Buy Bosch Appliances

Review by I. Peters:

The Bosch Benvenuto B30 is an exceptional coffee maker. We used to have a fully automatic Saeco model for the past 9 years, but it recently started leaking and so we decided to get a new machine.

Before buying the Benvenuto B30, we researched quite a few machines: The Saeco models we saw on store display didn't strike us as too well-made. Our old one was largely metal but we found the new models to be made of relatively flimsy-feeling plastic. We then looked at the Jura machines but ultimately decided against them due to their high prices, reviews we read that the coffee isn't made hot enough, and also because Jura machines only allow for three different coffee strength settings - weak, medium, and strong. We wanted more choices.

Having had experience with these types of machines for almost 10 years, we knew what we wanted: a height-adjustable spout, the possibility to use both beans and ground coffee, a relatively quiet operation, and an intelligent design which would tell us when to refill water, beans, when to clean, descale, etc. The B30 does all that and more. Moreover, it offers stylish design and is very well made.

The machine does not take long to reach its required operating temperature and the electronic display informs you when it is ready. The coffee strength can be adjusted from mild to extra-strong. Furthermore, the amount of water can be adjusted to accomodate small Espresso cups, XXL coffee mugs and pretty much everything in-between.

Undoubtedly the best feature is the height-adjustable spout, or rather spouts (the B30 has 2) which let you brew 2 cups of coffee simultaneously - a huge time-saver in the morning! We found that although the height can only be adjusted by little over 4 inches, there is no problem to use cups higher than that. This is due to the clever design that gives ample and easy access to the spouts from the side as well as from the front - we just move the cups under the spouts holding them at a slight angle. With our old Saeco machine, we always had to remove the grille and tray to be able to accomodate larger mugs.

Another very nice feature is that the water temperature can be adjusted. At the Maximum setting, the coffee is piping hot - very useful when adding cold frothed milk to it because with other machines, this makes the coffee too cold to be enjoyable. The B30 even has a heated top grille for pre-heating your coffee mugs!

And if all of that weren't enough, the machine even has an automatic timer function to automatically turn itself on at a pre-set time, and turn itself off again after a set number of hours.

In summary, this machine is incredibly easy to operate, fast and makes excellent coffee in all kinds of strengths and sizes. An integrated steamer to froth milk, etc. is of course standard.

The only other thing I would like to mention is that if you are a larger family of coffee lovers, you may find the water tank to be a bit on the small side. In our house we're just two people and find that we have to refill the tank every day after just 2 - 3 cups of XXL-size coffee. Then again: This also ensures that the water is always fresh and not stale from sitting in the tank for too long. So you be the judge whether this is a negative or not.

I whole-heartedly recommend this machine which in my opinion offers a lot more than the overpriced Jura machines, especially when it comes to flexibility!

Review by M. Zukerman:

The Bosch is a great machine - I owned a Jura F7 for about 18 months and finally returned it to Sur La Table (great return policy at Sur La Table by the way). The Jura was absolutely acceptable when it worked, but I think we killed it when my wife switched to decaf and started using the bypass chute every day. It started showing error messages and would refuse to work from time to time. I finally got fed up when some beans got stuck in the grinder chute and would not budge! So back it went.

ANyway, I found this machine and it has a very similar style to the Jura-Capressos (internal mechanism, same steam wand, etc.), but it makes WAY better espresso than the Juras. It is consistently stronger and richer than the Jura. SOmetimes in the Jura I would feel the need for two shots just to taste the coffee through the milk in my capuccinos. In the Bosch, one shot'll do you. I never knew what I was missing with the Jura.

I also tried the Saeco Incanto Sirius which I really liked as well, except that it made crappy soap bubble foam (why do people put up with that? have you never had good dense microfoam??). Unlike the Jura (and now the Bosch) the Steam Wand on the Saeco was not at all modifiable. See my Jura F7 review for the modification to the Jura and the Bosch to create a traditional single hole steam wand. No big deal - basically it involves screwing a Krups tip on the existing wand. Righty tighty, lefty loosey is all you need to know. Learn to use a traditional steam wand and you will NEVER be satisfied again with the crap foam that is created by any of these so called "frother aids." By the way the steam pressure on the Bosch is much stronger than the JUra - almost hard to control, but once you get the hang of it, you will be making capuccinos like an Italian barista, only without the tamper, dregs box and mess.

The only things keeping this from 5 stars are: 1) poor foam out of the box (but that applies to ALL super automatics), 2) first shot is always bad and way too cool - easily solved by running a rinse first (which is not as simple as the Jura since there is no rinse button - have to trick it into thinking you put grounds in the bypass chute), and 3) when you ask for a double, it just doubles the water - same as the Jura. Some of the Italian machines (like Saeco) actually brew two shots in succession (but as I noted above - generally one long shot is sufficient.)

By the way, bought it at Costco Online for about 50. Costco is the way to go for so many reasons.

Review by Robert H. Dawson:

After years of use, I replaced my Saeco machine with the Bosch B20. I did a lot of research, and I think this is a great machine for the money. It is fast to start up, and it makes great coffee and espresso. The steam rod/hot water dispenser is also top notch. The Germans do a great job engineering a great boiler. Water is super hot and there is no wait. If you make tea, it is a lot faster than waiting for a kettle.

I never had any customer service issues, so I cannot really address the machine from that angle. Finding the cleaning pods was not that hard, IMHO.

The only complain I have is that the water tank is a small, and must be refilled often if you drink a lot of coffee or make a lot when you have guests.

Review by Mark W. Metz:

I moved in with a friend while stationed in Hawaii for a couple years. He has this coffee maker and we all love it. It has consistently made about 25 cups of coffee every day for 3 years and no let up so far. Still as great as new.

Review by P. Donnelly:

I was looking for a either a kitchen-aid or Bosch mixer and after much research decided to go with the Bosch. The new kitchen-aids seem to be more concerned with offering the right selection of designer colours than making careful decisions about quality manufacturing. I have read all the reports of Kitchen-aids with melted plastic gearbox housings and leaking oil. They may have fixed some of these problems by now but the pedigree is not that of the Hobart produced machines of old. When whirlpool bought the kitchen-aid brand they obviously did a redesign to cut corners and make more money without due care to quality. I am not willing to spend over 0 on a machine that could fall apart after the warranty runs out, Bosch still builds there own machines and care about their reputation.

The machine does everything I have tried. Whips eggs better than any other mixer I have tried. Makes cookie dough faster than I thought possible(used cookie mixing paddles). Made a batch a of scones easily (used cookie mixing paddles). Tried it with pastry it worked perfectly(used pastry wire whips, not the whips that come with the machine. Made a batch of bread buns with the interesting looking bread hook, and they turned out great. The dough hook was even able to perfectly distribute the raisins I added part way through the kneading process.

I was a bit worried by some kitchen-aids users saying the Bosch would not handle small batches well, but I didn't have a problem with small batches. I tried large and small batches, both worked well. Maybe if you were only mixing a few cups of something it may not be the best choice, but really I would rather save the hassle and mix that in a bowl by hand. The kitchen-aids might have a slight advantage with less to clean, but it is only small difference. The Bosch is 800watts, double most of the new kitchen-aids and well I have a hard time believing people that try to say a kitchen-aids will do more than 2 loaves of bread with their lower powered motors. Also the Bosch takes up less counter space and can be easily slipped under cabinets away from the work area when need be.

I think Bosch makes a good mixer.

Review by Le Ray Mecham:

I like the way the engineers at Bosch have put the blender together. The top locks onto the jar by rotating the top unlike other blender tops. This blender also has removable blades which you can order through Bosch. The blender jar is sturdy and has graduations on the sides to let you use the jar itself for measuring. It is well made and the jar locks onto the base of the mixer using a twisting motion.

Review by JinJin:

Did a poor job of cleaning dishes. Rack configuration was inefficient. Stopped draining in less than a year. It was quiet though. Finally gave up on it and bought a new dishwasher.