dhann wrote:Received my Prismo on Wednesday and have had the chance to use it 4 or 5 times. My initial impressions:

Thanks for the impressions

My Prismo was sitting on my front porch yesterday and so far I've only made two coffees with it.

The filter is a lot finer than my Able steel filter, but also a little bit more fragile. I personally prefer the taste with steel filters over the one with paper ones (except with my Chemex). I did not get any crema, but my miss Silvia would disagree that its crema anyways. I do like that I don't have to invert the Aeropress anymore.

I've had mine for a couple of days and I concur with everything said. I was only looking to be able to brew without inverting which it works perfectly for. but it's much messier to clean up which was so much of the advantage of the Aeropress. Calling it capable of espresso was somewhere between creative and blatantly false advertising.

Ira

I have had my Aeropress for several years now and long thought of numerous ways you could work to get a more realistic espresso from it. So, I don't know why it didn't really occur to me before I bought the Prismo (belated facepalm), but one of the most blatant issues that I just briefly mentioned in my mini-review with it is the grounds are still free to float around in the brewing chamber. The Prismo is built on the assumption that the largest contributor to brewing pressure comes from the size of the output aperture, when in fact, the pressure comes from forcing the water through the tightly packed grounds. It is possible to build a workable solution, but Prismo's current iteration isn't it.

I've put about 20 brews on mine now and the more I think about it the less impressed I am. Again, the overall build quality and included steel filter it comes with is great, although I still use the steel filter in conjunction with an additional paper filter to reduce the amount of Cafestrol in my cup. As for functionality, the Prismo itself is pretty much a total miss unless you're looking for full-immersion without having to do the inverted method like one of the other site members mentioned. I'd probably drop my previous rating from a "3" to a "2.5" - not because of overall build quality, but because it's a poor design and doesn't do what it was intended to.

I'd agree the product marketing was a bit creative, if not blatantly misleading. For myself, after watching the videos, I should have known better, but I was excited to think someone finally tried to do what I've been contemplating for years and totally let them slip one past me. Unfortunately, their webpage is their main point-of-sale right now and doesn't allow user reviews. So, kickstarter/early-supporters aside, I'm sure they'll continue to sucker their fair share.

Mine just got delivered! I've never used a steel filter before but so far it tastes just as good as with the paper filters. I haven't noticed any sediment like I expected.. so the holes must be pretty fine. For me, this was all about not having to invert and flip anymore. Eliminating that step is totally worth the purchase price for me. I've only made one cup so far. The filter seems pretty good, I like the rubber ring around the edges

Now I don't have to fear the flip!

uncola wrote:Mine just got delivered! I've never used a steel filter before but so far it tastes just as good as with the paper filters. I haven't noticed any sediment like I expected.. so the holes must be pretty fine. For me, this was all about not having to invert and flip anymore. Eliminating that step is totally worth the purchase price for me. I've only made one cup so far. The filter seems pretty good, I like the rubber ring around the edges

Now I don't have to fear the flip!

One thing to be aware of (assuming some site members may not be already) - using just a steel filter, as is typical with French Press coffee, allows a molecule known as cafestol to be transferred directly from your coffee beans to your cup and has been shown to rapidly increase bad cholesterol levels. With paper filters, cafestol is absorbed and filtered by the paper.

Personally, I usually double filter and use a paper filter with steel filters. I haven't tried using just a paper filter in the Prismo, so it may be overkill there, but with the standard cap, using a steel filter and paper filter together slightly covers the relief holes on the side which reduces the amount of sediment and cafestol that ends up in my cup and actually helps increase brewing pressure and coffee strength. This has the added benefit of producing the stronger flavors I prefer without having to increase the amount of coffee I use.

I'm willing to get one once it's back in stock. The main advantage for me would be not having to invert the brewer and also should give a cleaner cup. Vanilla Aeropress still leaks a fair amount of liquid from the sides of the cap which results in silt.