OXO BREW Conical Burr Review

The OXO BREW Conical Burr offers the quality of a burr grinder at a fairly reasonable price. It isn't our absolute favorite burr grinder in this price range, but we don't think it will disappoint anyone either.

Performance Comparison

Likes

The most compelling aspect of the BREW Conical Burr is the fact that it provides above-average grind consistency. In our testing it managed to keep more than half of its grinds in the ideal size range (a feat that is probably more impressive than it sounds), was able to keep fine coffee dust to a relative minimum when grinding at a coarse French press setting, and produced fairly consistent dose sizes. All this indicates that this machine will give your coffee a better chance of reaching its full potential than most models on the market.

The grind consistency is better than average, but not amongst the best that burr models have to offer.

While the BREW Conical Burr's grind consistency is good, we'd like to point out that it wasn't the best we observed in this price range. While we don't think many people will be disappointed with its grind consistency, those looking to really maximize their quality-per-dollar will be able to find slightly better options at the same price point.

This model produces a fairly consistent grind, but we've seen better performances in the same price range.

We also like this machine's simple and straightforward interface. Just turn a single dial to select the number of seconds you'd like your machine to grind, press the button in the center of that dial to start grinding, and you're good to go. Sure, this model forces you to do some experimenting to figure out exactly how many seconds it takes to grind your ideal amount of coffee, but this process costs way less than getting a fancier grinder with a scale to do the work for you. We also found the machine to be relatively easy to take apart for deep cleaning.

We like the simple, intuitive interface.

Dislikes

Grinding is an inherently messy business, but the BREW Conical Burr does very little to minimize that mess. Unlike other OXO models we've tested it doesn't spit grinds out while its grinding. Unfortunately, many of those grinds stay stuck in the chute, so when you remove the grind cup you often get a little coffee cascade onto the counter. The grind cup itself hangs onto some static, and in turn hangs onto some grinds, which can result in a mess when trying to pour those grinds into your coffee maker.

This machine tends to spill a lot of grounds.

Grinding is also inherently noisy, but again the BREW Conical Burr fails to dampen that noisiness. It actually isn't particularly loud, as we measured it at an about average 88 decibels. However, it manages to imbue each one of those decibels with maximum annoyingness, as the sound itself is very high pitched and quite grating.

Value

The OXO BREW Barista Brain sells for a mid-tier price, and actually delivers a fair amount of grind consistency for that price. However, we've seen other models in the same price range that can grind slightly better. Additionally, the messiness and unpleasant noise are things that can get annoying after a while, degrading the machine's long-term value a bit.

Conclusion