This new Vertuo Pop – distinguished by its funky-coloured tops in red, blue, turquoise, gold, cream and black – is the smallest Nespresso machine, perfectly designed for ‘bijou’ flats like mine where space on the kitchen counter is at a premium. Passionate about finding the best home products and appliances for our readers, she has tested everything from blenders to pizza ovens. Their single-serve technology offers the original espresso, whilst a Vertuo model offers the full range of coffee styles.

Rather than popping your pods into the top of the machine, you instead place the pods in a professional-looking portafilter which twists and locks into place. But it more than makes up for it with quality build of the machine itself; it’s sturdy as well as stylish and is definitely built to last. It’s an investment for sure, but it’s intuitive to use, as powerful as a commercial machine (while reasonably affordable to run) and produces addictive coffee.

Height-adjustable drip tray: If you like to vary your cup size between a short shot and a longer mugful, look for a stable drip tray that can be moved up or down to minimise splashing. Pod machines bridge the gap between instant coffee and espresso machines and the Vertuo Creatista is Nespresso’s most advanced yet. Its small stature didn’t hinder its performance though; our expert awarded it a perfect score for its consistent espresso shot size and temperature. Using it is incredibly easy, and it comes with two milk canisters – one for cold-milk drinks, one for hot.

Its controls and operating instructions are clear and intuitive, and setting the machine up for first use is fairly straightforward. Cafetières / French press coffee makers are not actually ‘machines’ but represent another, more affordable way to make great-tasting coffee at home. Do bear in mind that given this machine’s relatively low water capacity of 600ml, you will likely need to refill its tank fairly often, if you’re a big coffee drinker. You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice. It arrives assembled so all you need to do is plug it in, set the time by holding down the H and M buttons (this is so you can use the timer functions) and fill the water tank.

A De'Longhi coffee machine or a Tassimo coffee machine also features a range of preparation styles and designs—from traditional and contemporary to filter and espresso. The obvious downside is that you can’t take your eye off this machine while your coffee pours and you also have to spend a bit of time figuring out how much water to pull through each pod. This is a slimline machine featuring a particularly satisfying flip-down espresso cup holder and produced richly dark espresso full of body and topped with crema.