De’Longhi Dedica Pump review: A simple starter

Big power: Despite only having 1300W of power, the Dedica Pump feels more powerful. It only takes around a minute to warm up, and when it brews it does so at an excellent sipping temperature. This translates to the steaming wand as well which has all the oomph you need to get great microfoam for latte art.

Equipped with 15 BARs of pressure, the Dedica has less pep than other De'Longhi machines. Despite this it can still pull espresso shots with a thick crema while maintaining a balanced flavour profile of the bean. Other more expensive De'Longhi coffee machines have struggled to find this balance, resulting in bitter coffee on multiple occassions. 

Steaming milk follows the same story. While the controls are beyond basic, the heat pump works well enough to froth a 500ml jug of milk in a little over a minute. The resulting consistency really comes down to practice on the user end, but I had plenty of success making micro foam in full cream, oat, and soy milk.

Simple interface: Provided you have the right grind size, and know the basics of working with beans, the Dedica makes brewing espresso simple. Simple load in your basket, and press a button.

For anyone looking to get started on a manual machine, this cuts through a lot of the confusing details. When you're dipping your toe into brewing you don't need to worry about things like water to coffee ratio, or fiddling with the pressure. You want something that does the bulk of the work for you. The basic Dedica controls are perfect for that.

There are three buttons, one to pull a single shot, one to pull a double, and another to switch to steaming mode. On the side there is a lever to turn the steam wand on and off. You hardly need the instruction manual.

Itty bitty living space: Bench space is always a hot commodity, so the streamlined Dedica design is always welcome. Measuring in at 14.9cm x 33cm x 30.5, this manual machine is smaller than some Nespresso machines. Admittedly you will need a bit of extra space for a grinder, or for storing the extra equipment required, but it is a great machine for small spaces.

No grinder: The Dedica doesn't come with a grinder so you'll either have to invest in one yourself, or buy pre-ground coffee.

Both of these options come with downsides. Pre-ground coffee doesn't last as long as beans, so to get the best results you'll need to opt for smaller packages more frequently. It isn't the most cost effective solution. On the other hand buying a grinder is an additional expensive up front, and it means you'll have to sacrifice bench space.

Finnicky about grind size: As a bit of a follow up to the above, the Dedica Pump can be fussy about grind size. The basket has a habit of flooding if the grounds are too fine, which has led to it popping off and creating quite a mess. Think coffee grounds and liquid spraying the walls.

I rarely had this problem when I bought beans from a coffee shop, but buying from the supermarket was touch and go. If you plan to go down the pre-ground coffee route I'd recommend buying from a barista and asking them to grind them fresh for you. Baristas know the best grind setting for the coffee they're selling, so not only will this result in better tasting coffee, but also less mess.

Cleaning process: No matter how perfect the pull, you'll need to clean the Dedica Pump after every coffee you make. A full tear down isn't neccessary, but you'll want to remove the basket, wipe everything down, and run a shot to clear out any excess grounds. All up this doesn't take too long, but it can become tedious if you're brewing multiple coffees in a row.

Not entirely mug friendly: With the drip tray on the machine, the clearance between it and the basket is only around 10cm. This can fit a small mug with some manouevering, but I wouldn't call it "mug friendly". The drip tray is removeable however, but then you'll add one more spot in to your post-coffee cleaning routine.