3700ESSENTIAL™

Casabrews 3700Essential. It’s pretty compact, super easy to use, and comes with a real steam wand. it's my first machine and i was very surprised by how consistent the shots are, even with basic pre ground coffee.

I have casabrew 3700 essential and bartza encore esp. Don't know how the casabrew is going to do in the long run but it has been really good so far and I have gotten some really good espresso out of it. And the baratza is perfect. Paired the casabrew with a bottomless portafilter, self levelling tamper from temu, wdt tool jewellery scale and I already had a timer. Casabrew [110], baratza [160] portafilter [30] , tamper [7], scale [5] With baratza you then get 25% off beanz.com as well. That as a starter setup has been really good for me for the past 4 months.

My usual budget machine post is here: https://www.reddit.com/r/espresso/comments/1pemyi9/comment/nshft26/ But I'll extrapolate some algebra into levels and see what the sub thinks. Each step represents an improvement in both ease and quality/taste, from cheapest to decent cheap: 1. $170 = 1Zpresso Q Air Manual hand grinder ($70) + Casabrews 3700 ($100) 2. $300 = Baratza ESP ($200) + Casabrews 3700 ($100) 3. $350 = MiiCoffee/Turin DF54 ($250) + Casabrews 3700 ($100) 4. $480 = MiiCoffee/Turin DF54 ($250) + De'Longhi Dedica ($230) 5. $550 = MiiCoffee/Turin DF54 ($250) + Breville Bambino ($300) 6. $650 = Eureka Mignon Facile/Zero ($350) + Breville Bambino ($300) 7. $850 = Eureka Mignon Facile/Zero ($350) + Breville Bambino Plus ($500) My opinion is that ***grinder*** is more important, but you need at least the Baratza ESP for an electric, so go with a hand grinder below that. The DF54 gets slightly better ratings, so the extra $50 is probably worth it. Not perfect, a fraction slow, a bit of retention, a little loud, not too strong. But good enough grinding until you can get up to a Eureka Mignon (my personal preference) or other decent options into that $500 range. For ***machine*** I've seen a number of good reviews for that super cheap Casabrews, basically a throw away for as long as it lasts, but many say you can spend more and get less. Lance reviewed the HiBrew with decent marks for ultra-cheap, Dedicas are very popular, and I like my Bambino Plus as end game until I have money to burn for a La Marzocco Linea Mini. ;) I'll be curious about what people would swap in and out based on experience. EDIT: I updated some prices from Christmas sales, none are as cheap now. Note all these electric machines prices regularly swing throughout the year and can be found cheaper on sale or refurbished, and I usually wait and/or take that risk.

I'll go against the grain here... I have a casabrews 3700 basic machine I picked up for $90 and a crappy kidisle grinder I got on Amazon for $75. I upgraded to a non-pressurized basket and got a tamper and wdt tool so that was maybe another $75 collectively. I buy really good locally roasted beans for $36/2lb bag. The drinks I make are good. I enjoy it much more than drip or cold brew and don't have any desire to go to the cafe. At the end of the year I will probably get a grinder for $3-500. The next upgrade will be a better machine. I am sure I can make better shots with better equipment but what I am pulling right now is by no means bad. Total cost: maybe $350 including beans so far this year. I have probably pulled 150-200 double shots. So figure $3 per drink with room to dive deeper into the hobby later when I feel like it. The machine is barely adequate but whatever. The grinder is not super fine tuned but I can grind fine enough to choke the flow on the basket without being on the finest setting and the grind setting I use pulls tasty shots. Worth it.

I have a grinder and make decent espresso with my casabrews 3700 https://preview.redd.it/bnicfndkpv2g1.jpeg?width=2268&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3e19870f79b89d0540ab86e23cc3ed3a99225ee7 I just want a new machine