A stepless espresso grinder built around genuinely useful workflow features (micro-adjustment, near-zero retention, grind-by-weight on the Wi model), but hobbled by a plastic gearbox that fails predictably enough that owners budget for the repair. Motors die after several years, burr carriers develop wobble, and the noise level makes early-morning grinding a household incident. Baratza ships replacement parts fast and cheap, so if you're comfortable treating occasional wrenching as the cost of admission for precision at half the price of all-metal rivals, the Sette works. If you want a grinder you never think about, spend more on a Eureka Mignon.
Big burrs at a small-grinder price, the DF83 slots 83mm flat burrs into the sub-$600 bracket where most competitors still use 64mm. Speed is the obvious win: it rips through an 18-gram dose faster than smaller grinders, and the grind quality delivers for both espresso and filter. The plasma generator handles static, retention stays low, and the Gen 2 version fixed some first-gen quirks. Noise is the letdown, one owner specifically avoided loud grinders and regretted this choice, and you'll need to pump bellows after every session to clear retention. If you want 83mm performance cheap and can live with the decibels and the bellows routine, it's worth a look; if you need quiet operation or a truly hands-off workflow, spend more or stick with 64mm.