I understand that this is neither a conical nor a ceramic grinder, but with its 55 mm flat steel burrs it does a terrific job. It has replaced my formerly-go-to Bunn commercial grinder after many years of service. I am using this for pour-over coffee, which the manufacturer endorses as an acceptable use in addition to grinding beans for espresso (which I have not done, so I can't comment on that).The user-controls are superb, as is the angle of the shoot -- the ground coffee flows effortlessly in to my pour-over filter holder with wet filter paper already in it, that I hold with one hand (I momentarily press the button that is now behind the filter holder with the other hand, easy to do, no problem as there are with other machines that depend on a portafilter hitting the start button automatically when installed (which will work on this model too, but you can still reach the button to manually start the machine, a thoughtful feature). No need to hold the button down, the timer function shuts off the grinding automatically (just do a few experiments to dial-in the correct grind and the correct grinding time, both of which settings survive a power-off, the grind setting because it is a manual control, and the time setting because the manufacturer thought this thru ... you can even lock-out the time adjustment buttons so that no one can re-set your chosen time accidentally without knowing the magic button-press sequence to unlock, clever!).The machine does not move at all on the counter while grinding, so you don't need to hold it down. Hence one hand is free while the grinding happens, which is useful since I am grinding for about 20 seconds (21.5 to be exact, since I have set this on the machine); I turn on the kettle to boil the water, etc.The grind consistency is perfect, every time, and the clean-up is trivial, a quick swipe with a brush. No fly-away grinds at all (a constant problem with my old Bunn). Plus, as other reviewers have said, the machine is very quiet, compact, and looks very cool on the counter ... my guests always comment on it! And it's reasonably priced compared to others in this class.The bean hopper is not opaque, and does not have a vacuum push-down sealing membrane, so I only add beans to grind right away. I would prefer to keep some beans in the hopper, and re-fill only every-few-days. So I have ordered a custom stainless-steel 5-sided (no-top) box (aka inverted tray) to turn upside-down and act as a sheath-like cover for the hopper (from one of the very-reasonable on-line metal machine shops), and some silicone pads to trim and make a push-down seal. I'll let you know how it all turns out. I am matching the mirror-finish of the machine itself, so I hope it all looks good and not "home-made", we'll see. If the ugly "very shallow I-care-too-much-about-looks and love to show-off" me surfaces, I could always remove the metal sheath and hide it when company comes over ... and when the snooty guests say "you shouldn't expose coffee beans to light" I can produce the custom-made metal part with a flourish and with my best snark say "if I knew you knew that fact then I would have left the cover I had custom-machined in place, I only took it off to expose these beautifully-roasted dark beans".

I love this grinder. I've slowly worked my way up to this quality of grinder over the years. I got frustrated with my Baratza Sette 270 because it was so loud and because the gears are plastic and go bad after a couple of years. (though I really liked it and the Baratza people were extremely nice, sending repair parts for free) The Mignon is beautiful (I sprung for the chrome version), quiet, and very easy and precise to adjust. The electronic timer is easy to use. Did I mention this grinder is quiet? It's a pleasure to grind coffee with it. My espresso also tastes better, richer and stronger, perhaps because of the large flat burrs. So far I'm not having good luck with the portafilter holder. It's not really the grinder's fault, it's just a difficult thing to achieve. The coffee wants to go flying out to the side once the portafilter has filled up, so you really need some sort of funnel. But there's no room for a funnel because it would hit the back of the spout. I may try making one with a notch in it from a yogurt container and see if that works. So far I'm happy with grinding into a glass jar, weighing it, and then dumping it into the portafilter with funnel attached. This creates minimal spillage and makes for easy weighing. There's a little bit of static to deal with, depending on the coffee and the humidity level, but it isn't bad.

It’s expensive, but it is quiet, consistent and has can get really fine grinds.The original hopper that came with the machine was poor quality cheap plastic and it cracked on the first time I took it off.I replaced the hopper with this black single dose hopper and was able to blow out 1.7 grams of old grinds stuck inside the machine.So I took off 1 star for the hopper and the price but otherwise I am pretty happy with the machine.

best grinder ever

This is a beautiful grinder; once dialed in, it pulled some great shots. Unfortunately, it died after about four days of use. The motor would only turn the burrs if it was empty. SCG said it was probably a capacitor - it was definitely disappointing. Be aware that this is stepless - the factory does not set the dial to zero. You need to make sure you keep it clean and make sure you have a lot of old beans to experiment with. Before it died, I had gone through about two pounds of beans to dial it in. I really wish it would have worked. I ended up with a Nich Zero - just easier to deal with.

I didn't do much research on this before I bought it. My Baratza 270Wi crapped out (second 270 I have owned and both have been recalcitrant, not buying Baratza anymore) and I needed something good to replace it, ideally quickly.Thus far this has been a great little grinder. WORLDS quieter than the 270. Shockingly quiet, in fact. And there's a nice little flat stream of fluffy espresso that comes out of it. There are a couple of clumps as I tightened the grind, but I am still sort of getting to know it. The espresso tastes excellent when dialed in. I think it extracts a bit more flavor than the Baratza did.Not cheap, sure, but thus far very worth the money!

We were very happy with our grinder until it stopped working after a couple of months of use.I contacted Amazon and was told I had to contact the manufacturer directly.I called the manufacturer. The person I spoke to asked for a picture of the model number which I sent . She said she would call me back with a case number.I haven’t heard from them since and don’t feel I should have to chase them to get service..