A great machine to last many years. Highly recommended.
Positive Product Points
The Mininova is very sturdily built. You can leave it on for 24/7 cafe-style. It's steam arm is very powerful and swivels on a ball joint. Seems like a lot of features and performance for the money.
Negative Product Points
Takes a long time (a good 15-20 min.) to completely heat up...although this is not a problem if you just leave the machine on all the time and use it regularly every day.
Detailed Commentary
I purchased the machine from Espresso Parts Northwest as a show model and saved a couple hundred on the programmable one. A manual costs $999 while the programmable is normally $1500. Either is a great machine for the home and I could not imagine ever needing anything more in an espresso machine. It makes a great, smooth, crema-laden espresso and froths better than the Livia 90. The filter handle is truly industrial as is the brewhead (commercial e61). It's truly easy to use and should be all you need for the home.
