Nespresso Vertuo Plus Coffee and Espresso Machine by De’Longhi, Ink Black Import To Shop ×Product customization General

Wow, completely different experience from other “pod coffeemakers”“Is this a good coffee maker?” Well, that’s going to depend upon your expectations in coffee.If you’re looking for a “pod coffee maker” that makes normal drip coffee (think Keurig) then Nespresso is somewhat different, and may or may not meet your expectations.I also have a Keurig. It’s just fine for brewing basic, cheap coffee (or more expensive if you buy major-brand-name capsules). I like my Keurig–we’ve had it for over 5 years, and it works great. But, those who are environmentally conscious will soon realize that Keurig is not recyclable at all, and countless billions of pods a year are making their way into landfills.Nespresso’s pods are made of 100% recycled/recyclable aluminum. Nespresso is VERY focused on a goal of 100% recycle-ability, and provides recycling bags with fully pre-paid shipping. Fill the bag (holds about 75-100 capsules), seal it, and drop it off at your nearest UPS store (or Nespresso store/kiosk if you happen to have one in a mall nearby). Nespresso will dismantle the pods, collect all the used grounds and process it into compost for landscaping use, and then melt down the pods and recycle them. 100% recycled!All those recycling costs are already built in to the pod cost, so while these pods are more expensive than Keurig, there is ZERO waste as long as the consumer does their job.The best way I can describe Nespresso is it’s a totally new coffee “experience.” Espresso or “foo foo coffee” lovers will likely be very pleased with this machine line. Folks who aren’t impressed with anything beyond a drip cup may find Nespresso a little “snooty” for them.Nespresso’s Vertuo product produces coffee that is much more similar to a cup of espresso. The pods are spun at variable RPM’s (typically 3000 – 7000RPM) and use “centrifusion” – a made up word intended to commingle “centrifugal force” and “infusion”. Basically, they spin the pod, a pump squirts in water, and the spinning forces produce the coffee which is extracted and drips into the cup. It’s not particularly noisy for a kitchen appliance, but you can definitely hear the spinning. Regardless of pod, they all come out with a layer of crema (coffee foam). There are (at the moment) five “sizes” of pods, which produce 1.5oz (espresso) up through 14 oz (“Alto XL”).As with any product line, there are pros and cons. There are some fantastic things about Vertuo and a few limitations.Pros: Absolutely fantastic coffee. All cups have a crema layer on them, and there are a relatively plentiful number of flavors and intensities available, ranging from lighter and fruitier/acidic flavors all the way up to very dark bold and smoky options. There are seasonal special pods as well, such as holiday blends or single-origin “master” type coffees. Pods and contents are 100% recyclable. Easy to use out of the box–there’s ONE button. You press it. It works. Milk frother (optional add-on, included in our purchase) is FANTASTIC. I thought it was going to be a gimmick, but I use it with every cup! It’s easy to use, and creates that “latte experience”–it makes better lattes’ than a certain really large chain whose name ends with “bucks”–yeah, you’ll spend ’em there. Pod cost, compared to an espresso shop brewing an equivalent latte for you, is cheap. VERY tightly-integrated recycling: drop pods in bag. Bag full? Seal it and drop it off at your UPS store. Pre-paid return shipping means zero-extra cost. Done. Milk frother is VERY easy to clean–takes about 15 seconds, if that. I’ve only owned the machine for a month, but the build and overall experience lends itself to belief this is a very high-quality unit. Excellent app (iOS/Android)—you can view/order/manage pods, accessories, maintenance/cleaning products and subscriptions right from your phone/tablet. Love a particular flavor? Just add it to your cart. It even supports automatic/routine replenishment if you want that. Seasonal and other specials show up in the app when available, making the app a one-stop-shop. Company is VERY plugged in environmentally and has created a coffee experience that doesn’t fill a landfill. If you actually play the game the way Nespresso intends, it’s a holistic coffee experience and a great one at that.Cons: No third-party pods, and pods are relatively expensive when compared to other “pod” brewing standards. You want this machine? You’ll be buying Nespresso-branded pods from Nespresso, or authorized resellers, and at full-tilt retail which typically runs about $0.90 for an Espresso pod and up to $1.20 for their normal coffees (some origins are as high as $2.00 a pod). So each cup is roughly double the cost of a Keurig brew. There are about 20 different pod flavors and five sizes available, so most people will find SOMETHING they like, but if you don’t love one of the 20, you’re out of luck as there are no 3rd-party options without “hacking together” a used pod, some self-ground coffee, and some foil cap stickers you found on the Internet.Overall, this is an EXCELLENT machine for those who want more than a pod of coffee. I’ve owned it for a month and I’m 100% hooked.

Wow! I was very surprised at how good this is.First off when I got the machine it came in a very damaged original box inside of a new cardboard box. The original box had obviously been previously shipped, opened and returned. I was very leery and took pictures in case there was something wrong with the unit. I assume it was a return. However, the unit itself looked new and unused so I decided to try it and not immediately return it. The unit turned out to be fine. The directions are very confusing per Nespresso’s (and other global companies) insistence on covering every known language on the planet. I am thinking that is the reason it was returned because I am a retired electronics tech and if I found it confusing I imagine some people would be overwhelmed with it before even trying the machine. So after running a cleaning cycle, not as easy to figure out as it sounds, I was ready for my first double shot espresso cup. All I can say is WOW it was fantastic. I had my doubts on the new Virturo capsules as being worth upgrading but the old machine I had, mediocre at best, would only give espresso shots. The new machine has double shot capsules and goes all the way up to large cups of coffee. Extremely happy with this product despite the fact they sold a returned item. Plus the fact it was 1/2 price it was a great purchase.

I have mixed feelings about this.Let me tell you what I think about this coffee machine. The most important thing is that if you like an American cup of coffee, 10 to 12 ounces, you’re not gonna get that here. Coffee is excellent from this machine, but if you want the larger cup, go get the Keurig. OK, onto my list, I’ll keep it short and sweet.1) Limited coffee options, this is the newer cup style, pretty much limited to only their stuff. The coffee is good but selection could be better. 7.7 ounces is the maximum size.2) Recycling the cups is absolutely trash. It is not environmentally friendly, they come in aluminum cups, and if you want to recycle them, you have to take them to their center. Throwing out aluminum cups in the garbage is just not environmentally friendly. Their claim is completely false. Keurig is better.3) Cleaning the machine is absolutely awful. There is little to no instructions or support on how to do this process. We have had a orange and yellow light for about four months, I have cleaned the machine numerous times, reset it to factory settings, and I cannot get the light to go away. Good luck finding any information. Good luck fixing that problem. I could possibly call the company and figure it out but frankly that is too much to ask a consumer to do every time they want to figure out how to clear the light.4) Awkward size on the countertop, the Keurig options are more plentiful and the previous one we had actually was better on our counter. This is subjective and our opinion, may be OK for you.Hope this helps, the biggest thing for me initially was getting used to drinking less coffee. I like a larger cup of warm coffee in the morning, and I just adjusted. I am very disappointed about the recycling options, I like to do what I can, and this is just massively inconvenient and not conducive of environmental responsibility.

Great machine!First of all I would like to say that I have been searching high and low far one of these espresso machines. This one is really great! It’s a little bigger than I wanted but I like that it makes the larger cups of coffee as well as the single and double shots of espresso. Simple and easy to use. Seller was very easy to work with, great communication. Fast shipping and efficient. Thank you so much I highly recommend this espresso machine!

Good Coffee, Love it.I really like the coffee that this machine makes. I grind my own beans and have a blend of medium roast and Italian Roast that I use to make coffee. There are reusable coffee holders available so you can use your own blends.