A super automatic espresso machine really is what is's name says. All you have to do is insert the coffee beans and it will take care of the rest: grinding, dosing, tamping, dose the water, brewing. It also provides hot water and steam through a steam wand.
The super automatic machines come in different prices; these differences lean on additional features: does the machine have a bypass doser? the heating elements are the single, or dual type? does it feature a digital display, or indicator lights? how advanced is its programmability? can you adjuste the coffee dose? does it warm our cup? does it filtrate water? does it serve coffee in bed... ah, sorry, ignore this last one, we were just daydreaming. We'll try to explain each one of these additional features. Also consult the table below to see which brands have specific features.
Bypass doser
We mentioned before that a super automatic machine grinds the coffee beans, puts them in the brew group, tamps and brews. But sometimes you need to brew a different type of coffee, let's say decaffeinated or another roast type. That's where the bypass doser prooves usefull. You put the ground coffee for one shot and brew your espresso or cappuccino, without removing the coffee in the main doser. The bypass doser uses only pre-ground coffee, and depending on the model, sometimes you have to brew twice to make a double shot. That happens when the capacity of the bypass doser is 6 to 9 grams.
Single or dual heating?
As we have seen in the semi automatic section, the espresso machine is able to produce hot water for brewing the espresso and then (by actioning a switch) steam for the cappuccinos and lattes. Usualy, the regular machine needs some tens secconds to switch from brewing to steaming temperature. Super automatic espresso machines use thermobloc heating elements. If one thermobloc is added, the gap between the two processes changes to few secconds. With two thermobloc elements, there's practicaly no waiting time.
Digital display
We think this feature was meant to 'pamper' the sensitive user type. Instead of communicating with us through various leds that lit up (usualy when something goes wrong), the machine displays (in capital letters) all this information on a small screen.
Programmability
Things get more and more complicated, with every sub-feature at this point. For example, a super automatic machine, does not only brew espresso, but also the sister-drip coffee; however, it's called 'cafe crema'.
The temperature control is also usefull when you want to brew cafe crema, as drip coffee requires hotter water than espresso. Another reason to set higher temperature for the brewing process is to evoid the low temperature in cup, after pouring coffee in; even with the cup-prewarming option, some users still consider their coffee turns cold too quickly.
Pre grinding option prepares the grind for the next double shot and elliminates some waiting times. The pre brewing option moistures the coffee bed before brewing with small amounts of water, allowing coffee to fully release it's flavours.
The adjustable dosing allows you to fine-tune the strength of the coffee. Espresso standard is 7 grams ground coffee for a single shot, but super automatic machines allow you to vary from 6 through 9 grams.
Cup warming
There are two posibilities with cup warmers: either the machine features an active warming-system (that means it has a separate heating element for this function), or a pasive one (uses residual heat from other processes). Of course, the first one is better, but none of the two is the worst.
The water filtration system
Espresso requires pure water for two reasons: improoving the flavour of the coffee and, at the same time, keeping the machine 'alive' for a longer time.