espresso

Espresso machine excels at time management

More so than any other time of day, every action in the morning is associated with a certain amount of time spent doing said action. After the coffee-making and breakfast-eating have been checked off the list, then the rest of the day can proceed at its own pace with responsibilities being accomplished and reshuffled (or ignored) depending upon the degree of importance. Luckily, the simplified routine of morning gives us all the foundation that we need for the complex actions of the day, now in as few as 45 precious seconds.

If it takes longer than a minute to brew … Read more

Portable espresso machine gets wheels

Gasoline makes cars go, coffee makes people go. And somehow it all goes together.

The fuel that makes us go is nothing like the fuel that makes our cars go. Yet, they both do have their similarities; nobody and nothing is budging an inch until we get what we need. If that means fueling up on the go, then so be it.

While a method for mobile fueling of cars is impractical, humans do not have to look far to find a caffeine fix. Faster than a drive-through window and quicker than a corner cafe, the Handpresso Auto offers up … Read more

Espresso where you want it

In the beginning, there were pressure cookers. Then, somebody figured out that the same treatment could be applied to coffee. Not only would it produce a cup of coffee significantly faster, but the end result would feature a concentrated flavor unparalleled by conventional brewing methods. As espresso became more refined (and associated machinery less bulky), the ability to grab an espresso anytime, anywhere, spread to seemingly every nook and cranny. Including the home.

The Breville BES900XL Dual Boiler continues the tradition of well-made espresso availability, bringing it into the home while offering some advanced features. Dedicated steam and espresso boilers … Read more

Espresso maker charges up coffee

It should come as no surprise that so many variations of coffee drinks exist. After all, when amped up on coffee, the logical thing to think about is even more coffee. While regular drip coffee is always a good starting point for inspiration, to really dive in deep, the completeness of espresso is needed. When considering high-octane options, possibilities for beverage creation expand at a rate limited only by the pace of the caffeine jitters--but to get to all the great possibilities such as cappuccinos and lattes, first a method for obtaining the elixir is necessary.

The Espressione 3-in-1 Coffee Beverage System … Read more

Wake up to espresso

The average coffeemaker requires very little thought to operate. This is a good thing: precoffee mornings are not the best time to tax the brain. Still, mornings are mornings and not the best time to mess around with potentially scalding hot liquids. Luckily, the catch-22 of needing coffee to make coffee has been addressed by the inclusion of automatic timers on many coffeemakers. This solves the issue quite nicely; after one has been properly caffeinated the machine can be set up again for the next day. But sometimes something stronger is needed.

Giving coffee-lovers another option in the morning (or … Read more

Can this 'robot' help save publishing?

Back in 2007, Time Magazine named the Espresso Book Machine one of its inventions of the year. The Espresso, now on version 2.0, costs around $150,000 and is an on-demand printing press that features some nifty robotics. It can output a professional-looking paperback book in about four minutes (see the video below).

On Demand Books, founded in 1993, has been slowly making some headway with its product, even if the current machine costs a good deal more than Time said it would in its 2007 article. The blog Publishing Perspectives has an interesting piece on how the University of Texas Co-op--the most profitable independent college bookstore in the United States--has purchased an Espresso Book Machine and is aiming is to "revolutionize how the store does business and interacts with the local community." About 15 other university bookstores have bought the compact printing press, which looks like an elaborate copy machine.

Where the machine comes in most handy is for "narrow interest" titles or important out-of-print and low-demand backlist titles that it doesn't make economic sense for a small press to print. PDFs of those books are stored on a server and can be printed out on request for a much more affordable price. Many of these books are textbooks that would normally retail for well over $50. … Read more

Fingerprint reader locks down your coffee

Money may make the world go around, but nothing gets started until people have had their coffee. Luckily for the gears of commerce, coffee is readily available almost anywhere. Unluckily for coffee-lovers, that doesn't mean you will get the exact cup of coffee you want. Some may say coffee is coffee, and just dive in to the closest cup of caffeine on hand, while others are more apt to hold off until their perfect cup is obtainable--and sometimes, just like financial information, that perfect cup needs protecting.

The Saeco Xelsis Digital ID SLX 8870 MS coffeemaker has a fingerprint … Read more

Amazon.com has the Latte Espresso Touchscreen 8GB MP3 Player for $88, after $81.99 savings.

Save $81.99 on the Latte Espresso Touchscreen 8GB MP3 Player from Amazon.com >> Regular price is $169.99 >> Sale price is $88 >> Savings $81.99 (48.23%) >> Click here for deal

Rise and shine to coffee and espresso

Coffee drinkers know what they like. Walk into any coffee shop for a demonstration. As the line moves forward, patrons order their favorite beverages with more precision than that of a fine steak. Rare, medium, and well done are the basic gradations for steak; but when it comes to coffee, numbers come into play. In the past, one lump or two was suffice enough to determine coffee preferences. But in today's world, a dozen different sweeteners and creamers are available--not to mention temperature-specific preferences. As diverse as the world of coffee (and caffeine in general) has become, there is … Read more