If espresso is what you want, this machine is hard to beat for $400. I think you need to spend a lot more for quality foam.
Positive Product Points
This machine makes an excellent shot of espresso without a lot of practice. Just use fresh filtered water, a decent grinder and a decent, freshly roasted bean. For the grind, I make sure when I pinch the grind, it forms a clump and when I throw it into the sink the clump breaks up. Too coarse or too uneven a grind (cheap grinder) and it won't clump. Too fine and it won't break apart as well. I prefer a medium roast. I get tons of crema. Also, the high pressure hot water pump makes an excellent foamy Americano
Negative Product Points
The unit is very noisy and rattles/vibrates when pumping and if you like a silky, micro bubble milk foam, I have not been able to achieve that. Works fine for lattes but not as well for cappucinos or tradiaonal machiattos
Detailed Commentary
The machine was easy to use out of the box. I initially tried a cheap burr grinder but could not get a consistent enough grind to make decent espresso. Once I got the grind down, I played around with different beans until I found one I liked. I drink dark roast for filtered coffee but found that a medium roast works best for espresso. Since then, the machine has consistently cranked out great espresso and Americanos. My biggest disappointment with the machine is the inability to make a silky micro foam like the high end shops do for traditional machiattos. I have talked to Barista and tried many different techniques and it just does not seem to have the pressure to get the write foam. A mix of hot milk and meringure is the typical result.
