Francis Francis 207001 X7 iperEspresso Machine, Red
Written by admin on August 16th, 2010
- Pump-driven espresso machine that exclusively uses Illy coffee capsules
- 2-stage brewing process ensures full-bodied aromatic coffee with crema
- User-friendly control panel offers oversized backlit buttons and helpful icons
- 1-touch brewing with auto-stop; steam wand; 40-ounce removable water tank
- Measures 11 by 11 by 12-1/2 inches; 1-year warranty
Product Description
The X7 machines uses the new revolutionary iperEspresso Method to prepare espresso. Hyper Espresso is a unique and innovative two-stage process. The first is hyper infusion. The is followed by emulsion, resulting in a thick, velvety crema and full-bodied espresso…. More >>
Francis Francis 207001 X7 iperEspresso Machine, Red
Tags: 207001, Francis, Francis
Francis Francis 207001 X7 iperEspresso Machine, Red
Written by admin on August 16th, 2010
- Pump-driven espresso machine that exclusively uses Illy coffee capsules
- 2-stage brewing process ensures full-bodied aromatic coffee with crema
- User-friendly control panel offers oversized backlit buttons and helpful icons
- 1-touch brewing with auto-stop; steam wand; 40-ounce removable water tank
- Measures 11 by 11 by 12-1/2 inches; 1-year warranty
Product Description
The X7 machines uses the new revolutionary iperEspresso Method to prepare espresso. Hyper Espresso is a unique and innovative two-stage process. The first is hyper infusion. The is followed by emulsion, resulting in a thick, velvety crema and full-bodied espresso…. More >>
Francis Francis 207001 X7 iperEspresso Machine, Red
Tags: 207001, Francis, iperEspresso, machine
August 16th, 2010 at 5:09 pm
I am interested of getting one after seeing the rave reviews it received. Then I found that the same product is sold at 199 euro in Italy, what is $260 at today’s exchange rate. I decide not to buy it now, either the price will go down, or i can bring one home when visiting Europe.
(Oct. 21, 2009) This is the update of my original review. Illy finally ran a promotion earlier this year and I got one (the price is somewhere around $150 with purchase of 6 cans of capsules, but I need to buy capsules anyway). It produce simply the best Espresso, better than most coffee shop and restaurant. At this price, I cannot complain. 5 stars.
Rating: 3 / 5
August 16th, 2010 at 7:25 pm
This Francis Francis X7 was ordered for a Christmas present. Unfortunately, when my parents opened it Christmas morning, they discovered it already leaking with water with scratches on the surface of the machine. There were water in the water tray & water in the tubes. It was disheartening to discover a “new” machine to be previously used. I wish Amazon had checked the item before shipping it. The experience was a turn-off & it left me researching again for another Christmas present. I’m giving it 3 stars because I feel the fault is with Amazon & not the item. However, since we didn’t test it the rating is not accurate: The quality from what we gathered of the wet machine was good though.
Rating: 3 / 5
August 16th, 2010 at 8:40 pm
This thing is nothing short of brilliant, it gives you the ability to produce a coffee which is of a cafe quality (well, almost) in approximately 3 minutes max. The espresso is very nice with rich aroma, and milk frothing abilities are quite good for a little machine like this.
In terms of the quality of the frothing, with a thermometer and some care, you can produce a nice froth, I will not fool you and say the best, but something more than acceptable.
Some report problems with the prolonged time in transit from frothing to brewing, a solution in given in the manual, and that is simply by just opening the frothing hose while the brewing button is active. I froth first on purpose so that I can use the steam to heat the cups while transiting from frothing to brewing.
The machine is quite quick, but I still view it as something more suited to an individual or just a couple especially if you factor in the price of capsules. Capsules are quite hard to reuse if used them up, so always put in mind that you will always buy new capsules for the life of this machine.
The only reason I am giving it 4 stars is because of the price. I am living in London, UK, and these are sold here for 200£ (app. 300$) which is a little bit expensive compared to other coffee machines here. to add another 100 dollars is just outrageous (33% extra) especially if I mention that I got mine at a special promotion (in an exhibition) direct from the UK supplier for approximately 200$ including shipping.
If you put your mind on purchasing one, choose the white model if it was available as it is the most stylish one.
Rating: 4 / 5
August 16th, 2010 at 9:51 pm
The Good:
- Capsules are easy to use and create no mess to clean up
- The unit is attractively designed
- The unit warms up quickly
- The capsules are high quality products
The Bad:
- The reservoir seating mechanism is such that I am unable to remove the reservoir without spilling the water. It takes moderate effort to remove and, all of a sudden, it breaks free causing a small spill every time, even when I try to remove it in a very controlled manner.
- My unit malfunctioned by failing to brew properly and having a backflow problem within a month. I haven’t seen either issue in other reviews, so it’s probably a fluke. Sent it in for warranty repair. The jury is still out on how they handle the issue since it’s hard to replicate.
UPDATE:
It took Illy several weeks to replace my machine and only after several calls to both Illy and their warranty service center. The service center said all they would do was return the machine to me in the same condition since they could not replicate the backflow or low pressure problems it occasionally manifested. This was not acceptable since it less than a month old when the problem occurred and was reported.
After a few calls, I’lly said it would ship me a new unit. I doubt the unit it sent me was new since the unit I received didn’t contain the standard materials that came with my original machine (e.g. instruction manual, warranty, sample of descaler), but instead had an xth generation photocopy of getting started instructions and a receipt from what appeared to be its original purchase.) I wasn’t very satisfied with that but didn’t feel there was anything else I could do.
Regardless, my new (used?) machine has worked fine since then and I am happy with the machine depsite my dissatisfation with Illy regarding its handling ot the defective unit I originally received.
Rating: 4 / 5
August 16th, 2010 at 10:55 pm
Having tired of the drudgery (and mess) of grinding my own beans, I bought this machine for the convenience of the iperEspresso pods. Right out of the box there were problems. The unit just wouldn’t make consistent espresso. The first pod was usually very good, but subsequent pods were uniformly bitter and overextracted–not ideal if you’ve got six people over for a dinner party! After slightly more than a year it lost ~40% of its pressure capability (admittedly, an off-the-cuff estimate). The espresso would just dribble out of the head and never made the correct-sized pull; sometimes the machine wouldn’t even pierce the espresso pod. The espresso was pretty much undrinkable. So, I’ve purchased a new example of my very first espresso machine (which I bought in 1985), the Gaggia Classic (Gaggia 14101 Classic Espresso Machine, Brushed Stainless Steel). This machine can use ESE pods, which are more widely available from more coffee roasters and–for me–produce a much better product than the Illy pods. Best of all, it will make excellent espresso cup after cup all night long.
Rating: 1 / 5