Description
The Nespresso CitiZ EN167B, made by De'Longhi, is an OriginalLine capsule machine specified with a 19 bar pump, a 25 second heat up and two programmable buttons for espresso at 1.35 ounces and lungo at 5 ounces. Nespresso states an automatic energy saving shut off after 9 minutes of inactivity, extendable to 30 minutes, and 1710 watts of power. The listed weight is 7.5 pounds.
The CitiZ has been on sale since 2017 and sits in the middle of the Original range: larger and better equipped than the Essenza Mini, simpler than the Lattissima machines with integrated milk. Its appeal is a slim upright body, a genuinely quick start and a level of programmability that most capsule machines do not offer.
This Version Has No Milk Frother
The most important correction to make about this listing is that the style field reads Machine Only, and the CitiZ in this configuration has no steam wand, no milk carafe and no frother of any kind. It brews coffee into a cup and nothing more. Nespresso sells a separate CitiZ and Milk variant bundled with an Aeroccino frother, and that is a different product.
Marketing copy describing a built in milk frother on this machine is wrong, and it is one of the most common reasons buyers of the machine only version are disappointed. Milk drinks remain possible using a standalone frother or by heating and whisking milk by hand, but that is a separate purchase. Anyone whose main drink is a cappuccino should either buy the bundled version or plan for a frother from the outset. The Vertuo Next bundle includes an Aeroccino for comparison.
The 19 Bar Pump and Capsule Extraction
Nespresso quotes 19 bar, which as on every machine is the pump maximum rather than the pressure at the coffee. On a capsule machine the figure matters less than it does elsewhere, because the capsule contains a fixed dose of ground coffee sealed under gas flush and the machine simply delivers hot water through it. Grind, dose and tamp are all decided at the factory.
The result is consistency: every cup is identical, and the ceiling on quality is set by the capsule rather than by the operator. That is the entire proposition of the format. For anyone who wants to influence the shot, a portafilter machine is the only route, and even an inexpensive one from the espresso machine category offers more control than any capsule machine ever will.
Programmable Volumes and Energy Saving
Both buttons are programmable, so the espresso and lungo volumes can be set to whatever suits the cup rather than accepting the factory defaults. That is done by holding the relevant button during extraction and releasing at the desired volume. It is a small feature that makes a real difference if your usual cup does not match Nespresso's idea of one.
The automatic shut off after 9 minutes, extendable to 30, is unusually well documented for this catalogue. Most listings state that a machine powers down without saying when. Nine minutes is aggressive, which is good for standby draw and mildly irritating if you make two drinks twenty minutes apart, hence the extension option. The 25 second heat up means the wait after a shut off is minimal in any case.
Build, Footprint and Daily Handling
The exterior is plastic, which is worth stating at this price. The CitiZ is a tall narrow machine designed to occupy little counter width, and the listed dimensions of 7.44 inches deep, 15.91 inches wide and 12.99 inches tall do not match that description; those figures almost certainly describe the shipping carton rather than the machine, which is a systematic error across this catalogue. Anyone measuring a tight space should confirm against the manufacturer specification page.
Published owner feedback raises two practical points. There is no low water indicator, so the machine can stop mid brew when the tank empties, and the tank has to be checked by eye as a habit. And the power cord is thick and stiff, which makes positioning the machine close to a wall harder than it should be. Neither affects the coffee.
Running Costs and the Original Advantage
The machine price is the entry fee. Every cup thereafter needs an OriginalLine capsule, and over a couple of years that recurring cost typically exceeds the machine price several times over. That is the number that should drive the decision, and no listing will show it to you.
Where Original has a genuine advantage over Nespresso's newer Vertuo system is choice. Many third party roasters make capsules compatible with OriginalLine machines, and refillable stainless capsules exist for anyone who wants to use their own coffee. That competition keeps prices down and widens the range considerably. The capsule and pod range shows how much choice exists at this end of the market.
Cleaning, Descaling and What Actually Fails
A capsule machine is the least demanding format to keep clean. There is no group screen to backflush and no portafilter to scrub; used capsules eject into a container that is emptied and rinsed, and the drip tray lifts out.
Descaling is the job that decides the machine's lifespan. Hot water passing through a narrow path leaves scale, and scale is what eventually kills the pump or the heating element on machines of this type. Nespresso publishes a descaling schedule keyed to water hardness and the machine indicates when it is due; following that prompt rather than deferring it is worth more than any specification on the listing. Owner feedback on the CitiZ frequently mentions coffee temperature as marginal, and a scaled machine gets worse at holding temperature, so the two issues are related. Preheating the cup with a blank water shot before the real one addresses most of the temperature complaint. Anyone comparing smaller Original machines should look at the Nespresso Pixie.
What the Specifications Do Not Settle and Who It Suits
The water tank capacity and the used capsule container capacity are both absent from the data, and on a capsule machine those two figures determine how often you interrupt it. Also missing are the brew temperature and the warranty term. The voltage field reads 240 volts, which is wrong for a North American machine and should read 120; that is a data error rather than a product specification.
The CitiZ suits a black coffee drinker who wants espresso or lungo with total consistency, values programmable volumes, and has accepted the capsule model. Twenty five second heat up, a slim body and several years of owner history make it a low risk purchase within its category. It is the wrong machine for milk drink drinkers without a separate frother, for anyone brewing for a household, and for anyone who objects to proprietary capsules. Buyers wanting a smaller Original machine should compare the Essenza Mini EN85R, and buyers wanting larger cup sizes should look at Vertuo instead.
