OXO Brew Conical Burr Coffee Grinder Review

OXO Brew is another inexpensive burr coffee grinder. Is it a worthy entry-level unit for those who are not ready to spend $500+?

Grinding

OXO Brew uses 40mm stainless steel conical burrs for grinding. It has 15 grind settings different grind settings – the lower the number the finer the grind.

So how well does it actually grind? Pretty well for a relatively inexpensive burr grinder but it’s not perfect. It excels best at medium grinds – those turn out consistent without any chunks.

Fine grinds are a bit mediocre. They are pretty consistent but might not be fine enough for non-pressurized portafilter. For pressurized portafilters it’s okay’ish.

Biggest disappointment is coarse grinds. The coarser the grind the less consistent it’s. The very coarsest settings produce grinds with all kinds of chunks, big and small. There’s a lack of consistency you would expect from a burr grinder.

Controls

Grind setting can be chosen by rotating bean hopper. Under it you will find dial for setting grind time (up to 30 seconds). It doesn’t have settings for specific cup output so the amount of beans you grind depends on how long grind time you set.

Bean hopper & grounds bin

Bean hopper can hold up to 16 oz of coffee beans whereas grounds bin holds up to 110 grams of grounded coffee (equal to about 12 cups).

Noise

Noise is what you would expect from burr grinder. It’s loud but not super loud. Noise is within normal range, perhaps even a bit less noisy than usual.

Features

Top burr is very simple to take out for cleaning, unfortunately you can’t take out the bottom one.

Grounds bin is made of stainless steel which prevents static cling which is a very common issue for burr grinders (some of the ground coffee sticks to grounds bin and is hard to get out).

Bean hopper features UV blocking tint. Whether you should store beans in hopper for later use is debatable but in case you decide to then the tint will help them stay fresh.

Conclusions

OXO Brew burr grinder is okayish for fine grinds, great for medium and a bit disappointing for coarse. For the money it’s not a bad grinder but Baratza Encore overall seems to be a better choice. Granted it also generally retails for higher price but the difference in price usually isn’t significant between the two.

OXO Brew Conical Burr Coffee Grinder Specifications:

• Model number: 8717000
• Voltage/Frequency: 120V / 60Hz
• Max. Wattage: 150W
• Motor max. RPM: 400
• Burrs:
  • Burr type: 40mm Conical
  • Burr material: Stainless steel
• Grind settings: 15
• Bean Hopper Capacity: 16oz (453g)
• Grounds Bin Capacity: 3.8oz (110g)
• Dimensions: 12’’ x 7.4’’ x 16’’
• Certifications:
  • ETL Listed (Intertek 5000796)
  • Conforms to UL STD 982
  • CSA STD C22.2 Certified
    

Related article: Top 7 Cheap Burr Grinders