Espressione Professional Conical Burr Coffee Grinder - Precision Grounds for Espresso, French Press & Drip Coffee - Black/Silver Coffee Bean Grinder for Home & Cafe Use

This burr grinder does a fantastic job, day after day for over two years now, without any problems. Pretty amazing performance, especially considering the price. Highly recommended.We recently replaced our old burr grinder with this conical grinder. After spending eight or so years with that old grinder, we were looking for something that offered quieter operation and a decent-sized hopper to hold beans. We didn't want it to be too large and wanted a quality unit that provided a uniform grind. That's how we found the Espressione grinder.The Espressione conical burr coffee grinder provides a fast, uniform grind, which was just what we were looking to find. It features a 150W motor that produces a strong grind at a respectable volume. Many grinders operate at a much higher volume and a slower speed. The top hopper of the grinder offers fifteen different grind settings to adjust the grind to the exact fineness. A rotary dial on the right side of the grinder adjusts the quantity of grind to be dispensed into the grind container. The bean hopper has a low profile, but holds a decent amount of beans that supports many pots of coffee.Operation is simple: adjust the top hopper to the grind fineness you want, set the quantity of grind using the knob on the right side of the grinder, then press the large button on the front of the grinder. The grinder dispenses coffee rapidly and coffee is removed by pulling out the container, lifting off the container top, and dumping the contents into the coffee maker.One thing to keep in mind is, not all burr grinders are made alike. We purchased this grinder to replace another burr grinder that, after eight years, had its metallic burrs worn down. Conical burr grinders offer a vertical burr configuration that provides a more uniform grind. Regular burr grinders actually grind using a flatter surface and don't provide as consistent a grind as conical burrs. Burr grinders in general offer a superior grind that doesn't heat stress the bean due to grinding friction.Based on our experience, we're very happy with this grinder. Unlike our old burr grinder, the Espressione doesn't wake the baby when I get the coffee maker set before bed. It's still somewhat loud, but certainly not as loud as our old grinder. It's also much faster than our old grinder. I can grind enough coffee for a seven-cup pot in about ten seconds.The only complaint I have is with the rotary dial on the side of the unit. It works fine, but it moves very easily and isn't very responsive. It took a number of tries before I found the setting that works best for morning coffee pots. If I change this setting, it's not so easy to get it back. If the dial had detents or was more firm with its movement, I'd be able to better set the dial to get the quantity I want.One thing we don't like is when static electricity forms on the plastic of the grind dispenser following a grind. The item description states it is antistatic, but that wasn't our experience. This isn't anything major, but it does cause grinds to stick to the container. I tap the container when dumping the contents into the grind filter and this releases most of the grinds, but some still stick to the plastic. This will change depending on the humidity of the room. Higher humidity causes less static; a drier atmosphere increases static.Other than this, the Espressione conical burr coffee grinder is a nice purchase for the money. While it's not the cheapest grinder on the market, if you want a quality, fast grind that doesn't come with ear-splitting volume, Espressione makes a nice grinder.Update: After 6 years it's still going strong!! I was just looking at my past orders and noticed this was purchased in 2015. I use it daily and it works 100% after hundreds of pounds of coffee. I make cold brew daily and go through 4 lbs of coffee a month easily. I also make espresso and regular coffee using this machine. Swapping beans not super easy but I don't have experience with other machines so it could be that they are all the same.I will say that it's messy to use and I don't like the nose level or the fact that the indicator is hard to find. I also think there are cheaper better models today but at the time this was it. Unlike some on here who have complained about the longevity, I have not had that experience.I am fairly new to the concept of all the gadgetry involved with making coffee and espresso. I am however a long time consumer of kitchen gadgets and shopping for a good value.SUMMARY: Works exceptionally well, looks great, easy to operate and has all the necessary functionality. I cant speak on the longevity which would factor into the overall value.OUT OF THE BOX - It feels heavy and sturdy and it looks nice on my kitchen counter top. It was straight forward to put together simple attach the hopper and insert the catcher and plug it in.OPERATING - There are two settings, one for the grind the other for the amount determined by number of cups. You put the beans in the hopper spin it to adjust your grind, select the number of cups on the side dial and push the large button the front and its working. The coffee pours into the catch and turns itself off once it has met the time allotted for the number of cups.GRIND - I have not used a microscope or compared it to 10 other machines grind results. Frankly I couldn't point out the grind from this over another machine any day of the week. I can say it looks very uniform and the finest grind makes a fine powder that makes great espresso.Everything I read indicates that once you are going through all this amount of effort to make great fresh coffee/espresso, you should probably only grind what you are going to use and store what you are not in an air tight container.SINGE CONCERN - The only issue I have is that if the hopper gets empty before the timer runs out it spins at a super high rpm and sounds like it is going to damage the machine which it probably would if I were not there to turn it off. So while its nice to not have to hold my finger on the machine the entire time maybe have an auto shut off mechanism that senses when its empty. They probably have that on more expensive ones so its not really an issue just know you should not leave the room if you think there are more cups selected than beans in the hopper.CONCLUSION - I bought this one because it is the best value for a "conical burr" machine and it got great reviews. I can at least feel that my coffee grinds are as good as they can be and all my fancy coffee/espresso gadgets are not being degraded by the inferior grind. I am giving my beans and equipment every opportunity to make a great cup of jo!This seemed to have all the features we wanted.... we managed to get one grind from this and it no longer works. There are tons of grinders out there I would not take a chance on this one. The grind selection arrow on the hopper is almost invisible making it difficult to read when changing grind size. We could have lived with this by re marking it however as mentioned it simply won’t engage now to start grinding..... Avoid this productGreat little machine! We drink a lot of coffee and this machine keeps up with the volume of grinding we do. Perfect grind and the top holds just the right amount for each batch. Only criticism is that it gets very staticy around the container that holds the ground coffee so it gets very messy. We try to tap it when we pull it out but it still gets everywhere. I put a paper towel under the machine to catch all the excess grounds which helps.It did work great but for only 8 months. It completely failed - dead electric motor. The company web site indicates that once a product they sell leaves the US, the warranty is null and void or something to that effect. Minimal response from the company with respect to getting guidance for a repair or replacement- I did get an email with a phone number to call but no company info linked to it. - no name, address etc.I can't imagine packing this thing up and sending it across the border to get it fixed and then having it returned and dealing with the issues associated with that.It is just too bad because I liked the product and the way it worked but it just didn't have a good enough build.Maybe I'm wrong, Maybe spending 50 cents a day at home to grind your own beans is reasonable. It is not though, what I expected.Pros:- Not excessively loud- Grinds coffeeCons:- All the parts are cheap, brittle plastic- The marking for the grind selector is obscured by the beans in the hopper- The smallest amount of beans it will grind is 4 scoops; that's enough for 4 x 4oz cups, or 2 x 8oz cups in a French press- The coarsest grind is more like a medium, not coarseI use it every day for espresso with my Breville espresso machine. I had a Breville conical burr grinder but it crapped out. The only problem with the Espressione is the plastic container that catches the ground coffee has static and the grounds stick to it. Someone previously mentioned using a 250 ml glass canning jar, it works.