- Affordable. - Does a great job grinding for espresso, very capable. - The stepless adjustment is a nice feature, makes it very easy to adjust the grind, precisely. - Handsome in black, construction appears to be solid.
Negative Product Points
- Grounds get stuck in chute - must manually remove each time I grind. - Very noisy. - No numerical "settings" that I can refer to when I need to change the grind. - Product is fairly new, so it doesn't have a long track history or wide base of users like the Rocky does.
Detailed Commentary
After a month of twice daily use, I am really enjoying this grinder. (Please note that my comments apply to the conical burr, doserless model.)
As others have mentioned, this grinder takes a while to "dial in." I was choking my Silvia when I first began and went through 1 lb of coffee until I was able to get a nice 20 sec, 2 oz shot. The grind adjustment knob has to be turned A LOT in order to register a significant difference in the grind. This is a pain at first, but you'll appreciate this later, once you get dialed in.
The grinder does a reasonably good job of pushing the coffee through the chute, but some coffee does get stuck. My Silvia's portafilter fits nicely on the fork. However, this method results in a bit of a mess, so I usually grind into a little container. This allows me to measure the coffee (no static problems by the way). I use the handle of my Rancilio measuring spoon to swipe out the grounds stuck in the chute. This works reasonably well.
I chose this grinder because I thought it was a good value - offering high quality performance at a reasonable price. So far I have not been disappointed. Only time will tell if this grinder will be as durable as the Rocky. But for the price and the features it offers, I was certainly willing to give it a try.
Buying Experience
Easy on-line purchase made through Espresso Parts NW.
Three Month Followup
It's 3 months later and I still have a healthy respect for the Innova grinder. It has now become my decaf grinder, as I have bought a Mazzer Mini for my morning caffeinated shots (the Innova's noise woke up the household so I use it every night for my decaf shots). So I can offer a few comparisons between the Innova and Mazzer Mini:
- The Innova is *very noisy* especially compared to the incredibly quiet Mazzer. - Coffee grounds gets stuck in both the Innova and the Mazzer Mini so if you want to keep things clean you have to perform some manual intervention; that is, you have to brush out the grinds of the Innova's chute and the Mazzer's doser. - The lack of a numerical or other type of reference point makes it hard to find/move the grind setting on the Innova; this is not a big deal if you don't switch beans often.
I'm very pleased with the Innova's ability to deliver a consistent, perfect grind for my espresso. It is a great grinder for a good price. Email me if you have any questions!
