Smeg50's Retro Line Coffee Grinder

This review is for anyone who loves coffee and considers it a very important part of their life. This review is for people like me who look forward to that first cup o' joe in the morning even right before going to bed at night. It's also for people who don't mind spending more for quality that will last a long time and that will give them the best results. OK, I'm a coffee geek. I have a Technivorm Moccamaster and a Ratio Eight; both top quality automatic drip coffee makers. I've also owned coffee grinders that match that quality. For a few years I used the Breville Smart Grinder which was a quality machine and replaced it with a Baratza Virtuoso, also a great machine. Either one would be a smart buy with long lasting value. I have a lot of experience with them and wasn't sorry I bought them. Now, on to the SMEG Retro Style. It's above and beyond!! I got the one in black. It's a beautiful machine. With such a big build up I'll get right to the point now. My jaw dropped open in disbelief the very first time I used it this morning. First off, It's a LOT quieter than either the Breville or the Baratza. Secondly, it's SO easy to use. I set the wheel in front to 8 cups and moved the very easy grind adjustment lever to a couple notches past medium. I put the handy collector cup in, pressed start and couldn't believe how SMOOTHLY and QUICKLY my beans went thru this AMAZING machine. After it was done, the timer was right on at my "8" setting, I took out the collector container and there was ZERO MESS, ZERO STATIC which was a bit of a problem with the Breville and the Virtuoso though not a deal breaker. The SMEG however left NO MESS. Yes, it's more expensive than the two others but trust me; this has to be the absolute BEST quality home use coffee grinder on the market today. It's fairly new. It deserves to be number one on the list of conical burr grinders. You can just hear the quality as it incredibly efficiently does its work. The materials are top notch. I am just SO impressed with this piece of machinery that I had to sit down and write this. Go straight for THIS ONE. Great job SMEG. It's the best thing to come out of Italy since spaghetti sauce. I LOVE THIS!!!!! Buy it and you'll agree. It's a "can't miss." I wish I could have given it SIX STARS. By the way, the coffee tasted GREAT!! **Update a few months later: this grinder is STILL TOP NOTCH. I still can't believe how quick and quiet it is opposed to a couple of other expensive grinders I've owned. It's a joy to grind beans with this each morning. The ONLY thing I've found on the negative side, in case you're a perfectionist, is that the ON/OFF printing on the power button rubs off after awhile. It's no biggie. I simply hand rubbed the remainder of the printing off and there's just the bland metal face on it now. This is an exceptional coffee bean grinder and I'm looking forward to years of service.

Ok I admit I bought it purely because it’s a very sexy-looking gadget. I had previously owned a Breville Smart Grinder Pro which was great and lasted around 4 years but it left a bad taste in my mouth that the only thing wrong with it when it finally broke down was a worn plastic expeller blade that could not be replaced. Don’t know if the Smeg is repairable or built not-to-last like the Breville, but so far I’ve had it a month and everything has been perfect.As another reviewer mentioned, it just feels solid. Even the plastic on the bean hopper and grounds collection jar feel heavier and of higher quality than other burr grinders I’ve owned over the years. Grinding is also the quietest of any machine I’ve owned and I have no idea how they designed this but there is literally no spray of grounds outside of the collection jar after grinding even though everything goes through an opening that is only the size of a coin. Controls are intuitive and knobs and buttons feel solidAnd above all I could look at it for days. Just a beautifully designed piece of machinery all around. Was it worth the $100 premium over the Breville? So far my answer is a resounding yes!

The Smeg conical burr grinder is an excellent product! I bought it to replace my Capresso conical burr grinder. The Capresso is a good product for the price, used mine daily for 4 years and it has served me well but the motor is starting to make that ready to quit smell. What makes the Smeg better for the price? Well, the grind is more consistent and thats the most important attribute of a grinder. It's quieter than the Capresso. It still has very simple physical controls, no screen. Finally, it's beautiful and the construction is meticulous. You get an anodized metal body and a hopper and collection bin made from BPA free polymer. It feels substantial and it's likely the use of metal contributes to the reduction in noise and higher rigidity enabling a more consistent grind. A+ if I get 5+ years out of it!

This thing is absolutely horrible. Adjusting the grind dial? Easy. Reading the tiny numbers to see which setting its on? Impossible without a magnifying glass and ultra bright lighting. Same goes for the time adjustable power button. Which is not a huge complaint, cuz you're likely to set it once and leave it right? Sure, that's assuming it grinds the beans, but it fails there too. The only way to get it to grind (regardless of the setting - fine or coarse) was to continually smack it so the beans don't get stuck. Maybe I got a lemon, but for this price point I was extremely disappointed.

Have only owned this grinder for little over a month, but I love it. Its very quiet as far as coffee grinders go. Its simple to use out of the box, but you can also dive into customization if you want. I love the way it looks, but more importantly it just feels like a quality product. The grinder cup catches all the grinds, no mess, and no static issues. It also has a convenient silicone cap to seal if you want to grind ahead of time. I use it with a Technivorm Moccamaster brewer. Excellent results. My friend had a Baratza Encore that only lasted a few months before it stopped working. I recommended the SMEG and he loves it as well.

No mess great grinder, what most people complains about grinders? Noise, and mess. This grinder control both, it is quite and it’s mechanism deliver the grids with almost no debris flying all over. Add to the micro precision grind level and you have the perfect grinder, almost. There is 2 complaint I have , the grinding lever control is easily disturbed that you have to check on it e every time you are going to grind. Some beans, really one or tow, never make it from the bobber to the collector and have to be removed manually from the grinding body. Also this grinder is not designed for a large quantity grinding, such as when you need when you are going on a trip, and will heat and stop to cool itself. Not a deal breaker but annoyance for the price. Still stylish and capable.