When unpacking the S700, the first thing you notice is the outside of the coffee machine. The front and top of the machine is made of brushed stainless steel, while the side is made of light gray plastic, which gives it a nice appearance. In terms of size, the device is not that bad (I expected it to be bigger) and that saves on the countertop. You will also see LED lighting at the outlet for extra lighting during brewing. This additionally illuminates the cover plate (and the cup). You will also find the milk frother there. This is integrated in the distributor. It closes well and therefore makes good quality milk foam (if you have the right milk for that). Furthermore, the beautiful control panel with the integrated LCD display with beautiful graphics stands out. Here you can see which coffee you have chosen and you can see the progress of the brewing. On the outside there is an easily removable water tank with a volume of 1.7 liters. A Brita water filter must be placed in this before use for even better coffee results. The drip tray that can be found at the front can easily be pushed towards you and is easy to empty. The drip tray also contains a separately removable container for the coffee grounds. You can also empty this in a jiffy. The device can make a reasonable number of cups before you have to empty both containers. It is, however, recommended for hygiene reasons to do this every day, although this is not necessarily necessary. The brew group and the milk foam system are easy to remove and just as easy to clean. The brew group may only be cleaned with water and not in the dishwasher. If you do this about 1 to 2 times a week, a good coffee taste is guaranteed. The milk frother has a Milk Clean function to flush the hose with clean water so that everything is cleaned immediately. That saves manual cleaning. The device itself indicates when something needs to be emptied or cleaned. But it is better to avoid this for reasons of hygiene and maintaining a good coffee taste. The display also shows the message that the water tray needs to be refilled or the drip tray needs to be emptied. Any other error or malfunction messages can also be read here. Operation is easy by touching the touch keys. The keys are clear and they respond well to touch even with cold or wet hands. Furthermore, the sound of the S700 is not too bad for me. Compared to other devices, it is significantly quieter. When you need to descale the S700, it will indicate itself. The descaling process takes about 20 minutes. The machine determines this itself based on the water hardness that you have to set in the menu before using it for the first time. A test strip is included with which you can test your tap water to determine the hardness. There are special descaling tablets from Siemens that you can use for this. Because we have a water softener, we do not have to do this, which in turn benefits the life of the device. Special cleaning tablets are also available for cleaning. When the device is due for a cleaning, it will indicate itself. The special Calc 'n Clean function is used for descaling and cleaning. When you do this, you will be an hour further before you can use the device again. The S700 can brew 1 or 2 cups at a time. You can set the grinding degree depending on the beans you have. The grinding system is made of ceramic material so that it does not get too hot and the good taste of the bean is preserved. You can also choose between espresso, espresso macchiato, cappuccino, latte macchiato, latte, milk foam and hot water. You can choose the coffee in the variations. For example, you can choose a coffee drawer for filter coffee. He also has the option of very mild, mild, normal, strong, very strong. So something for everyone. You can save your choice in the favorites so that you can set your own favorite at the touch of a button. The temperature of the water can also be adjusted. I have it on hot as standard and always preheat the cups so that the coffee stays hot for a little longer. By the way, I am impressed by the temperature of the coffee. You have to be careful not to burn your mouth with a cup of regular coffee that is not preheated. That is already less if you choose an option that uses milk. But if you preheat your cup, that problem is also solved and you have a nice warm cappuccino or latte. When using the right milk, the foam is firm. The machine can be set to your own liking due to the various options that are possible. The size of your cup can also be set to small, medium or large so that you can make more or less coffee. The coffee-milk ratio can also be set if you want more or less milk in your coffee. It has an automatic switch-off so that it always switches off and no unnecessary energy is consumed. It even has a frost protection position in case you have it somewhere cold. All in all, it is a great device that has many options, can make good coffee and is certainly worth its money.
