De’Longhi Perfetto Magnifica S – honest review and opinion

If you like coffee, your coffee machine should be an espresso machine.The most reliable and precise when it comes to preparing the original espresso. One of the most popular and best-selling espresso machines over the years is the De’Longhi Perfetto Magnifica S.

His secret? Its ability to reproduce the canonical recipe without you needing to be a barista thanks to its super-automatic and its ease of use.. Sit back and read our review over a coffee, because we tested it extensively and here is our experience.

This is a super-automatic coffee machine for deep coffee lovers who want to enjoy a result without too much difficulty.. The advantage is that in no time you can make coffees worthy of the best barista, but if you want to go further with customization, it probably won’t measure up.

De’Longhi Perfetto Magnifica S tech.

This is a super-automatic coffee maker for deep coffee lovers who want to enjoy the results of a coffee without the hassle. The advantage is that in no time you can make coffees worthy of the best barista, but if you want to go further with customization, it probably won’t measure up.

Design

This is a heavy and bulky coffee machine that is not suitable for small kitchens. But that’s not exceptional among super-automatic machines. In his favour, its dimensions are well used and it is pleasant to look at..

It has a a sober and functional aesthetic with an industrial touch. We tested the black version, but if you opt for the silver model, the look is even more technical.

Although his the construction is of good qualityMost of the parts are plastic, with a few exceptions like the cup and cup holder trays and the piping.

Here is a quick overview of its main components and their layout:

• At the top we find the the cup-warming tray and the coffee delivery area.. It has two compartments, a funnel for adding ground coffee and the other for coffee beans. The lids of the two compartments are made of opaque plastic but are not airtight. We therefore advise you to add just enough coffee so that it does not lose its organoleptic properties on contact with air.
• On the right, the 1.8 liter water tank translucent plastic. As this model comes without a filter, we recommend that to minimize the impact of limescale, you buy it separately or simply add filtered water (for example, from a drinking water tap). Brita).
• On the left, the cappuccinatorwhich you can move to the left for larger cups.
• The front is dominated by a with 6 buttons, 2 wheels and a small LED panel. which lights up in the event of an incident. Just below is the coffee spout, with 2 nozzles so you can brew 2 cups simultaneously.
• Underneath the cup tray you will find a small reservoir for the draining water and a drawer for the coffee grounds.

Previous generations had a switch on the back, but on this machine the ON/OFF button is built into the center panel. In practice, this translates to a more convenient layout.

Installation and operation

After taking the coffee machine out of its packaging and removing all the protections, it’s time to prepare it to make our first coffee. Before starting to use any appliance intended to come into contact with food, we recommend that you wash it beforeUse hot water for removable accessories such as the cappuccinator or reservoir.

Place the coffee maker on a flat, solid surface and remove the water tank using its handle. Remove the lid and fill with water (preferably mineral or filtered) to the MAX line. It is worth hurrying, because between pre-cleaning and post-cleaning, coffee preparation and steaming, a lot of water is used.

It’s time to plug it into the mains and turn it on, for this we advise you to place 2 containers (such as glasses for example), one on the cappuccinator and the other just below the spout Coffee.

Now press the ON/OFF button (the LED flashes). For a few seconds, the internal circuits are cleaned using water from the tank, which falls through the coffee spout. This water will fall through the coffee spout. This self-cleaning operation takes place every time you turn the device on or off.keep that in mind.

Then, press the specific button of the cappuccinator (the LED flashes) and open its wheel to pour water. Leave on for about a minute. Return the cappuccinator wheel to the normal position and it is ready to use.

If you’re using coffee beans, you don’t need to worry about the degree of grind, since is factory calibrated. Thereafter, you can modify it as you wish among 13 values.

Control panel

The control panel is the main difference between the latest generations of De’Longhi Perfetto Magnifica S. Is it intuitive? Although the icons provide a good guide to each button’s function, the reality is that you will need to read the manual and have it with you the first few times you use the machine. Easy to use, but with a learning curve..

• The cappuccinator is opened and closed by the wheel at the top left, with two positions.
• In the central part of the capuccinator there is the wheel that allows you to choose the aroma of the coffee or to choose the pre-ground coffee. The more it is placed to the right, the more beans the machine will grind for each coffee and therefore the stronger it will be.

On the control panel, you have buttons for. prepare one or two cups of short or long coffee directly.The cappuccinator is equipped by default with a 40 ml coffee maker and a 120 ml coffee maker. It also has a dedicated button for activating the cappuccinator and for maintenance operations.

From this point you can change settings such as coffee volume and water temperature..

Make coffee

Before we dive into how to make coffee, it’s worth taking a quick look at the canonical espresso recipe and how these machines work.

How to prepare an espresso

The perfect espresso consists of:

• 7 grams of coffee ± 0.5.
• Water outlet temperature at 88°C ± 2°C.
• Water pressure in contact with coffee 9 bar.
• Coffee percolation time 25 seconds ± 5.
• Milliliters of the cup of 25 ml ± 2.5.
• Cup temperature of 67°C ± 3°C.

Why use a espresso machine? Because she is able to faithfully reproduce the recipe and introduce slight variations. in these settings according to your tastes, which you can then reproduce.

An espresso machine heats the water until it is almost boiling (be careful if the water boils, it makes the coffee bitter), grinds the coffee on the spot to preserve its properties, puts the water under pressure to that it passes through the coffee, leaving its flavor, and arrives in your cup. A marvel of engineering.

To guarantee the 9 bars of pressure without problems (even if there were leaks, which is unavoidable in practice), the De’Longhi Perfetto Magnifica Sis capable of delivering up to 15 bars and heating water using Thermoblock technology.Thermoblock technology is a heat exchanger between metal pipes and the necessary water, which performs its function quickly and efficiently.

This is a coffee machine classified as “superautomatic”. because it is not necessary to know the canonical recipe for espresso (and, in general, good coffee), nor to have other gadgets or skills, such as a coffee grinder: it will be enough to press a few buttons to revel in the result.

Note that while this superautomatic coffee machine is calibrated at the factory and allows you to adjust the aroma, quantity, body and cream of the coffee according to the degree of grind or temperature, with capsule coffee machines or Italian, the controllable parameters are smaller and less precise. Moreover, with the De’Longhi Perfetto Magnifica S you can grind the coffee on the spot without any additional gadgets..

make a coffee

This point being clarified, it is time to to enjoy a good cup of coffee. Once the coffee machine is plugged in and turned on, place your cup under the coffee spout. Pour a spoon of ground coffee or a handful of coffee beans and choose what you prefer:

• One or two short coffees
• One/two long coffees

In less than 2 minutes, the coffee machine will have carried out all the operations and the coffee will be ready to be consumed. Nothing’s easier And there’s nothing more annoying than making sure there’s water and coffee.

However, it is one thing to be able to make “any” coffee, i.e. the default coffee prepared by the machine with its factory settings, and another to do so. as you like. Here is it will take time for you to get the hang of it how you like your coffee. But the process is a most enjoyable experience.

Also, In case of problemIf there is a problem, for example if there is no more coffee or water, or if the waste containers are full, a red icon lights up on the display.

Let’s talk about the noise: the installation and the first uses can be noisier than the later preparations, but the device is not particularly noisy. Even grinding is not particularly annoying, as it is a muffled sound.. However, if the kitchen is next to the bedroom and someone is sleeping, we recommend closing the door.

Prepare a cappuccino

While some Deep L lovers prefer to enjoy the coffee on its own, I prefer to drink it with lots of milk. The advantage is that this De’Longhi Perfetto Magnifica S coffee maker allows you to do it like in the best cafes.You just need to master the coffee machine, have some imagination and a cappuccino machine.

The first thing to do is to use a large cup, because you will need to add the coffee, milk and air that the coffee maker needs to generate a creamy and voluminous foam. My recommendation after some inconvenience (think you’re with a hot drink): that at least double the volume of the liquid it will contain..

Pour the coffee into your cup, add the milk and press the cappuccinator button (the LED light flashes). Then place the cappuccinator in the liquid and turn the wheel. For best results, slowly move the cup up and down for a few minutes.

Finally, finish your drink by adding cocoa powder or cinnamon to the froth. However, there are milk frothers, the convenience and taste results as well as the texture and appearance of this coffee maker are high quality.. In fact, I would say it produces one of the best coffees I have ever tasted.

Energy, water and noise consumption

After using the coffee machine for several days in different preparations, it is worth highlighting some aspects relating to use and consumption.

This is a coffee maker with A+ and automatic shutdown. This means that its energy efficiency is above average. However, it has an ECO mode that you can activate to reduce its consumption. If you don’t turn it off after making your coffee, it turns itself off after a few minutes of inactivity.

When preparing coffee, different phases can be noisy, such as the absorption and pumping of water, and especially the grinding of beans. Although noisy, the coffee grinder generates a muffled sound which is not so uncomfortable. and stops in seconds. However, if you do not live alone, it is best to close the kitchen door.

When I first filled the water tank I thought it would last a long time as I usually use short coffee (40ml). A few days later, I was surprised by the water shortage warning. And the fact is between the cleaning phases and the cappuccinator, this coffee machine consumes a lot of water in practice..

Maintenance and cleaning

One of the great assets of a superautomatic coffee machine is the level of control it allows you to exercise without having to “get your hands dirty”, which is also appreciated in terms of maintenance and cleaning the device.

Although we strongly recommend that you read and follow the instructions in the manual, it is our daily experience.

THE internal maintenance, cleaning and descaling are carried out automatically by the coffee machine.but other elements will have to be done manually.

What is this ? Clean the circuits each time you turn the machine on and off. It takes a few seconds and minimizes the risk of encrustation. However, the water consumption is noticeable. However, if you do not use it for several days, it is better to press the rinse button several times.

It is necessary to descale the coffee machine once a month to ensure that the lime-laden water does not clog the internal circuits.. A descaler is included in the box to allow you to carry out the first maintenance operation, but you will then have to buy more.

This operation consists of pouring 100 ml of descaler into the water tank and filling it with water up to the B mark. Place a container of at least 2 liters under the coffee spout and the cappuccinator and press the descaling button for 5 seconds to start this process which takes about 45 minutes.

Cleaning the main parts of the coffee machine consists of:

• If you use the cappuccinator, the cleaning is manual.. On the other hand, it is quite fast: just make a cappuccino in a glass of water, remove the cap to clean the inside and wipe the surface with a cloth.
• THE cleaning the coffee spout is also manual and avoids clogging, just use a sponge or cloth.
• An LED panel notifies you when needed remove coffee groundsa fairly quick operation which consists of extracting it and throwing it in the trash.
• It’s easy to become water accumulates in the drain pan (as indicated by his name). Luckily, it has a red overflow that shows when it’s full.
• Behind the water tank is the brew unitwhich should be cleaned at least once a month, with the coffee machine switched off and completely removed so that it can only be immersed in water.

Conclusions and prices

We end this De’Longhi Perfetto Magnifica S review with a good taste in our mouths, and not just because we drank a coffee. Personally, I’ve tried capsule (my current machine), Italian and filter coffee machines, but this is my first time using a capsule coffee machine. first approach to a superautomatic model and the experience was exciting and rewarding..

In spare parts. I like coffee, but in the morning, simplicity and agility are essential.. Until now, my capsule coffee machine was enough for me, especially for black coffees, and I had to do without the rich foam of my own milk, which is usually found in specialty coffees.

Fortunately, this coffee machine allowed me to to enjoy a good coffee ground on the spot, full of aroma and foam without too much effort.. In other words, you only have to wait two minutes and if you want to make an espresso, not even.

Although this last statement admits nuances: with 13 grinding levels and a wheel to adjust the strength of the coffee.Even if you don’t fiddle with quantity or temperature (set by default), the options until you find the right touch are so vast that you will have to make many coffees until you find your perfect coffee. . However, I guarantee the trip will be fun and delicious.

Although it’s a super-automatic, with all that that entails in terms of size and cost, it’s an entry-level model that delivers quality service. the balance between ease of use and alternative.

This coffee machine consumes a lot of water, is not suitable for small kitchens and requires more frequent and expensive maintenance (because you have to buy descalers from time to time), but it is… the price to pay for a coffee worthy of the best coffees..

Is it worth it? If you like coffee, are moderately demanding and want to experience down to the millimeter how its flavor changes depending on the beans, grinds and so many other parameters that a superautomatic offers you, absolutely yes.

If you want something more compact, more affordable and simpler, at the expense of perfect coffee in the coffee shop, this is another option, although you will also need to consider your restaurant costs.

It’s time to frame the De’Longhi Perfetto Magnifica S in the market. As we said above, this is an “entry level” super-automatic. This price may seem high for a coffee machine, but do not forget that there are other models whose price is well over a thousand euros.

In fact, it’s one of the secrets of its successIt’s a good value for money entry into the world of super-automatics.

See the price

There is another very similar version but with the surname “Smart”, which in practice has little difference except for one. a more modern control panel, a more complete and programmable cappuccinator.the De’Longhi Perfetto Magnifica S Smart (see the price). Of course, you have to pay the difference.

Other model very similar in performance, handling and price, and also very popular is the Krups Roma EA8105 (see the price), although in this case the grinding options are smaller (only 3) and the tank is slightly smaller.

The Philips EP2220/10 (see the price), very interesting value for money and which differs from the model analyzed by its ceramic grinder (more durable) and a more modern and programmable control panel, although the adjustment possibilities are slightly lower.

If you like black coffee and want a more compact and minimalist modelthe Melitta Caffeo Solo E950-103 (see the price) could be your candidate. Without a cappuccinator and with fewer options, but with very agile and intuitive handling.

The Power Matic-ccino 7000 Serie Nera (see the price) is a slightly more expensive model with a lot of personality. More compact and with an industrial touch, it has an original milk container for your less traditional preparations (because it is less manual than cappuccinos). Among its assets, its ease of use at the price of a reduced number of options and its control system which even allows programming.

Advantages and disadvantages

Comparison with other superautomatic coffee machines

Note : if you are using your mobile phone, scroll the table with your finger to see all the columns.