Review · Bean-to-cup machines
De'Longhi Eletta Explore review: hot and cold milk drinks at a high price
The Eletta Explore is De'Longhi's bean-to-cup machine for iced and cold brew drinks as well as hot ones. Here's what nearly £1,000 buys, where it's cheaper right now and who should skip it.
This De’Longhi Eletta Explore review covers the ECAM450.86.T, De’Longhi’s bean-to-cup machine with separate carafes for hot and cold milk. It’s £899.00 at Currys, checked 3 Oct 2026, prices can change. We haven’t tested this in person. Our verdict is based on De’Longhi UK’s listing, Currys’ published specs, UK prices checked 3 Oct 2026, and Ideal Home’s named review, which we link below. Read how we compare.
The short version: this is a machine for people who want iced and cold brew drinks at one touch. If that isn’t you, there are cheaper ways to get excellent hot coffee from beans.
De’Longhi Eletta Explore review: the short answer
Buy the Eletta Explore if cold coffee is a regular thing in your house, not a summer novelty. De’Longhi lists a dedicated LatteCrema Cool carafe for cold milk foam alongside the LatteCrema Hot carafe, iced versions of most milk drinks and a cold brew function. Ideal Home’s reviewer said it had the biggest range of cold coffees she’d come across.
Who it isn’t for: anyone who only drinks hot coffee. You’d be paying for a second carafe, cold brew technology and an ice tray you’ll never use.
Choose a cheaper one-touch machine instead if you want hot milky drinks with little effort. The Philips 5400 LatteGo is £619.99 at Currys (checked 3 Oct 2026), and our Philips 5400 review explains what it does and doesn’t do. Philips Series 5400 LatteGo EP5446/70: See it at Currys for Philips Series 5400 LatteGo EP5446/70 (opens in a new tab)
Who it isn’t for: anyone with limited worktop space. Ideal Home’s main criticisms were its size and its price.
What it costs right now
- Currys (ECAM450.86.T, silver/titanium): £899.00, checked 3 Oct 2026. Prices can change. See the Eletta Explore at Currys
- De’Longhi UK (ECAM450.86.T, titanium): £999.99 and in stock, checked 3 Oct 2026. See the Eletta Explore at De’Longhi UK
That’s a £100.99 gap between the two on the day we checked. If you’re set on this machine, it pays to compare before you buy.
Who it isn’t for: anyone who wants change from £800. Even at £899, it’s a big outlay.
Hot and cold milk: the LatteCrema Hot and Cool carafes
The feature that sets the Eletta Explore apart is having two milk carafes. De’Longhi says the LatteCrema Hot carafe handles hot drinks such as flat whites and cappuccinos, while the LatteCrema Cool carafe produces cold milk foam for iced drinks. Currys lists a 250ml milk container and both carafes in the box.
Ideal Home’s review found the hot milk texturing very good, with three foam levels on the carafe lid: the middle setting gave a fine, silky foam and the highest a bubblier cappuccino-style foam. For iced drinks, the machine asks how cold you want the drink and tells you how many ice cubes to put in the glass first. Ice trays come in the box, according to Currys. You can read the full write-up in Ideal Home’s Eletta Explore review.
The catch is a little extra routine: you have to remember to switch to the cold carafe for iced drinks, and keep ice in the freezer.
Who it isn’t for: anyone who wants one carafe and no fuss. A single-carafe machine is simpler to live with.
Cold brew and the drinks menu
De’Longhi’s listing gives the Eletta Explore 52 one-touch drinks and describes over 50 hot, cold and cold brew recipes. Its Cold Extraction Technology grinds and tamps the coffee, then infuses it with room-temperature water at low pressure; De’Longhi says this makes cold brew in under 5 minutes. Ideal Home compared a cold brew cappuccino with a standard iced cappuccino and found the cold brew version smoother, with the iced one stronger and more bitter.
Currys’ drinks list includes hot and cold versions of espresso, americano, latte macchiato, caffè latte, cappuccino and flat white, plus cold brew, cortado, lungo, Doppio+, hot milk, cold milk foam and hot water. There’s also a To-Go setting, and De’Longhi includes a 16oz travel mug.
Who it isn’t for: anyone who drinks the same flat white every morning. The long menu is the point of this machine, and you pay for it.
The app, Bean Adapt and the touch display
De’Longhi lists a 3.5-inch colour touch display and the Coffee Link app, which it says lets you set extraction using Bean Adapt technology, look after the machine and use more than 100 recipes. Currys lists Wi-Fi connectivity.
Ideal Home’s reviewer found the touchscreen very easy to use and noted you can set up four user profiles. But she also found you can’t use Bean Adapt, or some of the adjustable settings, without the app. With it, you enter details about your beans, pull an espresso and answer a few questions, and the app suggests a grinder setting; the grind dial itself sits inside the bean hopper.
Who it isn’t for: anyone who doesn’t want another app on their phone. You’ll miss some of the features you’re paying for.
Size, specs and cleaning
Currys lists the Eletta Explore at 38.5cm high, 26cm wide and 45cm deep, with a weight of 11.4kg, a 1.8-litre water tank, a bean hopper for up to 300g, 19-bar pressure and 1,450W (checked 3 Oct 2026). It takes ground coffee as well as beans. Ideal Home called it “a big coffee machine” and advised checking the dimensions before buying.
De’Longhi says the drip tray and milk carafes are dishwasher safe. Ideal Home found much of the daily care automatic, with rinses at start-up and shutdown and a clean setting on the carafe dial, but noted some parts still need hand washing. Currys’ box list includes the two carafes, a travel mug, a water filter, descaler, cleaner, a scoop, a milk wand and ice trays.
Who it isn’t for: anyone with a shallow worktop or low wall cupboards. At 45cm deep, measure first.
Downsides
- Price: £999.99 at De’Longhi UK, or £899.00 at Currys (checked 3 Oct 2026, prices can change).
- Size: 45cm deep and 11.4kg, according to Currys.
- App reliance: Ideal Home found Bean Adapt and some settings need the app.
- Extra steps for cold drinks: a separate carafe and ice cubes every time.
- Paying for features: if you rarely drink cold coffee, much of the price goes on things you won’t use.
Alternatives worth a look
Philips 5400 LatteGo. £619.99 at Currys, checked 3 Oct 2026. Hot milk drinks only, with 12 programmes and user profiles. See our Philips 5400 review.
De’Longhi Rivelia. Another De’Longhi one-touch machine, covered in our De’Longhi Rivelia review. De’Longhi Rivelia EXAM440.55: See it at Currys for De’Longhi Rivelia EXAM440.55 (opens in a new tab)
A cheaper entry point. If you mainly want fresh-ground hot coffee, our De’Longhi Magnifica Start review covers De’Longhi’s entry-level machine, and our bean-to-cup machines hub compares the wider range. De’Longhi Magnifica Start ECAM220.22.GB: See it at Appliances Direct for De’Longhi Magnifica Start ECAM220.22.GB (opens in a new tab)
FAQ
Can the De’Longhi Eletta Explore make iced coffee? Yes. It has a separate LatteCrema Cool carafe for cold milk foam and iced versions of most drinks, according to De’Longhi and Currys.
Does the Eletta Explore make cold brew? Yes. De’Longhi says its Cold Extraction Technology makes cold brew in under 5 minutes.
Do you need the app? Not to make drinks, but Ideal Home found you need it for Bean Adapt and some settings.
How much is the Eletta Explore? It was £899.00 at Currys on 3 Oct 2026, against £999.99 at De’Longhi UK. Currys prices can change.
Verdict
De'Longhi Eletta Explore ECAM450.86.T bean-to-cup coffee machine (titanium and black)
A big, expensive bean-to-cup machine whose real selling point is cold drinks: a separate cold-milk carafe, iced versions of the usual menu and a cold brew function. If you drink iced coffee as often as hot, it does something most rivals don't. If you don't, you're paying a lot for features you won't use.
Pros
- Pro: Separate LatteCrema Hot and LatteCrema Cool carafes for hot and cold milk drinks, according to De'Longhi
- Pro: Cold brew function that De'Longhi says takes under 5 minutes
- Pro: 52 one-touch drinks on De'Longhi's listing, plus app recipes
- Pro: 3.5-inch colour touch display and a To-Go setting with a travel mug in the box
- Pro: £899.00 at Currys, checked 3 Oct 2026, prices can change
Cons
- Con: £999.99 at De'Longhi UK (checked 3 Oct 2026)
- Con: Large and heavy: Currys lists 11.4kg and 45cm deep
- Con: Ideal Home found you need the app for Bean Adapt and some settings
- Con: Cold drinks mean using the separate cold carafe and adding ice
- Best for
- Households that want iced lattes and cold brew as easily as hot coffee, and have the space and budget for it.
- Who it isn't for
- Anyone who mostly drinks hot coffee, has a small kitchen, or doesn't want to use an app.
See it on the maker's site: De'Longhi's UK page for the Eletta Explore ECAM450.86.T bean-to-cup coffee machineLink: De'Longhi's UK page for the Eletta Explore ECAM450.86.T bean-to-cup coffee machine. Not an affiliate link.
Sources
- See the Eletta Explore at Currys (currys.co.uk)
- See the Eletta Explore at De'Longhi UK (delonghi.com)
- Ideal Home's Eletta Explore review (idealhome.co.uk)