Coffee
August 15, 2005 One of the greatest challenges in life is to create a coffee at home which is as good as the best coffee you can buy in your favourite coffee shop. It's a complex equation involving obtaining the right equipment, refining the technique and obtaining the freshest and best quality coffee. There's a definite affinity between computers, high-performance people and coffee - we're not sure what the common elements are but high clock speeds seems to be part of the equation and there are few technology environments where caffeine is not the staple diet. Which sort of accounts for why coffee is one of the largest cost-centres for this humble magazine - all press briefings are over coffee, we have our meetings over coffee, and we drink coffee in our spare time, sometimes so often that the entire staff can levitate by 4pm in the afternoon on a busy day. So the news that Nespresso has unveiled a new compact coffee system was significant for us. Now while Nespresso is clearly related to Nescafe, the concept behind it is at the other end of the connoisseur scale, as we have previously explained. Indeed, Nespresso is so focused on nurturing the brand’s upmarket pedigree, it has opened dozens of coffee boutiques in the world’s cultural centres selling just Nespresso-produced coffee. Read More
May 4, 2005 A new web-based service that offers personalised single-copy high-quality coffee-table books could give the humble book a new life in the digital age. Books have been the principle medium of knowledge distribution for five hundred years until the coming of the internet and the digital distribution of words, sound, images and video. With the arrival of the Digital Age, the book has lost some of its allure, being seen as low-tech in a high-tech age although it remains the most user-friendly of all mediums. In offering everybody the ability to produce a one-off or very-short-run book of premium quality at a cost-effective price, Australian-based Momento has redefined the short-run book publishing market and opened up myriad new and exciting publishing opportunities. Already the service is being used by companies, photographers and artists as short-run portfolios, as special “this is your life”gifts for loved ones and retiring employees, baby books and the overwhelming favourite … wedding albums. The coming launch of the service to professionals will also enable photographers and communications companies to offer sizes up to A3, leather binding … and professional value-added services. Read More
March 2, 2005: Nespresso and Miele, have announced the launch of a new built-In Miele/Nespresso coffee machine. Gizmag tested a Nespresso coffee machine 15 months ago and we were knocked out by the quality and range of the sealed Nespresso coffee cartridges. The Miele/Nespresso CVA 2000 machine also represents a new generation of kitchen appliances offering a sophisticated design and cutting edge espresso machine technology that integrates into modern kitchen environments. Read More
The inspiration for the aesthetically arresting Aroma Espresso Maker came from the sensual aspects of coffee itself. Coffee is a rich aromatic liquid, with similar qualities to a cologne, hence the design aimed to capture the essence of those qualities by being reminiscent of a cologne bottle and we can vouch that it has achived its goals – the Aroma is one of those objects you see that makes you scream “I want one of those.” Apart from being beautiful and highly desirable, the Aroma Espresso Maker is a personal, compact and portable 60 ml espresso maker designed to be carried for convenient usage anytime. With discretionary time becoming scarce in an increasingly busy world, the Aroma Espresso Maker can easily be carried to work in your bag, and simply plugged in and turned on at your desk. Its transparent casing allows the user to witness coffee being brewed enhancing the sensual experience and to finish it all off, there’s also a cylindrical leather carry bag with a zipper top to protect the coffee machine while traveling. Read More
There's a definite relationship between caffeine and technology, so this latest built-in, fully plumbed, totally automated, all stainless steel, self-cleaning Profi-Coffee Centre from Küppersbusch was a natural Gizmo. The on-board computer is like having your own live-in Barista to control the complex process of coffee making while at the same time guiding you through an assortment of user-friendly programs. Read More
We drink a lot of coffee at Gizmag, so when we got the opportunity to sample a machine which was claimed to produce extreme quality coffee which is EXACTLY the same every time, and reduces the time devoted to the ritual of coffee making by several minutes, and eliminates the mess, we jumped at the opportunity. First things first - the name was a significant problem to overcome - Nespresso conjures up pictures of synthetic substances manufactured by unnatural means, of a low-cost substitute for people who don't have any taste and who couldn't tell the difference between good coffee and instant home-brand coffee if it hit them on the head with a hammer. Read More
Italian coffee machine specialist Gaggia's latest fully automatic coffee machine comes with an integrated coffee grinder ensuring you have fresh coffee every time - but the beans in the top, and the coffee comes out the bottom, with all aspects of the process fully programmable... Read More
