Breville Oracle Touch vs DeLonghi Prima Donna Review: Which Fully Automatic Espresso Machine Is Great For Lots of Crema?

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What’s the ideal pick for a super-automatic espresso machine? The Breville Oracle Touch vs DeLonghi Prima Donna is both super and semi in many ways. Offering you the flexibility to pick your ideal coffee variables such as coffee strength, temperature, volume, and improve upon espresso flavor and aroma.

And machines like these also let you adjust the milk texture and temperature for even creamier lattes and heavenly cappuccinos. Your café-hopping days are finally over. But between the Breville Oracle Touch and DeLonghi Prima Donna, the former is my most favorite pick.

It’s also better on account of its more advanced touch functionality, coffee customizations, and authentic barista-grade performance. The Prima Donna is good for beginners who crave a responsive, fully automatic, and hands-free espresso experience.

Breville Oracle Touch vs DeLonghi Prima Donna: Comparision Chart

Image
The Winner (#1)
Breville Oracle Touch Espresso Machine, Brushed Stainless Steel, BES990BSS
The Runner-Up (#2)
De'Longhi Prima Donna Fully Automatic Espresso Machine with Lattecrema System, 9.4 x 17.4 x 13.6, Silver
Model
Breville Oracle Touch BES990
DeLonghi Prima Donna ECAM28465M
Dimensions (LxWxH)
15.4 x 14.7 x 17.9 Inches
9.37 x 17.36 x 13.58 Inches
Color/ Material
Brushed Stainless Steel/ Stainless Steel
Silver/ Stainless Steel
Weight
37.26 Pounds
26.5 Pounds
Power / Voltage
1800W/ 110–120 V
1450 W
Water Tank Capacity
84 Ounces
67 Ounces
Bean Hopper Capacity
17.6 Ounce
5.3 Ounce
Grind Settings
Not Mentioned
13
Interface
Touchscreen
Digital Display Panel
Self-Cleaning Steam Wand
Adjustable Grind Settings
Automatic & Manual
Automatic & Manual
Dose Control
22g
19-22g 
Programmable Settings
5 Cafe-Inspired Coffees
Single & Double Shot Volume 
Heating System
Stainless Steel Dual Boiler + PID Temperature Control
Two Separate Heating Elements
Automatic Shut-Off
Adjustable Milk Settings
Yes, Milk Texture and Temperature
Yes, 4 LatteCrema Milk Settings 
What I Like
Price
$2,799.95
Price not available
The Winner (#1)
Image
Breville Oracle Touch Espresso Machine, Brushed Stainless Steel, BES990BSS
Model
Breville Oracle Touch BES990
Dimensions (LxWxH)
15.4 x 14.7 x 17.9 Inches
Color/ Material
Brushed Stainless Steel/ Stainless Steel
Weight
37.26 Pounds
Power / Voltage
1800W/ 110–120 V
Water Tank Capacity
84 Ounces
Bean Hopper Capacity
17.6 Ounce
Grind Settings
Not Mentioned
Interface
Touchscreen
Self-Cleaning Steam Wand
Adjustable Grind Settings
Automatic & Manual
Dose Control
22g
Programmable Settings
5 Cafe-Inspired Coffees
Heating System
Stainless Steel Dual Boiler + PID Temperature Control
Automatic Shut-Off
Adjustable Milk Settings
Yes, Milk Texture and Temperature
What I Like
Price
$2,799.95
More Info
The Runner-Up (#2)
Image
De'Longhi Prima Donna Fully Automatic Espresso Machine with Lattecrema System, 9.4 x 17.4 x 13.6, Silver
Model
DeLonghi Prima Donna ECAM28465M
Dimensions (LxWxH)
9.37 x 17.36 x 13.58 Inches
Color/ Material
Silver/ Stainless Steel
Weight
26.5 Pounds
Power / Voltage
1450 W
Water Tank Capacity
67 Ounces
Bean Hopper Capacity
5.3 Ounce
Grind Settings
13
Interface
Digital Display Panel
Self-Cleaning Steam Wand
Adjustable Grind Settings
Automatic & Manual
Dose Control
19-22g 
Programmable Settings
Single & Double Shot Volume 
Heating System
Two Separate Heating Elements
Automatic Shut-Off
Adjustable Milk Settings
Yes, 4 LatteCrema Milk Settings 
What I Like
Price
Price not available
More Info

Last update on 2023-09-24 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

Breville Oracle Touch vs DeLonghi Prima Donna: Differences

There is absolutely no competition when you compare Oracle Touch with the Prima Donna. The former is the best entry-level super-automatic machine. It has all the right features and it looks classy too.

1. Design / Appearance

The Winner: Breville Oracle Touch

Breville Oracle Touch Appearance
Breville Oracle Touch Appearance

The most obvious difference between Breville and DeLonghi is the size and the way both machines are constructed. The Breville features a 15.4 x 14.7 x 17.9 inches design. It is made of stainless steel and a ½-lbs bean hopper plus an 84-ounce water tank capacity. A sizeable and convenient espresso machine with ergonomic parts.

The DeLonghi, by the looks of it, has a narrower profile. It measures 10 x 14 x 18 inches. Being more than 5 inches narrower in length but almost the same with regards to its thickness and height. The bean container has a 400g capacity and a 2L water tank which is 64 ounces, smaller than the Oracle Touch.

The Breville has a bean hopper on top with a water tank that you can refill from the top as well. The bean and water storage in the DeLonghi are inside the machine so nothing is sticking out. You can easily access both by opening the lid.

With a larger water tank capacity that is cleverly designed and a classy bean hopper, the Oracle Touch offers more without the bulkiness attached to it.

2. Milk Frothing

The Winner: Breville Oracle Touch

Breville Oracle Touch Milk Frothing
Breville Oracle Touch Milk Frothing

The Breville Oracle Touch replicates the charm and functionality of a barista-grade espresso maker with its steam wand. The DeLonghi Prima Donna, however, features a milk carafe with a specialized Automatic Latte and Cappuccino setting, the LatteCrema.

The LatteCrema perfects all milk-based espresso drinks including the espresso lover’s favorite latte, cappuccino, cafe latte, mocha, etc.

In comparison tests, the Oracle Touch offered better milk results than the Prima Donna. You can use all types of milk and try out different techniques of steaming it. The adjustable milk texture and temperature settings allow more room for improvement and experimentation. Whether you like your cappuccinos with more or less foam, you can decide easily.

The Prima Donna features a removable milk carafe with a quick cleaning function. The milk settings include cold milk foam, cappuccino, latte, hot milk, macchiato, cappuccino and latte mix, cafe latte, and a few others.

Each feature, or pre-set, froths milk in a unique matter to create delicious milk-based drinks. The carafe has a spout that pours milk directly into the espresso cup. What you get is a nice layering of espresso and hot milk and milk foam in your cup, ready to sip.

  I’m not saying the milk foaming functionality of the Prima Donna is bad. But it does produce the kind of authentic, smooth, and latte art-style milk that the Oracle Touch produces.

But you’ll fall in love with the ease with which you can make a cappuccino or a macchiato, for example, in minutes and automatically.

3. Customized User Profiles

The Winner: Breville Oracle Touch

Breville Oracle Touch Customized User Profiles
Breville Oracle Touch Customized User Profiles

The Breville Oracle Touch has 5 café-style drinks that you can select and brew with Breville’s default settings automatically. Or you can customize your own drinks by tweaking the strength, volume, and temperature of espresso. It features 8 such customized profiles for you to tweak and save as your own.

The DeLonghi Prima Donna has 5 user profiles with the included benefit of creating your own recipe via the app. Alter the temperature of the water for extraction, the milk settings, and choose from 13 grinder settings. The machine is quick and responsive.

Between both machines, the Breville Oracle Touch offers more customized profiles with the added benefit of using a simple touchscreen screen. The Prima Donna’s button and LCD display might get confusing to use as it is not as advanced and streamlined as the Oracle Touch.

4. Espresso Quality

The Winner: The Breville Oracle Touch

Breville Oracle Touch Espresso Quality
Breville Oracle Touch Espresso Quality

The Breville Oracle Touch brings home an authentic portafilter espresso machine for beginners. The touchscreen display and stainless steel dual boiler make the espresso machine fast, consistent, and intuitive.

With the 58mm portafilter, the espresso quality is drastically improved, plus the different customizations that you can make based on coffee strength, temperature, etc.

The DeLonghi Prima Donna has no portafilter, dosing, or tamping mechanism. All you see on the exterior is the milk carafe and coffee spout. It grinds and doses the coffee from inside and you only get to see the end result which is crema-infused and dark espresso shots.

The Oracle Touch pulls espresso shots effectively, making crema-infused espresso that is rich in flavor and intense no matter how many cups you drink.

It works for all new kinds of drinks and espresso beans! The experience of using a portafilter, automatic dosing and tamping, and shot extraction is unparalleled when you have to compare it with the clunky and un-barista-like performance of the DeLonghi Prima Donna.

Breville Oracle Touch vs DeLonghi Prima Donna: Similarities

Both espresso machines are one-touch and fully automatic to use. But they’re also a type of hybrid, between semi- and super-automatic espresso machines for home use. You can select from their pre-programmed coffee drinks, the classics like latte, cappuccino, and you’ll get exactly that.

Granted the Oracle Touch is more hands-on in that you have to move the portafilter after it doses and tamps automatically to start the espresso extraction. Then add milk to the stainless steel jug and steam the milk by yourself.

Where the Oracle Touch features a jug, the Prima Donna features the milk carafe. It stores and froths the milk according to the different milk adjustments you make via the intuitive touchscreen display. Or you can let either machine use their default customizations to brew you the perfect cuppa.

The burr grinder, temperature settings, shot volume control, and stainless steel construction brings the Breville Oracle Touch and DeLonghi Prima Donna closer together. There’s even a hot water feature in both machines to make steamy and strong Americanos. 

Quick Rundown Of Breville Oracle Touch BES990

Breville Oracle Touch Espresso Machine, Brushed Stainless Steel, BES990BSS
  • Note: 1)Too coarse a grind, too little coffee, or insufficiently tamping the grounds before brewing can all lead to inadequate pressure for a proper brew. 2)It is important to note that the amount of espresso extracted will vary depending on the grind size and amount and reprogramming may be needed when the size and amount are adjusted.Please refer to user guide or user manual or user guide (provided below in PDF) before first use
  • The Breville Oracle Touch Espresso Machine with automation at every stage with touch screen operation to simply swipe and select for espresso, long black, latte, flat white or cappuccino and enjoy third wave specialty coffee at home.
  • Dose Control: The integrated conical burr grinder automatically grinds, doses and tamps 18-22 grams of coffee, similar to the commercial espresso machine in your favorite cafe.
  • Espresso Machine with precise water temperature: Achieve balanced tasting espresso with the Breville Oracle Touch Espresso Machine complete with a digital temperature control (PID) technology, which ensures the temperature is kept at its optimum range
  • Optimal Water Pressure: The Over Pressure Valve (OPV) is a commercial feature included in the Oracle Touch. This limits the maximum pressure throughout the extraction, helping prevent bitter flavors in the coffee shot. It also has true low pressure pre-infusion, which gradually increases the pressure to gently expand the grinds for an even extraction.

Last update on 2023-09-24 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

Pros
  • Convenient design with sturdy parts.
  • Water tank level indicator at the front with top refilling.
  • High-quality portafilter with auto tamping.
  • Tap and adjust customized coffee drinks in seconds.
  • Espresso clock for precise extraction time.
  • Fast and adjustable steam wand.
Cons
  • The pre-infusion time is 1-2 seconds longer than usual.
  • You have to “dial-in” the grind before brewing the first cup.

Quick Rundown Of DeLonghi Prima Donna ECAM28465M

De'Longhi Prima Donna Fully Automatic Espresso Machine with Lattecrema System, 9.4 x 17.4 x 13.6, Silver
  • Automatic Latte and Cappuccino: the proprietary LatteCrema system allows you to create Italian classic cappuccino, latte, cafelatte or other milk-based recipes just in one touch
  • Stainless steel housing with digital display
  • Memory function
  • Maintenance: de’longhi machines require half the cleaning time of other brands, unlike competitor machines, which require chemical cleaning tablets monthly.
  • Hot water spout to be used for tea or hot chocolate

Last update on 2023-09-24 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

Pros
  • Premium-grade performance for home brewing.
  • More portable and accessible with a built-in hopper/water tank.
  • Fast and consistent burr grinder.
  • Removable parts for quick and easy cleaning.
  • Sturdy milk carafe with a secure lid for storage.
  • One-touch controls for quick and hands-free brewing.
  • Wide variety of milk adjustments for a latte, cappuccino, etc.
Cons
  • The froth quality is not consistent.
  • Can produce a thick foam, not creamy.

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References

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