Alexa, make me a cup of coffee …
6 September 2021
I’ve previously reported on smart kitchen tech in May and July but Debbie has asked me about smart coffee makers. I had to admit I didn’t know if they even existed. But as Debbie has turned me into a card carrying coffee drinker and we are dedicating space in our home build to a coffee bar I figured I’d do some homework.
And what do you know, they do exist! Good news as I’m a better coffee drinker than coffee maker. So any way to automate or simplify the process I can get behind. Plus I have to admit I am a little geeked to add another smart device to our new home.
Whether you prefer drip coffee, pods or cold brew, smart coffee makers offer convenience, customization and app control, so you can have the perfect cup or pot ready whenever you want it. The great part about a smart coffee maker is the times you need coffee the most are the times you’re probably the least capable of operating appliances. Or maybe you’re just not able to make a cup that tastes as good as your local coffee shop. Regardless, it’d be great if you could just ask Alexa or use an app on your phone to make the perfect cup, so that it’s waiting for you when you walk into the kitchen.
The good news is, you can. Smart coffee makers have been around for a few years, and while they still haven’t replaced non-connected coffee makers, they offer much more control and convenience than conventional models. So, what makes a coffee maker smart?
Smart coffee makers are generally just coffee makers that can wirelessly connect to your phone via Bluetooth or wifi and be controlled by an app. They don’t stop there though as there are others with interesting, unexpected features. The Illy Y5 Iperespresso and Philips Saeco GranBarista Avanti make espresso-based drinks as well as regular coffee, for instance. And the Bonaverde Berlin scans pods filled with unroasted beans and actually roasts them before grinding and brewing. Imagine waking up to that smell in the morning.
These coffee makers vary in price, with relatively simple drip brewers designed to make a single pot of coffee at a time priced under $300, and the Philips GranBarista with its variety of drink options and built-in milk steamer costing around $2,000. More expensive coffee makers tend to offer more options or unique features. As for me this is overkill as I generally drink coffee for ‘medicinal value,’ as in I just need a shot of caffeine.
Most smart coffee makers work like any other drip coffee maker with a filter basket. You grind your beans or buy pre-ground beans, put them in a filter in the basket, and let the machine take it from there. That isn’t always the case, though.
While Keurig doesn’t offer any smart (network-connected or app-controlled) coffee makers, Illy’s Iperespresso system uses similar-but-smaller Illy pods to brew coffee, and even offers a subscription service. The catch is that you can’t use your own beans.
The Bonaverde Berlin is more unique, requiring an RFID tag on Bonaverde pods (which double as filters) filled with green coffee beans to trigger the roasting, grinding and brewing process.
All of the coffee makers I’ve mentioned above are networked in some form, either to the internet via wifi or over Bluetooth directly to your smartphone. Most of them have their own apps for customizing your brew settings and scheduling brew times. The Bonaverde Berlin is the outlier; it’s networked, but instead of an app to control it, you use a Facebook Messenger bot to start brews if you don’t want to use the RFID tags on the pods.
The Smarter Coffee is the smartest machine I’ve seen on this front, as it supports different home automation and voice assistant features instead of just relying on a dedicated app. It works with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant to let you start brews through your Amazon Echo or Google Home, and can be configured with IFTTT recipes so that it starts brewing automatically when you come home, for instance, or when you send a text message from your phone.
Coffee from smart coffee makers generally tastes the same as coffee made by standard models using the same beans. After all, coffee makers use the same processes whether they’re triggered by an app or not. That said, you can certainly get superior coffee from more expensive and complex devices or with better beans. Many smart coffee makers let you customize different factors like temperature and brew time, so you can get the exact cup you want.
As this is more Debbie’s department than mine I will leave it to her to make the call on a smart coffee maker. My guess is the simpler the better as her taste in coffee is similar to mine. Plus this falls under the territorial lines we’ve drawn in home design and as I mentioned above, the coffee bar is part of her kitchen.
Coffee seems like a weird area to be designing a house around but over the past few decades, coffee culture has taken the world by storm. Starbucks has not only put itself at almost every major street corner, gas station and college campus across the US, it has also created its own coffee language.
According to the map, the majority of Americans prefer a tall, non-fat, extra hot, no foam, one pump vanilla latte. I have to admit, I have no idea what that even means or what a coffee like that would taste like. Again, medicinal purposes, so I drink it black. But being able to brew something like that would be fun, especially with visiting family and entertaining guests.
If you’re wondering why I’m so interested in Debbie’s coffee bar there’s a method to my madness. As this whole project with its division of labor continues, there has been give and take along the way. My ulterior motive is trying to find an appropriate place for a beer and wine cooler. Or better yet a kegerator. I can’t say it enough, ‘Happy Wife, Happy Life.’
I’m curious what your thoughts are on the whole coffee thing. I do love the idea of asking Alexa to make me a cup of coffee but would you pay up to $300 for a smart coffee maker? Would you spend $2,000 to be able to save yourself the trip to Starbucks (and the wait in the drive up?) and brew your tall, non-fat, extra hot, no foam, one pump vanilla latte at home?
Let us know what you think in the comments, DMs and email. And always consider yourself welcome to stop by for a cup of coffee. No guarantees on the tall, non-fat, extra hot whatever …
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