Melitta Barista TS Smart Review: Still One of the Most Versatile Bean-to-Cup Machines?

The Melitta Barista TS Smart has something we'd like to see on far more bean-to-cup machines:

two bean chambers.

That may sound less exciting than a giant touchscreen or 30 coffee recipes.

In everyday use, it can be far more useful.

You could keep:

• normal and decaf;
• dark and light roast;
• everyday and speciality beans;

inside the machine and select between them.

That's not the Barista TS Smart's only trick.

It also offers a large recipe library, multiple user profiles, automatic milk drinks, app control and the ability to prepare two milk-based drinks simultaneously.

Despite having been on the market for years, that's still a formidable feature list.

The question is whether an older premium design remains worth buying against today's Rivelia, EQ700 and JURA machines.

Coffee Machine Reviews Verdict

Overall: 9.0/10

Best for: Multi-person households that regularly switch between two types of coffee beans.

Avoid if: You want the newest touchscreen interface or a very compact machine.

Machine type: Fully automatic bean-to-cup

Built-in grinder: Yes

Bean system: Two-chamber Bean Select

Milk: Automatic

Profiles: Up to eight users

Our verdict: The interface is showing its age, but dual-bean capability and extensive personalisation keep the Barista TS Smart surprisingly relevant.

Melitta Barista TS Smart Pros and Cons

Pros

• Two bean chambers
• Automatic Bean Select
• Large recipe library
• Up to eight user profiles
• Automatic milk
• Two milk drinks simultaneously
• App control
• My Coffee Memory
• Removable brew group
• Strong personalisation

Cons

• Older interface
• App isn't essential
• Large machine
• Milk tubing requires cleaning
• Newer rivals have better displays
• Premium pricing needs to be competitive

The Dual Bean Hopper Is the Killer Feature

Let's start with the reason we'd still actively consider this machine.

The Barista TS Smart has a divided bean container.

That means you can load two different coffees.

For example:

Chamber 1: normal beansChamber 2: decaf

or:

Chamber 1: medium roastChamber 2: dark roast

The machine's Automatic Bean Select functionality can associate an appropriate chamber with the selected drink.

That's genuinely useful.

Why Two Beans Matter

Automatic coffee machines often have one annoying limitation.

Once you've filled a 250g hopper with beans, changing coffee isn't straightforward.

You can sometimes use a pre-ground bypass for decaf.

But that's hardly elegant.

Rivelia tackles this problem with interchangeable bean hoppers.

Melitta tackles it with two chambers inside the machine.

Both approaches solve a genuine household problem.

What Drinks Does Barista TS Smart Make?

The machine provides an extensive menu covering familiar drinks including:

• Espresso
• Café Crème
• Cappuccino
• Latte Macchiato

alongside numerous additional recipes.

Melitta has long marketed the machine around 21 coffee specialities, including recipes accessible through the broader menu/app functionality.

For most households, that's more than enough.

Coffee Quality

Melitta is a coffee company first.

The Barista TS Smart is designed to automate grinding and brewing while still allowing meaningful adjustment.

You can customise parameters including:

• coffee strength;
• coffee quantity;
• milk;
• temperature;
• drink composition.

That makes it much more flexible than an entry-level bean-to-cup machine.

IntenseAroma

Melitta's IntenseAroma function offers a different preparation profile designed to create a more intense flavour without simply increasing the quantity of coffee.

Whether you prefer it depends on the beans and drink.

But it's useful to have different extraction approaches rather than simply more drink names.

Automatic Milk

Milk drinks are prepared automatically through the external milk system.

Choose your cappuccino or latte macchiato and the machine handles coffee and milk preparation.

This is a proper one-touch bean-to-cup experience.

No steam wand.

No milk jug.

No technique.

Two Milk Drinks at Once

This is a particularly useful feature for couples.

The machine can prepare two milk-based drinks simultaneously.

That sounds minor until you've used an automatic machine that insists on making:

cappuccino one → wait → cappuccino two.

For a household where two people drink coffee together every morning, dual dispensing is genuinely valuable.

My Coffee Memory

Barista TS Smart supports up to eight user profiles.

Each person can save their preferred coffee settings.

That's ideal for families or shared households.

One person can have a strong flat white.

Another can have a longer, milder coffee.

Another can have decaf.

The machine remembers the preferences rather than forcing everybody to reconfigure it.

Melitta Connect App

The “Smart” part of the name comes partly from app connectivity.

Melitta Connect lets you control and configure the machine from a smartphone and provides access to additional recipe functionality.

It's useful for:

• setting drinks;
• adjusting preferences;
• managing profiles;
• exploring recipes.

But after the novelty wears off, many people will probably operate the machine directly.

That's fine.

A coffee machine shouldn't require a phone to remain useful.

Interface

This is where the Barista TS Smart reveals its age.

The controls are functional.

But place it beside a modern EQ700 or Rivelia and the difference is obvious.

Today's premium machines increasingly use large colour displays with highly visual drink menus.

Melitta's interface is more traditional.

Whether that matters depends on you.

It doesn't change the coffee.

Cleaning

The machine includes automatic cleaning functionality, particularly around the milk system.

The brewing unit is also removable.

We like that.

Being able to remove and rinse the brew group gives you direct access to the part of the machine handling coffee every day.

Milk tubing and components still require proper cleaning.

Automatic milk always comes with additional maintenance.

Barista TS Smart vs De’Longhi Rivelia

This is a fascinating comparison because both solve bean switching.

Melitta

Two beans remain loaded simultaneously.

Rivelia

You physically swap interchangeable bean hoppers.

Melitta is excellent if two coffees are used constantly.

Rivelia is excellent if you want to swap whole hoppers in and out.

Rivelia has the newer interface.

Melitta has exceptional multi-user functionality.

Barista TS Smart vs Siemens EQ700

Siemens EQ700

Better for:

• modern touchscreen;
• international drink library;
• Home Connect;
• newer interface.

Melitta

Better for:

• dual beans;
• up to eight profiles;
• two milk drinks at once;
• households with different coffee preferences.

This isn't an obvious win either way.

Your household habits matter more than the logo.

Barista TS Smart vs JURA E8

JURA feels more premium and has newer brewing technology.

Melitta provides features that remain difficult to ignore:

• two bean chambers;
• eight profiles;
• dual milk-drink preparation.

At the right price, Melitta can offer exceptional functionality for the money.

Is Barista TS Smart Too Old?

Not necessarily.

Coffee-machine technology isn't a smartphone.

A machine doesn't become useless because a newer display exists.

The important questions are:

• does it grind well?
• does it brew well?
• does it make the drinks you want?
• is it reliable?
• is it easy to maintain?
• is the price competitive?

The Barista TS Smart still scores strongly on functionality.

Its biggest disadvantage is simply that newer competitors feel more modern.

Who Should Buy Barista TS Smart?

Buy it if:

• two people use different beans;
• you regularly switch to decaf;
• multiple people share the machine;
• you want automatic milk;
• you want two milk drinks at once;
• you've found a strong deal.

Who Shouldn't Buy It?

Look elsewhere if:

• you want the latest touchscreen;
• you only use one type of bean;
• you're the only coffee drinker;
• you want a compact machine;
• the price is close to newer premium rivals.

Final Verdict

The Barista TS Smart is ageing unusually well.

Not because its technology looks new.

It doesn't.

It's ageing well because some of its most useful features are still surprisingly uncommon.

Two bean chambers.

Eight profiles.

Two milk drinks simultaneously.

A removable brew group.

Those are practical features rather than specification-sheet decoration.

If Melitta is competitively priced, the Barista TS Smart remains one of the most interesting bean-to-cup machines for busy households.

Coffee Machine Reviews Score: 9.0/10

Multi-User Score: 9.7/10

Best for: Households with multiple coffee drinkers and multiple beans.

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