Excellent Company to deal with and a quality versatile product
The overriding experience is one of an excellent product and of attentive responses from Customer Service. Dealing with real people instead of chat bots and the like. They are extremely helpful and polite to deal with and fully answered any queries and concerns I had with the product. There was a delay in response from UK/EU support but it was very quickly answered by the team on their main site complete with apologies!
I have had very many years of experience with different types of domestic coffee machines.
I noticed the listing for the Capxsnob Magician 2 and thought it seemed a very interesting, compact and extremely versatile machine so I ordered one. It arrived well packed with a proper printed manual and lots of different adapters for pod type but the only two I am really interested in are the Nespresso type and the 44mm ESE ones as there is a huge amount of different compatible pods for these including specialist roasters and even single origin types.
It seems very solidly built, especially the different slot in adapters which are quite weighty and look extremely well made - and I am very "picky"
Having rinsed the water tank and pod holders I was eager to try it out. I started with a couple of different Nespresso style pods from a reasonably local roaster. Both speciality single origin arabica coffees, a Kenyan and a Columbian which had very little difference in taste on my old Krups machine and only slightly improved using the L'or machine plus pre-infuse. The Magician 2 clearly gave me a hint of the different flavour profiles which no doubt could be improved even further when I have to time to dial in and experiment with the temperature, volume and pre-infuse variables.
I also ordered some speciality ESE pods which seem better value than the sometimes overpriced Nespresso style ones and less waste as well, just coffee grounds, the tea bag style paper wrap which looked unbleached and the thin, albeit plastic, sealed envelope. They also hold a little over 7gm of coffee on average whereas Nespresso average only 5gm. I immediately tried them out - what a difference - I could clearly taste the flavour profile and the crema was thick, smooth and lasted in bottom of the cup long after I had drunk the espresso! Completely different to the bubbly short lived style you get from the normal Nespresso style pods. I am looking forward to experimenting with more versions of these.
I will just list some pros and cons as I see them:
Pros-
Multiple choices for using your favourite type of pod.
Adjustable temperatures, 80°C to 96°C .
Selectable volume of brew, 20-360ml - a bit excessive, 360ml pushed through 5gm of coffee - but it's there if required.
Easy to clean - although the loading and ejection of the pod is manual you only have to rinse the holder under the tap or use a no pod shot to flush it with hot water.
2 year exchange warranty if you register - I have.
Small, neat and clear display.
Big 1.2 litre water tank as opposed to lots of machines with a puny 600ml version.
Output volume seems pretty accurate so far.
If you are careful the drip tray does not collect anything as there is no connection to any of the internal system - only what you might spill removing the pod/holder!
Descaling only uses a mix of Citric or Lactic acid - not some overpriced brand specific special concoction!.
Cons-
The 51mm ground coffee basket is twin walled, I would have preferred a "proper" single walled version but I probably won't use this method anyway
Volume adjustment button only counts upwards so you need to press and hold to get a faster response but when it rolls over from 360ml to 20ml it is changing so fast you miss the smaller sizes!
Can be a bit messy when you remove the pod holder but I just hold a large mug under it whilst taking it out, which easily catches any drips.
I can't wait to see what the Magician 3 will bring to the party! I have only had this machine for a week or so but as long as it proves reliable it seems the best option for a middle price pod brewer as it is very adjustable compared to most which generally only allow you to program the output quantity but at whatever temperature/pressure they deem suitable?
Recommended.