De'Longhi EC685M Review
Pros: Good taste, small and sleek
Cons: No grinder
Manufacturer: De'Longhi
Our Verdict
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De'Longhi EC685M | |||||
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Awards | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||
Price | $430 List $359.00 at Amazon | $600 List $545.99 at Amazon | $300 List | $700 List $687.50 at Amazon | $500 List $499.00 at Amazon |
Overall Score ![]() |
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Star Rating | |||||
Pros | Good taste, small and sleek | Excellent espresso, achieves near-perfect microfoam in its steamed milk, relatively easy to use for a semi-automatic machine | Great espresso, great milk steaming performance, compact design | Great taste, cafe quality lattes and cappuccinos | Great taste, exceptional lattes and cappuccinos, mostly automated milk steaming |
Cons | No grinder | Expensive, requires more effort/practice than fully-automatic machines | No built-in grinder | Expensive, requires some effort and a learning curve | Expensive, no built-in grinder |
Bottom Line | If you already have a good grinder and you find it for below list price, this machine is a decent buy | A cafe-quality machine that manages to still be friendly towards beginner baristas | One of the smallest machines we've found that can achieve cafe quality results | If you don't mind a little learning curve and elbow grease, this is the best espresso you can make at home | An excellent choice for those trying to recreate cafe drinks at home, especially if you already have an espresso-quality grinder |
Rating Categories | De'Longhi EC685M | Calphalon Temp IQ | Breville Bambino | Breville Barista... | Breville Bambino... |
Taste (40%) | |||||
Ease Of Use (30%) | |||||
Ease Of Cleaning (15%) | |||||
Milk Steaming (15%) | |||||
Specs | De'Longhi EC685M | Calphalon Temp IQ | Breville Bambino | Breville Barista... | Breville Bambino... |
Dimensions | 5.9" x 13" x 11.9" | 5.6" x 14.5" x 17.3" | 7.7" x 12.6" x 12.2" | 13.2" x 12.5" x 16" | 7.7" x 12.6" x 12.2" |
Warranty | 2 Year Limited | 3 Year Limited | 1 Year Limited | 1 Year Limited | 1 Year Limited |
Milk Frother | Steam Wand | Steam Wand | Steam Wand | Steam Wand | Automatic Steam Wand |
Water Tank Capacity | 37 oz | 94 oz | 47 oz | 67 oz | 65 oz |
Cost per Shot | $0.35 | $0.45 | $0.45 | $0.47 | $0.47 |
Lifetime Cost per Shot | $0.53 | $0.70 | $0.58 | $0.72 | $0.72 |
Number of Cafe Replacement Shots to Make p list price | 162 | 235 | 118 | 237 | 237 |
Number of Cafe replacement lattes to make up list price | 98 | 141 | 70 | 141 | 141 |
Our Analysis and Test Results
The De'Longhi EC685M offers a manual espresso brewing experience in a small package, and makes some pretty tasty shots to boot. However, the lack of a grinder and its price point bring up some extra considerations before you buy.
Performance Comparison
Buoyed by good taste and a fairly painless cleaning process, the De'Longhi EC685M performed above average overall in our testing. To find out more about how it did in all of our individual tests, read on below.
Taste
Earning an above average taste score if 7 out of 10, the EC685M was able to pull a nice and robust shot in our testing. This machine's espresso did taste slightly watery when compared to that of the highest performing machines, but it was still stiff enough that it satisfied that craving for the concentrated punch of a good espresso. We found it easy to get some good foam for a cappuccino with the built-in steam wand, but the texture of its steamed milk left a little bit to be desired.
It's important to note that this taste score is even with that of the Gaggia Brera, which can make cappuccino at the push of a button and has a built-in grinder. It is also noticeably inferior to the taste quality of the Breville.
Ease of Use
The EC685M was again right around average in our ease of use testing, earning a 6 out of 10.
Simple Setup
Thanks to a well-written instruction manual and very little assembly required, we had this machine out of the box and heating up water for the first brew in less than 10 minutes.
A Bit of A learning Curve
Like any semi-automatic machine, it will take a newcomer a bit to get used to manually tamping and brewing espresso. Beyond that, the interface is fairly intuitive, and the steam wand's setting are conveniently labeled 'hot milk' and 'cappuccino' indicating how much foam each setting will produce.
Ease of Cleaning
The EC685M was relatively painless when it came to clean up, earning it a score of 7 out of 10 in our cleaning tests.
Short Term Cleaning
The portafilter tended not to build up too much coffee gunk when pulling a shot, so wiping it off was pretty easy. The Steam wand also easily bras down into multiple pieces and is dishwasher safe. Even if you forget to wipe it off a few times and you get some buildup, you can just toss it in the dishwasher.
Descaling
The descaling process took us just 27 minutes and was very clearly described in the user manual. However, we didn't feel like we could leave the machine alone to do its thing while descaling, so our attention was required for most of those 27 minutes.
Milk Steaming/Frothing
Here again, the EC685M was a bit above average, earning a 7 out of 10. We were able to get it to make some nice foam to top off a cappuccino, but its stem milk didn't quite get that creamy texture that we wanted.
Value
It's kind of hard to peg the EC685M's value. First off, it lists for $430, but often sells for considerably less. This is still good for a manual machine that performed so well. If you're going to pay full price, we strongly feel that both the Breville Infuser offers better performance per dollar. However, if you can find the EC685M on sale it is a good deal for a nice semi-automatic machine. Just remember you'll either have to invest in a nice grinder as well or commit to buying specialty pre-ground espresso coffee.
We also calculated its lifetime cost per shot (with an estimated 8 year life at 300 shots/year) at $0.53. However, this assumes that you get it at list price (it often sells for less), and that you either already have a grinder or commit to some of the cheapest preground espresso coffee.
Conclusion
The De'Longhi EC685M offers fairly good performance and the full espresso brewing experience for those that really want to learn the ways of the barista. However, there are both better and more convenient machines in the same price range.
— Max Mutter and Steven Tata