Ceado E37SD vs DF83

DrForinor not unique or specific to the Caedo necessarily but aesthetics can be a factor and so too workflow.

Also dimensions including footprint.

Durability, ease of cleaning, brand reputation, support, parts, warranty.

As mentioned, I’m not saying these necessarily apply to the Caedo but the are factors that can make some choose a more expensive grinder when the in-cup experience may be similar to a less expensive option.

The E37SD is not a ‘real’ single dose grinder. It’s basically an E37S without the hopper and a puffer on top*. I have not seen a DF83 ‘in the flesh’, but looking at a couple of reviews where they dismantle it at least as far as the grinding chamber, it’s not built as well as the E37S and it uses a spring-attached burr carrier.

In practice, the only differences you are likely to find is that the E37SD keeps its grinding setting (burr distance) even if you take it apart for cleaning and it’s easier to adjust because of the worm gear (and it’s probably quieter). It’s also possible that the Ceado setting is more ‘repeatable’ because of the absence of springs in the setting mechanism.

Retention on my E37S can be brought down to 0.1 - 0.3 grams by puffing the grounds out - whether they end up in the portafilter is a different matter. Polishing the exit hole from the grinding chamber has made a large difference to the amount of retained grounds without puffing (and it takes 10 minutes to do).

Durability/reliability on the Ceado are tested; on the DF83 far less so. Whether both produce equally good grounds, I have no idea.

The E37SD It’s also more than twice the price of the DF83.

* Plus a few other changes - different burrs, quick-release on the worm gear, grind switch positioned on the control panel, reduced electronic functionality (no timer), lower rpm motor and a cut-off rubber gasket on the chute. Some of these can be ‘reproduced’ in a standard E37S by moving a couple of hot-links on the electronic board… and the burrs and quick-release can be bought for less than the difference in price between an E37SD and an E37S.

DrForinor Is the Ceado worth it?

I bought my E37S used (about half-price of new, including new coated burrs and small hopper), and while it can be used as a single-doser we use it on-demand and change coffee about once a week (when the 500 gram ‘bag run’ is finished). For my use case, it’s the simplest possible workflow: fill the hopper with the day’s consumption, purge 4-5 grams in the morning (if I remember to do it…) and I’m done. The rest of the time, just put the portafilter in when I want a coffee, and grind in using timer.

I check the timed dose every now and then, and it’s usually within 0.5 grams (3-4 beans) of what I want (14 grams for a single milk drink or double espresso, 17 grams for two milk drinks - not ideal, but I can’t get the hang of the single basket). If I change coffee, the first thing is to recalibrate timing, but then they stay constant over the 5-8 days the bag is in.

We tend to drink medium+ roasts, so they have fewer ‘delicate’ notes. I can’t really taste that much of a difference between a coffee ground on the Ceado and one ground on the Mazzer Omega (hand-powered, 47 mm conical) - which may also be down to my ability to actually taste any difference… or being bothered by it.

This said, either everyone has been exceedingly polite, or it does make very nice coffee…

If you are planning to use it as a single-doser, in my opinion, however, it’s not worth buying the Ceado. For the same money, you can get the Olympia SD or the Honne that @tompoland raves about (and I trust his judgement). If you want an excellent hopper-fed grinder, then different story (and still I’d buy it used).

FWIW, I suspect much the same applies to a Mazzer Major - with two significant differences: 1) many more second-hand Majors available, so prices are much lower, and 2) a lot of them are old(er) and with the mechanical doser, so they may need to be modified. The new Ceados (post 2017) don’t really need much modding to make them single-dose capable.

FWIW 2, if you want a large flat with a hopper, as well as the Ceado and the Mazzer you can sometimes find Fiorenzato F83s which are quite cheap (as they haven’t got the rep of Mazzer), but are built by Mazzer.