The chinese appear to have made a copy of La Marzocco’s iconic Linea Mini espresso machine. We’re not sure what the price is, or where it can be purchased, but it’s fair to say that La Marzocco needn’t lose any sleep over the design infringement.
As you can see in the video below, the design copy is very similar, although of course materials and components will be different. Notably, instead of the paddle, the ‘designers’ chose to go with a modern touchscreen.
I’m reminded of the ‘Ferrari kits’ you use to be able to buy in the 1980’s that you can use to dress up a Fiat to try to make it look like a Ferrari. They never did.
However, the Chinese variant is different in appearance where the touchscreen that replaces the paddle, no doubt makes it more attractive in the Chinese market.
As some observers have noted, the quality of the coffee coming out in the video leaves a lot to be desired.
Copyright and trademark infringement in China is rampant however, and western manufacturers should expect many of their innovations to be directly or indirectly copied, at least on equipment sold in the domestic Chinese market.
For a review of the actual La Marzocco Linea Mini, see our post here.
