Not all Nespresso machines work with any coffee capsule
Water in the capsule container instead of Coffee in the Cup: The new Nespresso Machine models create incompatibility with Capsule Clones. In the test performed by K-Tipp, a large European Consumer Magazine, in January 2014, especially capsules from Coop, Jacobs and Aldi did not work, whereas Pressogno, Café Royal and La Caffè Mocha achieved 100% compatibility.
Nespresso has changed the way capsules are pierced, causing some compatible capsules to no longer function properly. The needles in the latest Nespresso models are so thin, that they are not able to pierce the capsule of some competitors and in the extreme case, will crush the capsule.
The Nespresso machine models "Pixie", "U" and "Inissia" are using the
new, thinner injectors. This is "part of our ongoing development" of the capsule system says Nestle.
The problem for customers: While the new, thinner needles work well with the original Nespresso Aluminum capsule, they struggle with some plastic capsules from other manufacturers, as the needles are too thin and can’t pierce through the hard plastic.
The result: crushed capsules, half-full cups and plenty of water in the body, or the machine simply refused their service and turned off.
Our advice: Anyone who has previously used coffee capsules from other manufacturers should keep their Nespresso machine as long as possible, as the new machines do not work with all capsule clones.
K-Tipp performed a test with 12 Nespresso coffee machines and 8 Coffee Capsule brands
The most important outcome:
Capsules from these brands fit into all machines and are 100% compatible with the machines tested:
- the Pressogno capsules "Espresso Medium" (SPAR and Volg),
- the "Espresso" capsules Café Royal ( Migros) and
- the capsules "Espresso" La Caffè Mocha (Coop , Fust and InterDiscount ).
These capsules did not work
By far the most problems occurred with the following brands:
- the capsules "Espresso Classico" Jacobs Momente and
- the capsules "Espresso 1882" Caffè Vergnano .
None of these capsules worked in the Nespresso "U" of Koenig. The needle could not pierce the capsules from Jacobs and the machine shut down.
Water ran passed the Caffè Vergnano capsule straight into the cup.
Jacobs manufacturer Mondelez says: "We are working to regain compatibility as soon as possible. There was a similar statement from Coop, stating that the suppliers would adapt to the changes.
The capsule "Supremo" from 100 % Espresso (available at Aldi) also proved incompatible: The Aluminum foil came off the capsule in almost all the testing. Particularly annoying was that in some cases, the foil was caught in the machine and had to be scraped off with a knife. Aldi is aware of the problem and says that in the problem with the foil has been resolved.
How the test was performed:
K-Tipp bought 12 standard editions of current Nespresso machines from De'Longhi, Koenig and Turmix . 10 Capsules from 8 different manufacturers were tested in every single machine.
- Did the mechanism work properly?
- Did the needles pierce the capsule or crush it?
- Did we get a cup of coffee or some watery broth?
- Not every deformation of some plastic capsule necessarily led to a
loss in quality. However if there was more water in the cup than
expected, this was considered a malfunction
What Coffee Capsules are Compatible with Nespresso
