Smeg’s slim coffee machine can fit perfectly into smaller kitchens – plus it has a brand new cold brew setting

by Furnishly | Sep 25, 2025 | Design Inspiration

Italian appliance brand Smeg has unveiled a brand new espresso machine, this time with cold brew functionality built-in.

The ECF03 Manual Espresso & Cold Brew Coffee Machine is available to buy now from Smeg’s website for £499.95 and is available in a lovely palette of four different colours: Black, White, Cream and Pastel Blue.

Smeg already has a reputation for making some of the best-looking coffee machines on the market. And for those with small kitchens, the slim profile of this machine will definitely appeal. I tried this machine out prior to its general release to see how it shapes up. Here’s what I learned.

The USP of this machine is the cold brew setting, which Smeg says can dispense fresh cold brew espresso in two minutes for a single shot and four minutes for a double shot.

Another quirk of this machine is the opportunity to set the temperature of the shot that you pull with it. The brand say that while lower temperatures are perfect for light roasts, higher temperatures suit darker roasts well.

When I had a coffee from this machine this week pre-launch, the barista was keen to stress the importance of the Thermoblock heating system with this machine. When you use the cold brew function, the machine will bypass the heating system and use ambient water for a smoother-tasting drink.

It’s hard to deny the quality of this Smeg machine after seeing it up close too. It takes up a small footprint on a worktop, comes with a weighty 58mm portafilter and is finished with the classic lettering along the front. The pressure gauge is also great for when pulling those aforementioned espressos.

There’s a milk frother too, located on the front right, which Smeg calls the Professional Steam Wand. It’s not automatic, as with machines like the Ninja Luxe Café, so you’ll have to perfect your latte art skills yourself.

This cold-brew-capable machine is very pricey, at almost £500, but it’s still a step down in RRP from Smeg’s more expensive bean-to-cup offering, the EGF03, which we reviewed and added to our list of the best bean to cup coffee machines.

If you love the idea of barista-style coffee at home but you can’t picture yourself picking up the skills needed to pull an espresso shot or froth milk, Smeg also has automatic options. We reviewed one, the BCC13BLMUK, which our expert awarded four stars to.

How do you think this new espresso machine shapes up? Would you invest in it for the price?

A brand new Ninja coffee machine has dropped and it’s £300 cheaper than the sellout Luxe Café – here’s everything it can do

by Furnishly | Sep 24, 2025 | Design Inspiration

Ninja has unveiled a brand new coffee machine, the Prestige DualBrew System (£249.99 via Ninja) which combines filter coffee and pods for those looking for more versatility in their kitchen.

After the huge success of the Ninja Luxe Café, which I reckon is the best coffee machine for most people as per my five-star review, it’s no surprise to see Ninja branching out into the realm of filter coffee.

And there are plenty of features to get excited about with this machine as well as the much lower RRP compared to the Luxe Café – there’s a £300 difference. So if you’re less of an espresso drinker and more into coffee you can keep sipping all day, here’s what the DualBrew can do.

First, let’s talk about the filter coffee capabilities of this machine. Filter coffee is nowhere near as popular in the UK as it is in the US, but there’s a growing interest with machines like the Moccamaster (which we’ve reviewed) wowing customers.

Luckily, as with all Ninja appliances, this machine looks so straightforward to use, so even if you are new to filter coffee, it should be easy to get into.

The system comes with a ‘Smart Scoop’, which you use to add your ground coffee. From there, you can choose between three brew styles – Classic, Rich and Over Ice and pick from 10 different drink sizes, all the way up to a 1.8 litre carafe.

This machine is kitted out with Thermal Flavour Extraction technology, according to Ninja, as well as an XL shower head for infusing your filter coffee. There’s also a Keep Warm setting, which you can adjust, which you can use to keep your carafe at an optimal temperature while you work from home or host.

The other draw with this machine is the choice to use pods, if you still want the simple convenience of slotting one in and pressing one button. And as this machine is compatible with Nespresso original capsules, it means you can buy cheaper supermarket alternatives and still have them fit.

And if you thought that was it, then you’re mistaken as this machine has a secret weapon – a pull out milk frother on the left hand side which you can use to whisk milk for hot or cold drinks. That seems like great value to me for the price tag of this machine.

What do you think of this brand new Ninja machine? Does the price make it more appealing than the Luxe Café?

I had brunch with David Beckham and found out how he spruces up his coffee at home – it’s such a sophisticated hack

by Furnishly | Sep 24, 2025 | Design Inspiration

It turns out David Beckham can add another title onto his (already unwiedly) multi-hypenate title. Yep, it turns out as well as tending to his vegetable patch and keeping bees, he’s also a home barista. I sat down with the football-star-turned-lifestyle-icon and found out all about his go-to coffee orders (yes, there’s more than one) and how he makes them at home.

As part of his partnership showcasing what the best Nespresso machines can deliver at home, the former footballer answered questions on how he stays caffeinated in the mornings and sampled drinks from the Nesprsso Vertuo Creatista (which I think is the best pod coffee machine out there as per my review). Here’s a taste of his go-to drinks and how you can try them out with your own coffee machine at home.

With a schedule as jam-packed as his, it’s little surprise that David gets his caffeine hit in the morning as quickly and efficiently as he can. He told us that he starts every week day with an espresso, sometimes drinking two or three of them in a morning, to get him ready for the day after the school run and his workout.

He then moved onto the coffee that he makes more of an occasion of. It’s still an espresso at its core but this time dressed up with a touch of honey (from bees he keeps himself at home, of course) and topped with flaky sea salt. If you’re looking to level up your drinks from your coffee bar at home, David’s method is definitely a sophisticated way to do it.

On the weekends when he has more time, David shared his love for iced lattes – no matter what the weather is like outside. With a huge uptick in searches for the best iced coffee makers online this summer, it seems he’s in good company.

One of my essential cold coffee buys is Nespresso’s sellout iced latte tumbler, which David fronted the campaign for this summer via Instagram, so we’ve got that in common when it comes to coffee.

That wasn’t the only latte mentioned at the event either, with David also trying out Nespresso’s new autumn-themed pods, including Pumpkin Spiced Cake (£8.50 at Nespresso) in a non-alcoholic espresso martini (it was pre-11 am, after all).

The machine used to showcase David’s favourite drinks, the Creatista, has a built-in automatic milk frother so that you can serve up lattes and cappucinos at the touch of a button. It’s a seriously premium offering from Nespresso for longer milk-based drinks, but you don’t need all of the bells and whistles to replicate David’s spruced up espresso – that can be done with any machine that makes short coffees!

What do you make of David Beckham’s go-to coffee order? Will you be trying out an upgraded espresso any time soon?

I’m among the first to try out Lavazza’s new bean-to-cup coffee machine – here’s how a latte is made with this automatic offering

by Furnishly | Sep 18, 2025 | Design Inspiration

Last week, Lavazza launched its first-ever bean-to-cup coffee machine, the Assoluta. Intrigued by the promise that it could deliver barista-style results with the ease of a pod coffee machine, I was among the first in the UK to try out this new coffee machine.

If you want to learn all about the features of this new machine, you can find out more in our sneak peek preview of the launch. But, as we all know, specs on paper only mean so much, and my first try of the Assoluta, which is vying to be one of the best bean-to-cup coffee machines out there, was eye-opening to say the least.

My current coffee machine that I use every day is the Ninja Luxe Café Pro (which I recently reviewed), it has the same RRP as the Assoluta of £699.99. But when I put the two side by side, they were pretty different. This is what I discovered and how they compared.

My morning routine when making a latte usually (with the Ninja machine) involves pressing a button to grind the beans, tamping and then pulling the espresso shot and then choosing a setting for the automatic milk frother. It’s a semi-automatic machine, so it’s less involved than something like a classic espresso maker but still has some level of input.

With the Assoluta, things are pretty different from any other machine. For a latte, you pour your milk into the included glass mug and plug it into the machine. Then you need to press one button and simply wait for your latte to dispense.

Attached to the glass mug is a ‘frothing cover’ which whisks and heats the milk at the same time before dispensing the espresso. I’ve seen this tech before when testing the Lavazza Desea (which is a pod machine) and on the whole, find it to be very effective. It creates a lovely frothy coffee, with a clear top foam layer.

There are three fill lines on the glass mug, one for a single cappuccino, one for an XL cappuccino and one for a latte macchiato, so the volume of milk you can get is customisable.

I can foresee some potential problems with the glass mug system for a bean-to-cup machine like this, especially if its in use in a busy household. You need this particular vessel with the lid to froth the milk, which creates issues with making multiple frothy drinks in a row. You’ll have to transfer your latte to another mug and then wash the glass one before you use it again.

There’s no denying that this is a fantastically easy machine to use, however. It’s also far sleeker than it looks in photos, taking up less space than my Ninja machine and with a profile that’s probably easier to match to your current interiors. Visitors to my house while I’ve been testing it have mistaken it for a pod machine thanks to its polished profile.

Though I’m yet to fully explore the Perfect Bean Match Technology on the machine, the chance to tweak various settings through the app will also appeal to people who do want to get more hands on.

My full review of this machine will be coming up soon, but it’s hard not to be impressed during my first try with how seamless the experience of using it to get a delicious coffee in the morning.

Do you have any questions you’d like me to dig into more in my upcoming review about this machine?

If you want a cosy café vibe in your kitchen on a budget, you need to see Breville’s new slimline espresso machine

by Furnishly | Sep 17, 2025 | Design Inspiration

Breville has unveiled a new line-up of at-home espresso machines, with three products including a slimline coffee maker and a kitted out bean-to-cup model.

All available from Amazon and Currys, with prices starting from £239.99 for the smallest offering, these machines are perfect to help you save on the cost of a coffee shop run or grabbing a latte on your commute. And if you’re looking for a deal, one is drastically reduced right now on Amazon too, with the Barista Sense dropping from its RRP of £599.99 to £490.83.

Here’s a full look at this new range of coffee machines and how each one can deliver you a barista-style brew at home.

If you’re thinking that prices starting from £239 shouldn’t qualify as affordable then that’s understandable, as it’s a lot to spend. And sure, these machines aren’t as cheap as something like Aldi’s £60 espresso maker, but the quality is arguably better.

The most compact machine, the Barista Slimline, is just 33cm high and 15.5cm wide. Made from metal rather than plastic, it also features a ‘Cool Touch’ steam wand which is designed to help you create the micro foam you need for lattes and cappuccinos.

For a small kitchen, the combination of a clever design and high-features couldn’t be better if you want to create a mini café station.

Going up a machine in the range you arrive at the Barista Classic machine which, according to the brand, has been engineered with 10% more portafilter capacity than ‘market leading manual machines’. It also has a one touch cleaning system and 15-bar pressure for all of your espresso making needs.

We’re not new to Breville espresso machines here at Ideal Home and to my eye, the Barista Classic looks pretty similar to one we’ve reviewed previously, the Breville Signature bean to cup machine. That machine went over a treat with our reviewer Amy, who loved how easy to use it was.

The most expensive pick from Breville’s new range is the Barista Sense. It boasts new tech to make milk frothing easier for beginners and baristas alike, according to the brand, tied up in TempSense technology. There are 4 temperature settings to choose from when making lattes, for example, including ones for non-dairy milks.

With these three different price points, there should be something for everyone looking to invest in a coffee station set up this autumn. Could one of these new machines from Breville take your fancy?