Had a heating element failure in the steam boiler after 6 months, probably due to first batch production. Problem has been fixed promptly.
Detailed Commentary
Feb of 2021 marks my two and half year ownership of the Lelit Bianca dual boiler espresso machine. Very satisfied customer, and I see no reason why the machine will not continue to serve for years to come.
I am one of the earliest adopters, learnt about the machine when Jim posted the early designing discussions on a barista forum. I was happy to see the ideas realized, a pressure profiling double boiler machine within reasonable price range. I put in pre-order during a move in 2018, and was happy to get Bianca as the first major appliance in a new house.
I upgraded from a Gaggia Classic for 6 years, so I didn’t have direct experience on other prosumer machines to compare with. Through my studies and comparisons, I do see Bianca has all designs I could want at the time, and more. The facts that Bianca becoming more popular, and similar flow control device got sold in other brands, prove this innovation is a success.
My regular routine is pre-infusion at 2 bar, reach maximum pressure at 9 bar, and then gradually reduce pressure to 6 bar. I will refer more tech discussion to other reviews. It is great to see all the videos posted on YouTube by 1st-line, please keep them coming. The learning will continue.
Buying Experience
I have great shopping experience with 1st-line. Jim was very helpful since the beginning. As an early adopter, I did run into a tech problem with the heating element failure in the steam boiler after 6 months. Jim helped me diagnose and fix the problem in a timely fashion. The machine has been performing strong since then.