I just purchase a new Baratza Preciso grinder, and I am still wondering if I should have bought the OE Pharos instead. I have read a lot of raves for the Pharos, but I also read OE's own review of the Preciso when it first came out and said that it was pretty much a no frills equal in grind quality of the Vario which Doug and Barb use in their kitchen daily. I am new to the quest for the awesome cup of coffee and the perfect shot of espresso, and I thought that the convenience of an electric grinder would simplify my process of learning at this early stage, as well as cutting down the brew time in the early morning which gives me more of a chance to enjoy some beans before work while I am cooking breakfast for the kid and the wife, packing lunches, and getting us all out the door on time. Thoughts?

I've never used a Preciso before. But in my opinion, Preciso seems to be a better choice for someone who had just started in their espresso journey. You have to really love coffee to be hand grinding though it isn't that difficult to begin with. If I were to start again, I would still choose to press a button and have my coffee ground, instead of spending time hand grinding coffee, risking getting weird looks from people around you if they're not familiar with hand grinder. Especially with the slightly ergonomic-unfriendly Pharos (no elegant way to hold the grinder down while grinding for espresso & the need to spank the grinder to get the ground out).

The Preciso is much better at the convenience factors- grinding large batches coffee easily & less effort in grinding. Pharos can only hold about 21 grams coffee and for some people that are brewing larger amount, it's pretty inconvenient. It takes longer to grind too as compared to the Preciso. You also can't entertain many guests with Pharos, not without waiting. The coffee need to be coaxed out from the Pharos after grinding, which is another extra effort as compared to Preciso. The only small advantage of Pharos is probably the big sweet spot where you can use the same adjustment for days without changing it. This is the only advantage of bigger burr in my opinion. Another one would be the longevity of the grinder. I would suspect the Pharos could last easily 20 years heavily used no problem and for Preciso maybe less than half of that. Just my speculation though.

Taste wise- this is a relatively subjective area. For beginners, especially me, I would be hard-pressed to tell the improvement from a decent conical burr to titan conical burr. Other factors in espresso prep has a much better influence over the taste in cup generally. So you're not missing a lot there in term of taste.

So in a conclusion, I would say yes, you made the right choice.

It sounds like you made a good choice....

Likely the best route to a Pharos as the go to espresso grinder is to try a hand grinder, any used or new one, and get a feel for the process of hand grinding and how it fits into your day. Pushing a button is a pretty straightforward approach and hand grinding for some may be an acquired taste.

Some people use hand grinders ONLY and it is a good fit for them...we came upon a combination of espresso machine (Comocafe) and hand grinder (D&E Wall mount) that were very well matched and served us for almost two years....even through power failures, until we got upgraditis. The Comocafe is still used when there is no electron flow and the Pharos is always in play so we are covered.

I had similar doubts myself after buying the Preciso, hand grinding for a manual lever sounds right. Having said that I can't knock the Baratza it does a great job without a fuss, so no regrets.

I would still like a Pharos but its some way down my wishlist as an addition rather than a replacement. Weekday family breakfasts already leave me feeling pressed for time (my coffee is often finished at the front door), so for me hand grinding would be a weekend luxury.

Well, I have a Pharos, but recently purchased a Vario Home. The Pharos is great, but for my daily morning cappuccino I really love to just push a button. Saturday and Sunday are different, so the Pharos will be a weekend grinder for me!

I really wanted the Pharos, but my wife interceded refusing to let me get a manual at that price; she refuses to use the manual I have now, and anything that gets her to use the coffee machine more has to be a good thing.

In the end she bought me the Preciso. Without having tried the Pharos, but graduating from my Zassenhaus hand grinder to an electric grinder has been a joy. Most of my frustration came from the fact that my Zass lacked consistency (something you will not suffer with a Pharos from what I have read). But the other thing I really have come to appreciate is how fast I can dial in the best consistency for any given coffee. Don't get me wrong, I'm a long way from mastering it, but the simplicity and speed of changing the grind size combined with the day today liveability of the Preciso tells me you shouldn't be regretting the purchase.

Anyway, there's nothing stopping you from getting a Pharos down the road. That way you will always have a secondary grinder if anything should happen to the other.

I've been hand grinding every day since before there was an HB website. That's a minimum of 3X a day for at least 9 years (do the math if you'd like). Hand grinding takes an element of patience - not much, but enough for me to say it is not for everyone. For me the satisfaction of hand grinding far outweighs the 1 minute I'd save each time I make an espresso. But added up, it's a lot of hours, and not everyone would feel this way. I can't speak for the Preciso or the Pharos, but I suppose only a handful of home baristas would be able to tell the difference in taste between them. I can say that even with my 2nd-hand hand grinders I make better espresso at home than 99% of what I've had at cafes. I suppose you'd say the same with the Pharos or Preciso, given a little time and effort dialing them in.

Enjoy the convenience of the electric grinder for now - hand grinding has been around a while, and will be waiting for you if you decide to try it.

PC

PC, lucky thing you don't have to do all those hours in a row up front or you would be one tired barista. As it is - split up over many days and many years - the time isn't so bad. I see the appeal of both.