Capresso Jura Impressa Z5 13214 Automatic Espresso Cappuccino...  Product Reviews

"I have owned the Z5 for about 6-months so far. I have had none of the problems that some have posted here. I did want to post a tip for those that have complained about the machine not making HOT latte's, etc. First, do not even bother using those cheap ceramic cups, etc. You need a thermal glass espresso cup (sold at various places online). If you make your espresso and you can feel that the cup is warm, just throw the cup away. You need one that will hold in the heat and not dissapate it. If you get a nice glass thermal cup, you will find you don't even need to pre-heat the cup with hot water. Second, if you desire super hot latte's. Let the steam run for a few seconds to heat up the barrel that feeds into the cup. Then, just move the dial until the milk starts to flow. The farther you push this to the "steam" zone, the hotter the milk will be. Overall, I'm extremely satisfied with this machine. My initial complaint that I had with the machine had to do with the heat of my latte's. That was until I put a temperature gauge on this an realized it was coming out super hot, but it was somehow much cooler in the cup. Changed to glass... pre-heat barrel (if latte/cap) and you'll be golden."

"Having had an amazing cup of coffee at a neighbors house (made by a Z5), I was sold. Two weeks later, our Starbucks solution had arrived. As mentioned by other reviewers, the coffee, lattes, caps, etc... were excellent and the machine performed as advertised. In fact, we had regular visits by our neighbors, just for the coffee. But please be warned that these machines do not last and will require major repairs after the warranty has lapsed. Both my machine and that of my neighbors have stopped working, displaying "error 8" and refusing to do anything other than take up space on the kitchen counter. I realize that things aren't made like they used to be, but for $3,000+ I expect a heck of a lot more than one year's worth of light use. While lacking some of the features of the Z5, there are plenty of "super automatics" that are far more reliable and much cheaper. Don't bother with this machine."

"After returning both a Saeco Primea Touch Plus (it gave me an error message after less than 2 months, at which time I was told to return the machine to the manufacturer for repair), and the new DeLonghi Gran Dama, which has a serious problem with the milk carafe (it doesn't fit properly on the machine - I had this problem with not one, but two machines), I think I've finally found the answer. I was always dissatisfied with the milk temperature (I use a lot of milk in my lattes), but now with this machine - the milk is very hot, as is the espresso - no need to microwave, as with some of the other super-automatics. Set up was fairly fast (I wasn't as fast as one of the reviewers at 10 minutes, but had it pretty well figured out in less than an hour), the first few test drinks are excellent. I read somewhere that you couldn't store the thermal carafe in the refrigerator, but I think this is a fallacy. The Capresso DVD, as well as the instructions, say that you can, and I can't think of any reason that you can't. If you want to make the coffee directly in a large (16 oz.) paper cup, you can do so with the left spouts - another reviewer points out that the center spouts don't raise high enough to accomodate a very large cup, which is true, but with all of the customization features, you can program the machine to dispense the coffee from the left spout, which is tall enough. After having terrible, rude, largely non-responsive customer service from Saeco, I asked was happy to hear from a number of sources that Jura Capresso has excellent customer service. I haven't had to test it yet, but from everything I heard, I'm hopeful that it'll be good. Pros: Great tasting espresso, cappucino and latte Fairly easy to master Great looking, titanium-faced, as opposed to the metal-clad plastic featured on many other expensive super automatics Cons: It's definitely expensive, but still seems in line with other similar machines, and it's better designed Lastly, I would recommend the Z5 versus the Z6, unless you are totally sold on a chrome face - the machine does splash a bit, as one would expect, and the matte finish on the Z5 seems much more practical and forgiving of fingerprints, splashes, etc."

"ive now owned my z5 for about 2 months, and it is fun, weve already gone through a cleary water filter. our favorite thing about the machine is the frother we normally drink capucinos and oh my is this easy, and its fully programmable. i bought 2 extra milk carafes for chocolate milk and eggnog and i have solved the souring problem by adding about 25 percent ice cubes to each thermos, as the ice melts it waters down the milks which make for a better froth, dont try to use too thick a milk like eggnog it may not pull it through the siphon, water it down or add skim for a really nice froth. i also own a manual breville which i really love for those real expensive gourmet coffees that make a single perfect shot of espresso, but i still use the frother on the jura becuase its perfect everytime. So far the jura makes a better espresso for me then i can make manually so i have started grinding my expensive coffees with a burr grinder and having the jura make it for me. i love technology that allows me to enjoy coffee that only an expert could make in the past. I should have given it 5 stars but we use it so much we run it out of water and although it has the largest tank in its class its still too small, if they make a wider model that has a tank on both sides, i would buy it."