5 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
Somewhat of a dissapointment
Date of Review: Apr 30, 2007
The Bottom Line: At this price-point, I think there are better choices such as the Gaggia Evolution.
I purchased this unit through Costco with a limited-time discount. I had read relatively good reviews (elsewhere) so I figured that, for the money, I was making a relatively good decision.
The unit came to me and immediately impressed me with its build quality. It's certainly a solid piece of equipment, and setup was relatively easy.
I guess I will start out with what I *did* like to the unit. The pressurized portafilter unit gives good results with basically any kind of grind quality. You don't need to have a $200 plus grinder to get good quality espresso. I was completely happy using it and enjoying the kind of "crema" (red foam that floats atop espresso) that is often talked about amongst coffee afficionados. Turning on the unit was as easy as flipping a switch and the water would reach proper temperature fast.
I figured I should add that making cappucino milk/foam is also just as easy. There's a nice dial to regulate how much steam you want to come out of the metal wand. No problems at all on this level.
Here's what I didn't like about it: The noise! This horrible rattle/vibration would just rip out of the unit. Of course, the rattle would quiet down once the espresso began to pour, but I particularly don't really care for kitchen appliances (aside from blenders) drowning out conversations. The vibration that would run through the machine would cause the rear water tank's inlet hose to loosen and rise up near the top of the water level. Aggrivating, as this essentially eliminates the advantages of having a large water supply if the inlet hose is essentially riding at (or near) the top of the water level. If the manufacturers had included some sort of "clip" to hold this hose while inside the tank, this would certainly help this design flaw.
There is no heating element at the bottom of the unit to help heat (or keep somewhat warm) the espresso cups to recieve the coffee. Some of the units from other makes at this price-point have this option.
If you are considering getting this unit, you MUST buy a proper tamper. Ebay and other sources will sell solid metal tampers for roughly $15-20, and they certainly will improve the results, even with the easy-to-use pressurized portafilter.
The end of my experience with this unit came about two months of using it about once a day. The unit eventually began to produce water that was WAY too hot for espresso. (steam belching out of the portafilter along with the espresso) I had to return it and luckily I had bought it from Costco instead of having to deal with headaches and warranty service wait times from the manufacturer. I know that manufacturers occasionally sent out "duds" that fail shortly after being taken out of the box, but that is not the case with my unit. I really don't consider this to be acceptable from a $300 small kitchen appliance that had very casual use for only two months.
