Hi guys,

I'm a super auto espresso machine (Jura Z5) guy looking more seriously into "proper" espresso. I also happen to be a full-time indie Mac software developer with a little iPhone programming experience. Why not put both together and develop the perfect espresso shot timer for the iPhone?

At first I thought I was perhaps a little crazy and nobody would be interested in such a thing, but it does make sense to time h/x flushes and extraction times so why not? I started looking around a bit and found that there are actually espresso-specific hardware timers out there retailing at $10-$20 and they are bit sucky at that.

So before I start coding away, I'd like to ask you guys (who doubtlessly know a lot more about espresso than I do) what your perfect espresso timer would be like?

I've got a few ideas of my own, but I'd like to see what you guys really want.

Thanks for the help.

Best regards,

Frank

I don't bother to time my shots. I just keep an eye on the pour and cut it off when it starts to blond. This seems to work pretty well. If I need to time anything, using my good old fashioned wrist watch works OK, but mostly I just go by the look of the pour.

However, if I did want to use my iPhone to time a shot, it seems like using the built in timer would work pretty well. Why would you need to design a different one specifically for espresso?

A couple ideas for you, some are pretty obvious.

1. Shot log - space for time, temp, volume, grind setting, beans, and rating.
2. Some form of color matching as the shot progresses. If you point the camera at the stream can it record the color progression as the shot blondes? Then maybe rate that against some standard. If the video feed doesn't work maybe the user could drag their finger along a color strip that goes from black to very blonde as the shot progresses to get the color data into the iphone.
3. Pull flavor/preparation notes on the beans with a web scraper. Not sure where to get the info from though.
4. Time the shot by placing the iPhone on the machine (somewhere dry) and let the accelerometer detect the start and stop using the vibrations from the pump. (or use audio from the mic, then you only have to keep it near the machine. Then the user will be able to hold it still)
5. Shot analysis - Provide tips based on the shot data. The easiest would be using time/volume to suggest grind adjustments. With enough data it could even approximate how many turns you should make on the grinder.

I like the idea of a shot log, I keep a note pad and pen in the kitchen for this, but having it in an app would work well too, especially if it let you attach photos or videos to each entry.

i am already pretty far into development of a similar product. the feature set is very similar to what you are proposing. the timer function is a small piece of the overall feature set. this will be developed for iphone, ipod touch, ipad, & android OS.

its took months of design based on my knowledge gained over a few years of espresso, and software GUI development. i am hoping i can have something to show within a few days.

If you are interested in beta testing this application please send me a message using the PM function of home barista.

thanks

jon

I'd like to see a 3 or 5 second (or user programmable) countdown before the timer starts, so one can press the iPhone, put it down, then 3-2-1 and flip the brew switch. Even better, for those of us with loud vibratory machines, use the iPhone's microphone to start the timer when it hears the pump! (Oops, just saw "Compliance" suggested this above -- would still be great, though.)

MightyMouse wrote:Hi guys,
what your perfect espresso timer would be like?

I can reach my microwave and the start button on my Astoria without stretching too much at all.
It's perfect. And it beeps at thirty seconds, too.]
I tend to watch the shot, and if I cut it before the beep, I just glance at the microwave and do a bit of mathinmyhead to figure out how short it was. Of course, if I hear the beep, I know that the grind is a bit too fine, etc.

Psyd: neat-o