For starters - a couple of words, actually, about the difference between "coffee machine" and "coffee maker". Dictionaries treat the "coffee maker" as a kitchen appliance designed for making coffee. "Coffee machine" is described as an automatic machine that produces coffee or a device into which you can drop a coin and then get coffee. So, the principal difference between a coffee maker and a coffee machine is in the device arrangement.
The modern market offers the widest choice of electric coffee makers: drip, carob, capsule and combined. The choice is limited only to what kind of coffee you like, how often you cook it, how much time you can spend on it. On the other hand, your budget is the "limit" in the choice.
Drip coffee machines are easy to use: you just need to load coffee and pour water into the tanks designed for this, and then the coffee maker will do everything herself. The device of the drip coffeemaker is nowhere more simple: a glass container for water (with a scale of volume for convenience), a container for coffee and a "receiver" for coffee on a heated base. Water, brought to near the boiling point, drips onto the ground coffee in a strainer, and then the ready coffee flows into the receiver (coffee pot). The strength and aroma of the resulting drink depends on the speed of water passing through the ground coffee. True, the water flowing too slowly will be cooled quickly, which can slow down the brewing of coffee. The power of the drip coffeemaker is higher, the stronger the coffee and the higher the consumption of ground coffee. The heated base is able to keep the finished coffee hot for up to two hours or more.
Water in drip coffee makers is cleaned with filters - paper, synthetic or with a "gold" coating based on titanium nitride. Paper are considered the most hygienic, but they are disposable - get ready that you will have to buy them quite often. Reusable synthetic filters are easy to clean, but can eventually impart an unpleasant aftertaste to the beverage. This lack is deprived chemically inert "gold" filters, in which another minus is the price.
A few words about geyser coffee makers. They are known for their simplicity and quality of coffee, they can be electric, and designed for making coffee on the stove. They consist of three different in capacity tanks: for water (bottom), for ground coffee (medium) and for a drink (top). The water from the lower compartment is brought to a boil, then passes through a layer of ground coffee, a special tube enters the upper tank and condenses there. Here's how the process of cooking coffee: pour water into the bottom of the coffee machine, pour the ground coffee into the filter, connect (screw up) all parts of the device, put the coffee maker on the stove, or plug it into the network and wait 5 minutes.
Today, geyser coffee makers are made from food aluminum or stainless steel, they are supplied with a heat-resistant handle, and they can be prepared from 1 to 18 servings of coffee. Electric models often have a timer, so you can store the temperature of the finished coffee up to half an hour, you can also prepare a cappuccino at home. Coffee from such a coffee maker is tastier than from a dropper, but leaves much to be desired.
In espresso coffee machines (carob type), coffee is prepared as follows: the steam is passed under high pressure through a layer of ground coffee. The most important factor in the preparation of a good espresso is the degree of ramming the coffee powder in the horn. Here, the quality of espresso is completely dependent on your skill. Prefer coffee maker not with plastic, but with metal horn. This will make more delicious and fragrant coffee with lush foam.
Generally, carob coffee machines are smart: they themselves discard excess steam pressure, if necessary, stop the heating automatically, if they overheat, they turn off, in the absence of water and will not turn on.
Most carob coffee makers prepare cappuccino: this will require milk or cream. Whipped milk foam is added to coffee, you can decorate it with ground cinnamon, grated chocolate, nutmeg or citrus peel - everything is limited only by your taste and imagination.
Capsule type coffee makers use, as their name suggests, coffee capsules. To make coffee, you simply need to load the capsule from the coffee into a special socket, then turn on the device and do not forget about cleaning the tray in which the used capsules are collected.
Each capsule is 7 grams of coffee blend (per serving of beverage), packed hermetically in plastic or aluminum. At the moment, you can choose the order of forty kinds of capsules, and it is possible that the capsules of one manufacturer will not work for another's coffee machine.
Coffee machines are a combination of a coffee grinder and a carob coffee maker. Typically, they have a water tank equipped with a filter, and indicators of operating status, water temperature and coffee control. You can program simultaneous or sequential preparation of two servings of coffee. From the user will need to fill up the coffee beans in the coffee grinder, then tampen the ground coffee in the horn, put this horn back into the coffee machine and turn it on.
Software coffee machines - the most expensive variety of devices for making coffee: not surprising, because the processes in them are fully automated and do not depend on the user's skills. In these machines, coffee to grind, as well as steam and water are metered, it is possible to adjust the strength and quantity of the prepared beverage, and the coffee can be cooked in 40 seconds! The indicators on the unit will show the loading levels of components and other parameters, and also the mode can be adjusted for water of different rigidity. There are in such machines and protective devices that provide automatic shutdown in case of overheating and other emergencies. The most significant difference between built-in coffee makers and coffee machines is their place in the kitchen. To save space, these coffee makers are not placed on the table, but are fixed in kitchen drawers, pedestals or under hanging shelves.
So, we have considered the distinctive features of all varieties of coffee-making devices offered by the market. Before choosing an electric coffee maker or coffee machine for your home, you can only decide which "properties" these devices will be for you flaws and which ones - advantages.