Nescafe Dolce Gusto Piccolo

I grew to love Dolce Gusto coffee while living in Europe the last three years. It gives you the quality of coffee shop coffee in your own home. When I moved back to the US, we bought a Keurig machine, expecting the same level of quality but were very disappointed. It's much easier to find Keurig coffee cups, but the quality of the coffee is not nearly as good. Even if you buy the premium brand cups. So I was very happy to find this Dolcu Gusto Piccolo machine for such a low price. It makes great coffee with the Nescafe Dolce Gusto cups and is small and compact enough to fit on a desk or coffee bar. It only holds two cups of coffee worth of water at a time, but this is plenty for me. I just keep a bottle of water on my desk to refill it! If you have never had coffee from a Dolce Gusto, try it! The high pressure system and higher quality coffee cups make much better coffee than a Keurig. You can also do Cappucinos, Espressos, and many other types of coffees that you can't make in many of the Keurigs. And you can order the coffee cups on Amazon and end up costing about the same as Keurig coffee. My only critique is that the machine is pretty loud when running. I warn my coworkers when I'm about to make a cup because it buzzes. It's worth it though!

This is my third Gusto machine in 5 years, previously I had the larger model. When the last one stopped working mid-pour I was tempted to upgrade to a nespresso but I had literally just ordered $80 worth of coffee for the gusto.... sigh. So I decided to spend the least possible on the machine since they do not seem to have a life-span of more than 2 years. I also thought that this model would take up less counter space which is always a plus. The price was an absolute bargain ($37) so I cannot complain about value for money. However.... 1. The water tank holds much less than the larger model, i.e. I use a mug sized cup and find that I can only make one and a half drinks from one tank. This is kind of annoying when you want to make a drink for you and another person... 2. The machine is pretty lightweight, feels flimsier/cheaper than previous models. The plastic is perhaps thinner and it does not all click together as strongly is my unprofessional opinion. E.g. the drip tray is super light and is all plastic that does not come apart for cleaning unlike the larger model which had a metal plate and came apart. 3. Shuddering. Sometimes the coffee spills down the back of the mug/down the back of the splashguard on the machine and also splatters on to the wall next to the machine because the machine is not heavy enough to remain still when in operation. The dripping down the mug is super annoying when it happens. The splattering happened with the old machine so no change there. So why the 3 stars? It still pours a *decent* cup of coffee for a very good price. I like the coffee flavors (black ones only, hate the fake milk ones!) and for the price it is great for what I use it for. My family have Nespresso machines and I do love them but they are a lot more expensive. Since I drink a lot of coffee at home this is a good compromise for me. And it takes up minimal counter space. If you want something cheap and cheerful and does the job, get this one. If you want something a bit more substantial I would buy the larger model (much sturdier) and if money is no object, buy a nespresso :)

I do not like the machine as it is now. There should have been the "pods" with it as they are NOT available anywhere around me and I really do not feel inclined to have to constantly order them. I have not used except to heat water since it did not come with the necessary coffee containers. My husband got this for me for Christmas but when we decided to try it out that morning there were no coffee "pods" to try out. It is also very noisy!! I have looked on the website but have not decided whether to buy the "pods" or not. Probably will keep but......not use until I can find the coffee to use in it. We thought the refillable K- Cup would work..WRONG as it is too big.

I guess this is the poor man's Nespresso. IMO Dolce Gusto makes better coffee than Keurig by a mile. I've never had anything decent come out of a Keurig and fail to understand why so many people love it. With 2 Dolce americano pods, I can get a decent cup that's strong enough with some crema on top. It tastes good to boot. The water container design is just silly and the shape and the opening area where you put water makes it difficult to pour in water. This is form over function. Placing the water container back to the resting place is a snap and no issues there with the pump thereafter. Water is pumped up without any issues. The big issue I have with Dolce Gusto and other pod-brewers is that the water doesn't get hot enough. It's on that verge of being satisfyingly hot and not hot enough.... but it's just not there at the satisfyingly hot mark. It's a pity b/c I would've given this 5 stars if water was hot enough. I guess one way to help it is if you heat the mug beforehand (splash water, microwave) so you don't lose any heat from the mug. I have tried microwaving it for about 40 sec after brewing to get it satisfyingly hot and it still tastes good and there's still crema on top. Unless the much higher priced automatic versions of the machine gives you hotter water, I'd say just go with the manual version. At $40, it's a steal. Once you get a feel of how much water you need for the brew you like, manual mode is fine. Note: If you forget to dump the pod after usage, the water spout tend to get clogged. Few runs of just hot water clears it up though. Over a Keurig, I'd pick Dolce Gusto every time. Do note, with these capsule brewers, the pods are not eco-friendly and are not recyclable... It doesn't appear the manufacturers care enough to come out with a green alternative anytime soon. They all say something to the likes of "we are commited to be an eco-conscious company and striving towards a green design" or whatever but the fact remains no one has done anything at this point.