Hibrew - H10B

Hibrew h10b + Bratza encore esp pro or Hibrew h10b + Shardor I challenge anyone to find a better machine

I'll join everyone else with recommending the DF54, but I'll break with the herd and recommend you take a look at the hibrew h10b for the beginner machine. It has digital temp control and a manometer that although not too accurate, gives a good idea of what is going on. It's a good bit cheaper new than any used bambino i could find. Resale value won't be as good and mods/repairs aren't as common but for about $150 new, it's the best value out there IMO. And that leaves a good bit in your budget for some accessories like upgraded portafilter, basket, scale, tamp, funnel, milk pitcher, and whatever else puck prep you'd like to use ie: shaker and or dwt tool, puck screen, filter papers, rdt/cocktail mister. That's the route I went, except I really enjoy a manual grinder which I know isn't as common but for grinding I went with the kingrinder k6. If you do go the mocka pot route I'd go with the 6 cup bialetti and upgrade the filter to e and b labs filter plate, I wish I had made that upgrade earlier

I’ve never heard of this but then again I don’t research machines I can’t afford so my $140 HiBREW is ready after 15s of turning it on 🤷‍♂️

I believe that you can get pass the startup heating by just letting through some hot water for a few seconds, at least that's what I do when I first turn it on, so that everything is heated as evenly as possible.

I have the Wizard and comparing it to my hibrew h10b and delonghi ecp3420, the wizard is much more powerful than the hibrew thermoblock and a bit more than the delonghi small boiler. I can get the same result with all 3. The only difference is how fast they get the milk to temperature. Hibrew being the slowest at 40s for 150ml of milk (this could be a good thing for beginners). The delonghi is a bit trickier cause of the small boiler but it gets the job done once you figure how to temperature surf the steam mode. The Wizard is the fastest but the problem is the time it takes to be ready to steam if you don’t have a powerful induction stove. They’re all good and I don’t really see a difference with the end result. I might just be too much of a newbie though https://preview.redd.it/idppyxwm085g1.jpeg?width=4284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c682f8e5f7d5387ccfe431a3205f85987c3c0dc5

I can recommend the Hibrew H10B at this price point and similar style.

Get a 51mm or 54mm machine. Much easier to dial in coffee. (and ultimately better in my opinion) I recommend Hibrew H10B, I haven't found a better 51mm machine (in my opinion it is better than De'Longhi Dedica, Stilosa or Casabrews CM5418)

I recommend a machine with 51mm or 54mm portafilter. Deeper pucks are easier to dial in, less coffee waste and better rctri. My top recommendations is Hibrew h10b and otherwise breville bambino plus.

The hibrew any day

Hibrew is also good. get the combo for 80k and accesories of another 20, you will be sorted for 5 years.

Yeah I fully agree and wish people factored this into buying products across the board not just espresso machines. Unfortunately society has become obsessed with consumer culture and it leaks into every thing/hobby including espresso. But I do agree that buying something like a GCP and modding it, while more time intensive and more expensive, is much better than buying a HiBrew etc as a Gaggia is super repairable and can last decades because of that.

The chinese HiBrew and Casabrews are decent, DeLonghi Dedica or Stilosa are also good options, Bambino probably falls in that bracket as well. Depends what features you want from a machine