De’Longhi EC702 Review

October 4, 2021January 28, 2020 by Kate Carrey

Review Summary

Editor’s rating:

If you’re someone who wants to drink better-quality coffee at home and is in love with metallic coffee makers, the De’Longhi EC702 espresso machine might be great for you. This coffee maker is affordable, easy to use, and makes good coffee.

Even if it’s an entry-level coffee machine, the EC702 comes with some nice features for making coffee. The machine comes with a brewing system and a frother, which means that you can make all kinds of drinks on it. Let’s take a more detailed look at this espresso machine.

Did You Know?

The filter holder on the De’Longhi EC702 is patented by De’Longhi. This holder has three other holders that can hold espresso for one or two shots and an espresso pod.

Key Features:

Manual Panarello milk frother
15-bar pressure
Three-in-one filter holder
Pressurized portafilter
Two thermostats
Water reservoir

Pros

Works with coffee pods or ground coffee

Makes one or two cups of coffee at once

No waiting time between shots

Easy to clean

Has many stainless steel components

Cons

The portafilter uses a flipper to hold the basket

The crema is not that good

Boiler takes up to 15 minutes to heat up

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Size, Looks, and Components

The De’Longhi EC702 coffee maker has a metallic colored chassis and a cool industrial look. Of course, it is typical for De’Longhi to make their machines pretty attractive, and the EC702 model is not an exception to that philosophy.

This coffee maker measures 11 x 9.1 x 11.6 inches and weighs 11.5 pounds. It is not the largest coffee maker on the market, which makes it pretty compact. It also doesn’t come with a lot of buttons, so it’s pretty easy to operate, which is, of course, the idea of this entry-level coffee machine.

The water reservoir of the De’Longhi EC702 has a capacity of 44 ounces. This is a nice capacity for people who don’t drink coffee that often, but for those who do, the De’Longhi ESAM 3300 Magnifica and the ECAM22110SB might be a better choice.

The machine, furthermore, has two thermostats, so frothing and coffee brewing can be done at the same time. This improves the coffee flavor and saves you time.

When It Comes to the Servings…

When it comes to the servings, the EC702 brings you a nice three-in-one filter holder. This filter holder can make you one espresso shot or two espresso shots at the same time. Furthermore, on this coffee maker you can also use easy serve espresso (E.S.E.) pods which can be convenient when you need your coffee made fast.

The De’Longhi EC702 uses a 15-bar pressure on the coffee to make it taste good when it reaches your cup. To make the coffee, grind some fresh coffee beans in a separate grinder, use pre-ground coffee, or an E.S.E. pod. Then, put the coffee inside the portafilter and wait for the machine to do its part of the deal.

The portafilters that the De’Longhi EC702 uses are pressurized, so you won’t have a problem making coffee even if that’s your first experience with a coffee machine.

Manual Milk Frother

A great feature on this entry-level machine is its manual Panarello milk frother. There are two nice things about this frother. First of all, frother on a coffee maker means that you can add milk to your drinks. Second, the frother is manual, which means that you can froth your milk the way you want and get the foam that you want.

If you prefer an automatic milk carafe before a manual frother, though, there’s an entry-level machine by De’Longhi that can give you that pleasure: the De’Longhi EC860.

What Can We Say About the Quality of the Coffee Made by the De’Longhi EC702?

For an entry-level espresso machine, we can say that the De’Longhi EC702 makes very nice coffee drinks. However, if you are too picky with certain things such as the crema of the espresso and the thickness of the foam, you should know that this is not the machine for you.

The quality of the coffee of this coffee maker is great when compared to that of some other machines in its class. However, you shouldn’t be comparing the EC702 to some high-end coffee makers, and this is nothing but fair. Neither can this machine customize the drinks, nor does it have some high-end coffee maker technologies. But, if you are looking for a tasty coffee that is quickly made by a machine that’s easy to use, the De’Longhi EC702 will meet your needs.

Is Cleaning It Hard?

The cleaning of the De’Longhi EC702 is not a hard task at all. Its drip tray is easy to take out and rinse, and the water reservoir is easily accessible and cleanable as well.

If you want to clean the brewing system, you can use a cleaning tablet that can help with the descaling. When it comes to the frother, you should let hot water run through it after each frothing and wipe it with a clean towel. Furthermore, if you want to clean the chassis of the EC702, you can use a towel or a paper towel.

On theDownsides of the De’Longhi EC702

Being an entry-level machine, the De’Longhi EC702 does have some downsides that could be deal-breakers for some people.

One of the downsides of this machine is that he portafilter uses a flipper to hold the basket in place. This can bother you at times since it can get flimsy and let some coffee fall out of it. However, this won’t be an issue after a few uses of the portafilter since you’ll get used to handling it.

As we already mentioned, the crema in your espresso that you get with the EC702 is not that good. This is because the EC702 uses a pressurized filter. However, the coffee will still taste great, so if you can forgive the machine about the crema, you won’t be disappointed from the quality of the coffee.

The boiler of the De’Longhi EC702 takes up to 15 minutes to heat up because it heats up the entire water in the reservoir. If you put in less water in it, however, it will heat it up in about five minutes or so.

FAQ About the De’Longhi EC702 Espresso Machine

1. Why should I buy the De’Longhi EC702 instead of the De’Longhi Bar32 or the De’Longhi EC155?

The water tank on the De’Longhi EC702 is bigger, the milk steaming system is better, and the machine is easier to clean. Also, you can use larger coffee cups when making espresso on this machine.

2. What kind of tamper should I get if I want to tamp my coffee with a tamper different from the one provided?

You’ll need to get a 51mm tamper.

3. Why do I keep getting soupy pucks and weak espresso when using my De’Longhi EC702?

This is probably happening because you’re tamping the coffee way too hard and the water can’t flow through it. Try tamping the coffee less hard and see what happens.

4. Why does my coffee ‘explode’ when I try to remove the filter?

The tap heads of your machine are probably blocked, and you should clean them from the coffee grind that accumulates on them. Since the hot water can’t pass through the grind, the pressure of the steam rises and makes the coffee ‘explode every time you remove the filter. Therefore, clean the tap heads, but be aware of how you tamp your coffee and how much coffee you use per shot. Don’t tamp the coffee too hard and don’t overfill the filter.

What Are Some Alternatives to the De’Longhi EC702?

De’Longhi ECO310W Espresso Maker

If the downsides of the EC702 make you wonder whether there are alternatives to this coffee machine, we recommend you check out the De’Longhi ECO310W espresso maker. This coffee maker has a larger water tank than the EC702, has a milk frother, a multifunctional filter holder, and other features that might appeal to you.

Breville ESP8XL Cafe Roma Stainless Espresso Maker

Another great alternative to the EC702 is the ESP8XL Cafe Roma stainless espresso maker by Breville. This coffee machine has a dual-wall filter system for great espresso crema, a froth enhancer, and a 15-bar thermoblock pump.

Conclusion

It is now time to share our conclusion about the De’Longhi EC702 coffee maker and we can honestly say that this is not a bad coffee machine. Buying this coffee maker won’t mean that you’ll get the bells and whistles of some higher-end machines, but you’ll definitely get nice coffee.