Good cofee, excellent frother, easy to use, buy from local reatiler in case you have problems like I did.
Positive Product Points
Makes descent coffee Everything can be access from the front Excellent frost Large capacity trays Automatic rinse cycles Bypass doser for ground coffee
Negative Product Points
Potential quality issues Hot tray is not that usefull, warm up the cup with the hot water dispenser instead.
Detailed Commentary
I bought the machine from Bed Bath and Beyond with a 20% cupon. After owning a couple of Saeco machines, I appreciated the fact that all controls and trays could be access from the front, as well as the large capacity trays. After a few days I was making cappuccinos that tasted better than my privious machine. It also made better and more frost than my previous machine so I was pretty happy with my new purchase. After a week I noticed that it was leaking some water from below so I took it back to the store and exchanged it for another one. For some reason the coffee from the 2nd machine did not taste as good as the 1st one, eventhough I was using the same settings as before. Also, it did not make as much frost. So I took it back and exchanged it for another one. The 3rd one made the same amount of frost as the 1st one, but I still could not make the coffee taste the same as the 1st one. After a week of experimenting more with the settings I was able to get close to the coffee I was making with the 1st machine. I had to increase the amount of expresso being despensed per shot to 1.5 oz instead of 1oz. The grinder is about half way and the coffee dispenser is set to max. I mainly use Starbucks Italian Roast coffee beans. I also tried Peet's Italian Roast, but had to lower the coffee dispenser to half way.
Buying Experience
I strongly recommend you buy this machine from a local store, like Bed Bath and Beyond, wih friendly return policies. Plus they are always giving out 20% discount cupons.
