The latest Nespresso machine doesn’t need you to press buttons, but still provides cups of coffee. Will it ever come home?
Ever since the pandemic hit, many of us have been touching things less. It’s not a big deal, it’s just the way the world kind of has gone — thanks, coronavirus.
But even before it, some gadgets were making their way to that idea. Touch-less taps, touch-less soap dispensers, and so on and so on. We’ve even seen coffee machines embrace the app world and let you control them using an app.
In the workplace, you might see more like that very shortly, with Nespresso building a variation of its coffee machines with that in mind, launching the Nespresso Momento Coffee & Milk, a work-focused coffee machine worth a built-in milk fridge that allows you to prepare a cup of coffee either by pressing a touchscreen or — in a more modern approach — scanning a QR code.
We heard the QR code would become more popular this year, and while they can be used for check-ins across the country, Nespresso is using the QR code to trigger a coffee recipe and have the machine make it. You just need to place the cup under the spout of the workplace Nespresso machine, and it will do the rest.
From what we understand, you still need to select your own coffee pod — which is more like a small satchel pack in the business-grade machines — and then choose the style of coffee you want, with the milk fridge inside holding 3 litres and the water holding 4.6L, with the ida being a barista-style coffee without needing a barista there. You can think of it as a hands-off approach to a coffee machine made for a big place, and it will even clean itself, with automatic rinsing throughout the day.
Workplaces will find the Nespresso Momento Coffee & Milk starting at $5999 in Australia, making it a fair amount more than the standard Nespresso machine, which raises the question: will a touch-less Nespresso come home?
Maybe, but also maybe not. Nespresso already offers touch variations of its machines, but there’s less need for a touch-less machine at home where it’s just one family touching the machine, and fewer hands the family doesn’t know about.
While Nespresso’s Bluetooth app-controlled Prodigio machine doesn’t appear to be apart of its range anymore, the current Nespresso range is typically controlled by a button, and at least one of the machines includes an LCD screen to let you pick the ideal recipe you’re after.
All of the machines are button based, mind you, whether you choose the original espresso-style Nespresso machines like the Lattissima One or the longer styles of coffee from the Vertuo range.
For the moment, that’s a pretty good suggestion that a QR code-based touch-less Nespresso doesn’t seem like it would come home, but give it time, and that could well change. You might even see one that talks to a smart home in the near future, making a cup of coffee once your alarm has gone off. Just make sure to leave the coffee cup under the spout, otherwise your morning might begin with a grumble and a mess.
