Don't let the Starbucks name fool you... This is Saeco's newest offering marketed worldwide as the Saeco Incanto Digital
Positive Product Points
Wow. Easy to setup, easy to understand manual, step-by-step DVD instructions as well. Very good quality shots and crema coffee right out of the box. Solid stanless steel construcion. Bypass doser. 2-year warranty. All the features the higher priced Magic & Royal lines. Marketed worldwide as the Saeco Incanto Digital - Saeco's newest offering.
Negative Product Points
Superautos are too expensive. Otherwise none so far...
Detailed Commentary
Marketed worldwide as the Saeco Incanto Digital the Starbucks Barista Digital Italia is an awesome superauto. It has all the features of the Saeco Magic Comfort Plus in a sleek new package that looks great in the kitchen. There seems to be no end to the programability and dial in adjustments to suit ones taste. WIth a 2 year warranty from Starbucks there is no concerns about warranty service or replacement.
Out of the box you simply program the length/volume and temprature of your shots and the quality rivals most coffee shops. After a week or so I began to dial in the machine to my taste.
The internal burr grinder is adjustable and I found the default setting of 12 to be too coarse for my taste so I just dialed it down to an 6 which I prefer. This gets me very rich shots with a nice carmel crema.
The dose is adjustable as well. The default setting is 7g which is working fine for me but you can adjust it up or down. I love the bypass doser for decaf. It is not recommended to put more than 7g of your preground espresso into to the bypass so I suggest getting yourself a 7g scoop like the Illy 7g available at wholelattelove, sweetmarias and others.
The steamer wand works great and has plenty of power with no waiting - like all steamers it spits a little water before it steams so be sure to have steam before placing the wand in your pitcher.
If you are looking for a superauto, you can't go wrong with this machine. Many Starbucks locations do not yet carry the Barista Digital Italia as it replaces the Saeco Italia and they want to sell off that stock before they bring in this new machine.
Buying Experience
I bought on eBay without a glitch. However, the reputation of Starbucks warranty service made it a comfortable decision.
