Theoretically the Oracle Touch has the edge (quite a big edge, to be fair) over the Touch Impress where potential shot quality is concerned too, due to the superior temperature precision and stability of the dual boiler with heated group and dual pids, but in practice what allows an espresso machine to reach its full potential, is the grinder, and the Oracle Touch and the Barista Touch Impress have the same grinder. If you have wide cappuccino cups, and you like to make two lattes at a time for yourself and your better half, for example, by splitting a double shot, you'll probably have room for that on the drip tray of the oracle touch, but there isn't quite the same horizontal space on the drip tray of the Touch Impress, so you may have to split the shot into two shot glasses and then decant these into the cappuccino cups.

The standard approach to making milkies with Nespresso machines is an Aeroccino or similar milk frother, and they're fine, but they tend to be a bit on the slow side & the milk isn't quite what I'd call barista quality micro foam. The Oracle Touch is a fully automatic espresso machine that guides you through each process and comes with a heated group head for brew temperature control. If you like to split a shot for two cappuccinos or lattes as I've just mentioned, then this will allow you to create two slightly more intense drinks without pulling two separate shots, in which case you may see this as a pro. To ensure uniform brewing, its low-pressure pre-infusion system slowly increases the pressure and carefully expands the coffee grinds. Pros & Cons of the Sage Oracle Touch

Nespresso Machines

Who are they for? People who value cup quality as highly as convenience. If bean to cup machines and pod machines don't quite cut it for you, but you want the kind of convenience and user experience of using a premium bean to cup coffee machine, then you're one of the people Sage have made these machines for. OK, that should really be “filter coffee machine” as Sage only produce the one filter coffee machine, the Precision brewer, and I can understand why this is the case, because simply put, the Precision Brewer is among the very best filter coffee machines on the market, I don't think they really need to release another one, and if I they did I don't know how they could make it any better.

Moreover, you can create and store up to 8 customised drinks - if you have your own special double-shot latte recipe that you enjoy every morning. You can name them accordingly so the machine can remember them for future use. With the best coffee subscription in the UK , you'll never have to worry about running out of great coffee; we'll ensure that you always have the perfect espresso at your fingertips! There are people who buy Sage coffee machines because they've heard that they make better espresso than other bean to cup machines, but the point is, they're not bean to cup machines. At first glance you could be forgiven for assuming the milk frothing is a manual process, it certainly has what appears to be a steam wand.

Stand Alone Espresso Machines

Personally, the only thing I don't like about the Bambino, is that you have to use the stubby spout portafilter that comes with it. The Bambino Plus will take the nicer quality portafilter for the Barista Express and Barista Pro, but that doesn't quite fit the Bambino. The Sage Barista Touch is a top-of-the-line coffee machine perfect for beginners who want to make professional quality coffee at home with little attention to its cost.

These things are relatively small, and overall if the Barista Express cost the same as the Barista Pro, I'd probably say the Barista Pro is the better choice.

Integrated Grinder Coffee Machines

So if you enjoy mainstream big brand coffee beans, and you're looking for the best value for money integrated grinder coffee machine from Sage, then the Barista Express is a great choice.

I class the shot quality potential of the Oracle & Oracle Touch to be about on parr with that of the Sage Dual Boiler paired with the Sage Smart Grinder Pro, which is good – but not as good as if you paired it with a more premium espresso specialist grinder costing 2-3 times the cost of the Sage Smart Grinder Pro.You have way more control over the temperature, with 11 settings vs 2, and a bigger texture range with 8 vs 3.