Can you fill the espresso cups with your own coffee? If I want to use coffee other than illy, I want the option to make my own capsules.
70382
No, you have to use there capsule.Trust me it pulls pretty Damn good espresso shots.I was hesitant at first but I kind of enjoy the convenience.Coffee beabn Quality is excellent.
70383
Not sure...we have only used the illy capsules..never tried anything else. Sorry I couldn't be of more help.
70384
We never have, but looked into the refillable cup option. There is one out there. It seems that the point of illy coffee is the coffee itself. It is remarkable. Simply the best coffee I've ever had. You could use a refill cup with some other coffee, but I fear you'd miss the best part of this experience. The illy capsules are expensive and make small amounts of coffee. I'm a "cheap" person as a rule, but I love this coffee!
70385
No, the capsules are sealed, and I don't believe there is a converter available. Not to worry, once you've had espresso from the machine you won't want any other brand!
70386
It's not convertible. The capsules are specially compressed to fit into the dripping mechanism, exceptionally hard pressed with filters.
70387
I think there was an older version that came with a separate basket that you could use as an alternative to the capsules, but this one does not. Check out youtube for reviews -- if I recall, there are some reviews of Francis Francis machines that have the dual functionality.
2145174
Hi, Love the machine, great quality, durable and looks good. Use it many times a day. And yes, I can make my own coffee with this machine. I had to do some research beforehand, for only certain types of fill-able kcups work. The one I ended up buying works great: "Solofill K3 GOLD CUP 24K Plated Refillable Filter Cup" (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00C3828WA/ref=oh_details_o07_s00_i01?ie=UTF8&ps;c=1).
651613
I am not sure what you man by "regular cup of coffee" as this could mean different things to different people I suppose. The Nepresso pods and Citiz machine are geared toward making strictly espresso and or latte beverages. So if I understand you correctly then my answer would be "no" you cannot. This is, presumably, the reason why Nespresso has developed their new system Vertuoline which does that but uses a different type of pod than the previous models.
2234125
Either you buy a good grinder and make your own espresso with whole beans or you buy already ground espresso. I don't think you can use pods. Go to Krups website and look at their specs for the model you want along with user videos on YouTube.
2235698
I make both with mine. Primarily coffee (several a day) but have done espresso on numerous occasions. The advantage is that your cup is always fresh and its done in an environmentally responsible way.
1681699
When I used them in my Illy machine I got very weak espresso, because the water is passing through the pod too quickly, as if the coffee in the pod isn't compacted enough. As Ria mentioned, maybe you need the Lavazza machine to have the pods work.
1507998
Yes, there are third party "Nespresso compatible" pods, as well as stainless pods that can be re-filled with your own coffee as often as you want.
782392
I've heard that some places sells the empty capsules so you can refill them with your favorite coffee... haven't tried yet, since I like the ones sold by Nexpresso... but will try soon! Good luck!
910762
Yes, you can make a regular cup of coffee, all my guests love it. You can either use a longo capsule which is for a bigger cup, and or use another capsule. And yes, we make ice coffee drinks in large cups all the time.
1706774
I do twice everyday! To fill a Grande Starbucks cup - buy the reusable ones at Starbucks and they fit perfectly for the machine. Use any 2 Nespresso Capsules that you like(except Lungo). Use first one and fill cup using the latte button. Then use a second capsule and do the same with the cappuccino button. It will make a perfect Grande cappichino. It takes 2 capsules to make a perfect 16 oz. Grande cappuccino .
1624347
Can I use my bricks or does it only grind? Also, this is my first Espresso machine, I know almost nothing about them. Does it come with a good manual? Based on some reviews I read I feel I need to hold a doctorate to operate one. Tell me it aint so.
1086479
I can't see why you wouldn't be able to. I don't have an espresso machine but I was under the impression that you used ground coffee.
498068
No, only illy iperespresso machines use these capsules. It is an advanced capsule unlike the k-cups and brews illy coffee perfect! If you like illy coffee and have a kcup machine, buy the espresso ground coffee and a kcup capsule that is reusable and fillable.
914021
I purchased the Coffee Duck refillable pods, and they worked marginally but made EXTREMELY weak coffee with no crema (the espresso foam) on top. We were so bummed! We have a custom grinder and played around with setting it to super fine, medium fine, etc. and nothing seemed to help. We tried packing the pods tight, leaving a little room, etc. and still the coffee sucked. Stick with the capsules; they're expensive up front, but worth it in the end. Plus, Nespresso's capsules are Rainforest-Alliance certified, which is the highest certification for both sustainability and fair-trade. You can also recycle your pods now by turning them into Sur La Table. Hope that helps! I purchased the Coffee Duck refillable pods, and they worked marginally but made EXTREMELY weak coffee with no crema (the espresso foam) on top. We were so bummed! We have a custom grinder and played around with setting it to super fine, medium fine, etc. and nothing seemed to help. We tried packing the pods tight, leaving a little room, etc. and still the coffee sucked. Stick with the capsules; they're expensive up front, but worth it in the end. Plus, Nespresso's capsules are Rainforest-Alliance certified, which is the highest certification for both sustainability and fair-trade. You can... » Read More I purchased the Coffee Duck refillable pods, and they worked marginally but made EXTREMELY weak coffee with no crema (the espresso foam) on top. We were so bummed! We have a custom grinder and played around with setting it to super fine, medium fine, etc. and nothing seemed to help. We tried packing the pods tight, leaving a little room, etc. and still the coffee sucked. Stick with the capsules; they're expensive up front, but worth it in the end. Plus, Nespresso's capsules are Rainforest-Alliance certified, which is the highest certification for both sustainability and fair-trade. You can also recycle your pods now by turning them into Sur La Table. Hope that helps! « Show Less
1495074
Despite what it says this doesn't really make espresso, it's more of a concentrated coffee. But that's just using the default instructions. There's other methods out there, like the one I use which makes a regular cup. Do a little searching online and you'll find dozens of different "recipes".
2080820
A dark roast, and a grind not so fine like the one used for real cappuccino. If You want some thing from the shelf, Illy is excelent. From my point of view You can't get microfoam from this maker, needed for a real cappuccino. With the Taylor & Ng Bellman CX-25 Stovetop Espresso Maker, You can.
1513556
Unfortunately, no. The strongest cup of coffee I've made so far was with fresh-ground beans and the 'gold' coffee pod I bought on Amazon. (Really like that, by the way. You can adjust the coarseness and strength of the grounds.) I haven't tried it with "espresso" beans, but would think you could get a pretty stout cup that way. All of this, of course, pretty much cancels out the 'instant' factor touted by the makers of these machines. And I still think the water needs to be hotter to get good flavor extraction.