of 200.00 then this is what your dealing with. Breakdown as follows:1)not enough clearance beneath beneath brewer(a 2 oz shot glass or expresso cup fits nicely though and ultimately that is the proper way to brew expresso anyhow--not in a coffee cup/jumbo mug) 2)It does leak when brewer is turned off(from brewing head drips)--not really a problem as much as an annoyance(if you remove the brewing head once the expresso is done--no leakage-- or leave a cup there for a few minutes to catch the excess). 3)Frother is much more powerful than simililarly priced machines that I've used and works well(note: generally when a frother quits working it's because the milk has hardened in the frothing tip and the steam cannot escape--it must be cleaned regularly!). A big plus is being able to brew 2 expressos at once, a feature that no other machine in this price range offers(most are single brews into one large glass cup which equlas no crema). It boils down to this--for it's price it's a decent value and if you learn how to use the machine it should work as intended and it outclasses any other machine in it's price range. And by the way the face plate is made of metal so I'm not quite sure how the other guys melted off twice from the steam.
Update(1 year later)---Pot still kicking strong after a year of heavy use(1-2 times a day)...Still brews excellent expresso with a nice crema on top(2.5 oz in about 25 secs). As for the frother-a bit on the weak side but good enough--keep it clean though, a dirty/clogged frothing tip will not work--get rid of the black plastic adapter though--it doesn't work. Overall--a real bang for your buck--no reason to blow 300-500 as long as this economy unit is out there....also--use the right grind(about the size of granulated sugar--do not use fine grind ala turkish it will not work properly)and learn how to tamp the coffee, very important to the end result.
Customer Review: Great at first, then not worth the trouble
Summary: 1 Stars
I was given this as a gift for mother's day 04. I have not even had it for a year. For the first couple of months it made great espresso, and I had even mastered frothing the milk. Then it began to leak all the time. I have to keep a measuring cup on the machine at all times to catch the excess. You must always keep it very clean because if not it will take over 5 min to brew the espresso. The milk frother broke completely after a couple of months so I used the microwave to warm up the milk. Today it stopped working all together. It over pressurized after being on for only a couple of minutes, and espresso and very hot steam came out all over the place; it covered the machine, counter, refrigerator, and floor. I was lucky I was not directly in front of it, I would have been burned. This machine is not worth the money; it is not reliable at ALL. What a disaster!!!!!!!!Customer Review: At least twice your money's worth
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm giving this 5 stars because for $60 it's an awesome deal. I tasted this against a friend's $500 Francis Francis machine using the same coffee, and the taste and crema were embarassingly close. It's built lightly and you can definitely see why it's 1/8th the price, but after 2 weeks of 3-4x/day use I'm very happy. Read others' tips here for best operation and I think you'll agree. For coffee I use the pre-ground Illy coffee that comes in a can (don't laugh- the Italians know how to do coffee in a can)- $12/8oz at my local Whole Foods, so it's "reassuringly expensive" but still a fraction of what you'd pay per cup at starbucks et. al. and it's guaranteed to be ground properly, which is far more important than in a non-espresso machine.