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April 5, 2007
Coffee Gadgets
Why should I care about coffee gadgets?
If you always get your cup at a coffee shop, you may have no need for coffee gadgets, but if you ever make coffee at home, rest assured that a gadget or two could probably improve your results. This Tech Talk issue will provide tips on getting the most from your homemade coffee.
Step One: Selecting Coffee Beans
It all starts with high-quality coffee beans. Coffee bean selection has as much of an impact on a cup of coffee as choice of grape has on a glass of wine. You’ll need to consider two dimensions when selecting coffee beans: type and roast.
Coffee Bean Type
Try to pick beans from the Arabica species of coffee, which are more aromatic and flavorful than the cheaper Robusta beans. Coffee tastes freshest immediately after grinding, so it’s best to buy whole beans and grind them at home.
Coffee Bean Roast
The length of time coffee is roasted plays an important role in its taste. Longer roasting times yielding darker beans and a smokier flavor. Roasts range from a light “cinnamon” roast, to a medium “city” roast, to the dark roasts: Italian, French and Vienna. Your personal taste will play a great role in which roast style you should select. For help in picking a roast, see www.wholelattelove.com/articles/coffee_roasting.cfm (an informational article from a commercial site).
If you’re after the freshest possible cup of coffee, you might consider roasting beans at home. Home coffee roasters range in price from less than $100 to over $600, and unroasted “green” beans cost significantly less than roasted beans (typically 40% to 50% less). For a comparative table of home roasting machines prepared by Internet retailer Sweet Maria’s, see www.sweetmarias.com/roastercomparisonchart.html.
Step Three: Grinding Coffee Beans
There are two basic types of coffee grinders: blade and burr. A blade grinder uses a multi-pronged blade similar to the one found in a blender to pulverize coffee. The coarseness of the grind is determined by the amount of time the beans stay in the grinder, making it tricky to get the coffee to the optimal coarseness (e.g. a medium grind for automatic drip and fine for espresso). A burr grinder, in contrast, uses a mechanism similar to that found in a pepper mill to grind coffee to a uniform size. A decent burr grinder should be near the top of a home coffee brewer’s gadget priority list.
Step Four:Brewing Coffee
Without being properly brewed, coffee roasted and ground to perfection will still produce a mediocre cup. Fortunately, many home brewing methods give good results. Here are a few:
French Press
A French press, also known as a press pot, is a non-electric brewing method. You steep coarsely ground coffee in hot water for about four minutes, then use a perforated plunger to separate the coffee grounds from the brewed coffee. A small amount of ground coffee may end up your final cup. For additional information on the French press process, see www.wholelattelove.com/articles/french_presses.cfm (an informational article from a commercial site).
The Aeropress
The Aeropress, unique among coffee makers, uses a syringe-like system to brew coffee under pressure. Unlike the French press method, a paper filter keeps grounds out of the finished cup. After hot water is added, the Aeropress takes just 30 seconds to brew. For a normal American cup of coffee, simply dilute Aeropress coffee with an equal amount of hot water. The Aeropress has generated lively discussion over at the Coffee Geek Web site, compiling 100 pages of comments and user reviews.
Single Serve Coffee Makers
These machines brew a cup of coffee from self-contained pods, discs, or cups, eliminating the need for careful measuring or fiddling with filters. For convenience and time-to-first-cup, they are hard to beat. The finished product can taste good, though mass-market pods are likely to produce mediocre results. Check out the Single Serve Coffee site for reviews of single serve machines and coffee pods.
Espresso Machines:
These electric machines force pressurized water through finely ground coffee, creating a small, potent cup. Specialty coffee drinks like cappuccino, café mocha, latte, café au lait, and machiatto all begin with espresso. Prices range from under $50 for basic models to over $1000 for a super automatic, which magically turns your whole coffee beans into a steaming shot of espresso. Espresso coffee maker owners enjoy the flexibility their machines offer: after all an espresso shot diluted with water makes a fine cup of American style coffee (an Americano), but no amount of tinkering can force an automatic drip coffee maker to produce an espresso shot.
Automatic Drip:
The automatic drip coffee maker is nearly ubiquitous in U.S. kitchens, but not all drip coffeemakers will give optimal results. Here are a few things to look for when shopping for a drip brewer:
Showerhead-style water dispersion: If the hot brewing water pours over the grounds from many points like a showerhead, your coffee may taste better than if it comes from a single central point.
Correct brewing temperature: According to the National Coffee Association, coffee should be brewed at a temperature between 195 and 205 degrees Fahrenheit. If your coffee maker does not get the water to the correct temperature, your results will suffer.
Insulated carafe: Insulated carafes keep your coffee warm without negatively affecting the taste like an electric burner. If your coffee maker has a hot plate, transfer the coffee from the included glass carafe to an insulated container immediately following brewing.
Some of these coffee maker characteristics can’t be determined without taking a machine home and using it. Fortunately, Internet coffee sites like Coffee Geek can help you research the features of different models.
Resources
Coffee Geek: reviews and discussion of coffee and coffee makers
Single Serve Coffee: reviews and discussion of coffee pods, discs, cups, and their corresponding machines.
Sweet Maria’s Home Roasting Basics provides a simple introduction to roasting beans.
Posted by moetting at 11:34 AM
Ultraportable Laptop Computers
What is an ultraportable laptop computer, and why should I care?
Laptop computers are commonly grouped into four classifications: ultraportable, thin and light, mainstream, and desktop replacement. Ultraportables, the tiniest of these options, pack a lot of power into a small package. If a laptop weighs less than four pounds and has a 12” or smaller screen, it’s considered ultraportable.
Why would you consider an ultraportable? If you’re a frequent business traveler, a college student or anyone who always likes to have a computer nearby, an ultraportable may be a great solution. You can connect using WiFi to the Internet at the Hinsdale Public Library, take notes in class, watch a movie on a plane, or compose a letter while taking the Metra to Union Station; many of these activities may be too much of a hassle with a seven-pound laptop.
Aren’t tiny laptop computers underpowered?
It’s true that manufacturers have to make compromises in order to make notebook computers small and light. For example, some computer manufacturers install less power-hungry processors in order to reduce the size and weight of the battery, one of the heaviest parts of a laptop computer. They also frequently use less powerful graphics systems and omit onboard DVD drives in order to shave ounces and inches off of the final product.
The bottom line: if you’re hoping to play the latest 3-D games or run programs which would tax a recent desktop computer, then look elsewhere. But if you’re calculating spreadsheets, writing letters, watching movies, listening to MP3 files or browsing the Internet, these miniature computers have more than enough power.
What features of ultraportable laptops are important for top performance?
Ultraportable laptop buyers seeking the best possible performance should look for the following characteristics:
Processor: The brains of the computer—if a dual-core processor is available, go for it. They are significantly faster than their single-core counterparts.
Graphics: Ultraportable computers with a dedicated (sometimes called discrete) video card are rare, but those which have this feature will perform better on graphics-intensive programs.
Memory: Bite the bullet and spring for one gigabyte of system memory and consider getting two gigabytes if you plan to run Microsoft’s Windows Vista operating system.
Hard Drive: The hard drive has a surprisingly large impact on a machine’s responsiveness. Read the system’s specifications to learn the laptop’s hard drive speed, which is measured in rotations per minute (RPM). If you have the option to get a 7200 RPM drive, you’ll achieve increased performance as compared to 5400 RPM or 4200 RPM drives. Computers which use 2.5-inch notebook drives perform better than those which use the smaller 1.8-inch hard drives.
What kind of screen can I expect on an ultraportable?
Typical ultraportable laptop computers have screens measuring 12.1 inches on the diagonal, but some screens may be smaller. Laptops with 13-inch or larger screens are not considered ultraportable.
In terms of screen resolution, 1280 x 800 pixels is common, but you may also find ultraportables with slightly higher or slightly lower resolution. Many ultraportable laptops (such as the popular 1280 x 800 models) have widescreen aspect ratios, meaning their rectangular shape is shorter and wider than a traditional monitor, which is closer in shape to a square. Widescreen laptops are great for watching widescreen video content like movies.
The combination of screen size and resolution has a major impact on usability. If the screen has a large number of pixels in a small space, normal text can be difficult to read, though DVD movies will look very crisp. Only you will be able to tell if a screen meets your particular needs.
What about wireless Internet?
Wireless Internet use is one of the best reasons to buy this type of device, as these computers are so easy to carry everywhere, and they tend to have great wireless Internet capabilities. Built-in 802.11 wireless networking is commonplace, though it may cost extra in some models. Wired network connections (e.g., Ethernet) are standard equipment.
What kind of battery life can I expect?
It depends. Ultraportable laptop computers frequently come with a small low-profile battery which permits two to four hours of use. Enhanced-capacity batteries can stretch this to eight hours in some cases, a remarkable feat. On the negative side, these batteries add several ounces of weight and sometimes protrude inelegantly from the computer.
Are the keyboards on ultraportables comfortable?
Some manufacturers take more care than others when it comes to keyboards. For example, the Lenovo (formerly IBM) ThinkPad line of laptop computers are famous for their outstanding keyboards. In contrast, some manufacturers cut corners on their keyboards to reduce size and weight (such as making certain keys half-size). If you’re an accomplished touch-typist, try to audition keyboards at length before purchase. Also, check out laptop reviews in magazines and on the Internet, as they generally discuss keyboard layout and feel.
What accessories should I buy with my laptop?
There are no universal answers to this question, but here are a few accessories to consider:
An extra battery: it may be wise to buy a spare battery. Keep the standard one for your commute, and pick up an additional high-capacity one for extended sessions away from a power outlet.
An extra power adapter: If you use your computer both at home and at work, consider buying an extra power adapter to leave at the office, so that you can run the laptop from the outlet at your desk and top off the computer’s battery before heading home.
A protective sleeve: Since these computers are so tiny, you may be tempted to casually toss it sans-protection into your briefcase or bag. Resist this urge, and buy a padded sleeve to protect your investment. Companies like WaterField produce sleeves in an impressive array of sizes to accommodate nearly all laptop computer dimensions. If you plan to have two batteries, consider getting a larger sleeve which will accommodate either battery configuration, or buy a separate sleeve for each.
A small mouse: Laptop or travel computer mice are popular add-ons to portable computers. They offer greater comfort than built-in pointing devices, yet don’t take up much room in a bag.
Resources
www.notebookreview.com: This site’s comprehensive notebook database allow s you to see models with specific characteristics (e.g., all notebooks with 12.1 -inch screens that weight less than three pounds and have an Intel Core Duo processor). There’s also a lively discussion forum where you can ask the experts on the board which notebook is right for you r needs.
www.notebookforums.com: Another site containing active discussion forums on laptop computers.
www.notebookcheck.net: A useful site which compiles links to reviews from numerous sources and summarizes them into an overall score.
Posted by moetting at 11:23 AM