If you’ve been following Lifehacker Australia with even the slightest bit of regularity of late, chances are you’ll know that we love our coffee. Seemingly, you all feel similarly, which makes our hearts incredibly happy… because it means we get to write about and think about the delicious caffeinated drink all the damn time. As a result, we’ve worked on a fair few coffee machine reviews over the years.
While it’s difficult to choose between our children, we thought it would make sense to create a bible of coffee machine reviews so you guys at home can easily compare the best options from the bunch.
As such, here is a list of our favourite coffee machines from the last couple of years. Check them out below.
The best of our Real Life Reviews: Coffee machines
Over the past few years, Lifehacker Australia has been lucky enough to test out a number of different coffee machines first-hand. Here, we’ve picked out our favourite reviews from different brands – Lavazza, Breville, DeLonghi and Nespresso – which gave us a particularly positive experience.
Check them out below.
Sunbeam Barista Max Espresso Machine
Our share house absoultely loved how easy the Sunbeam Barista Max Espresso Machine was to use. It’s fast becoming our favourite reason to wake up in the morning.
“It’s very aesthetic, and a good size! I like how the milk frother is attached so there’s something for everyone including the non-coffee drinkers. Plus, it’s very easy to use.”
Where to buy the Sunbeam Barista Max Espresso Machine: Amazon Australia ($489, usually $649) | The Good Guys ($569) | Harvey Norman ($569) | Appliances Online ($525) | JB Hi-Fi ($569, usually $599)
DeLonghi La Specialista Arte
Easily my favourite from the bunch, and the machine I use every day, is DeLonghi’s La Specialista Arte. We reviewed this back in September 2021, but we remain enthusiastic about its performance.
If you’re someone who is looking for a coffee machine that gives you the manual experience without too many bells and whistles, this is well worth a look.
Where to buy the DeLonghi La Specialista Arte: Amazon Australia ($649) | eBay ($699) | The Good Guys ($699) | Myer ($575, usually $899)
The Lavazza Desea coffee machine
When reviewing this machine from Lavazza’s A Mio Modo range, we found that “It’s a thoughtfully-made coffee maker that creates a delicious cup of Italian coffee”.
It also boasts a better-value price point than other Lavazza models, like the SMEG machine, which makes it a pretty attractive option for coffee fans.
Where to buy the Lavazza Desea coffee machine: Amazon Australia ($230) | eBay ($245) | The Good Guys ($245)
Nespresso Vertuo POP
Another pod-based review, the Nespresso Vertuo POP coffee machine impressed us with its slick design (which is award-winning, by the way) and all-around simplicity.
It’s affordable, it’s compact, and it’s beautiful to look at. A big winner in our eyes.
Where to buy the Nespresso Vertuo POP: Amazon Australia ($199) | eBay ($269, with milk frother) | The Good Guys ($199) | Myer ($194.65, usually $299)
The Breville Barista Touch Impress
Moving onto an option for the manual coffee machine fans in the room, Breville’s Barista Touch Impress, well… impressed us with its speedy set-up and its range of options for dairy-free milk lovers.
Sure, it’s more of an investment. But if you’re a regular coffee drinker and you want that old-school brew, this machine should satisfy.
Where to buy the Breville Barista Touch Impress: Amazon Australia ($1,910) | eBay ($1,899) | The Good Guys ($1,999)
Lavazza Jolie and DeLonghi Nespresso
This comparative review pitted the Lavazza Jolie and DeLonghi Nespresso up against one another, and both wound up impressing our team in the end. The ultimate takeaway from this review was that if you’re a no-fuss kind of coffee drinker, you’ll be happy with either model – so maybe save the cash and opt for the cheaper of the two.
Where to buy the Lavazza Jolie: Amazon Australia ($69.90) | eBay ($149) | The Good Guys ($149)
Where to buy the DeLonghi Nespresso: Amazon Australia ($229) | The Good Guys ($229)
De’Longhi Eletta Explore coffee machine
For those of you who want to splash some cash on a machine with all the bells and whistles, the Eletta Explore coffee machine is your best bet. It’ll automate the entire coffee experience and the app is pretty neat, too.
Where to buy the DeLonghi Eletta Explore: The Good Guys ($1,799) | eBay (from $1,499) | Amazon Australia ($1,697) | DeLonghi (from $1,799)
Other machines we’ve reviewed
Okay, so now that we’ve looked at our favourite reviews, let’s check out the ones we didn’t love quite as much.
Lavazza SMEG
This machine is a beauty to look at, but ultimately we found that the price point wasn’t justified for the good, not great, coffee experience.
Nespresso Vertuo Next
While the Vertuo Next coffee machine is certainly capable of making a tasty brew, it was a little too clunky and the lid was difficult to close, making the experience kind of arduous.
If you want more advice on popular coffee machines, check out this list of some of the best-rated options that were on offer throughout 2022.
This article has been updated since its original publish date with additional coffee machines.
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