I drink 6 cups a day out of this, my wife a couple more. We use it for entertaining a lot. This machine would be overkill for much less.
Positive Product Points
Ease of use, water and coffee dosing variability, practically instant start-up with no delay between cups. Water filtration built in.
Negative Product Points
Self cleaning not completely effective. Lack of user-servicability.
Detailed Commentary
Unit‘s "clean-me" light failure to come on prior to machine clogging - this I discovered after a phone call to Capresso - is because machine‘s tamper/filter system is not designed well enough to be cleaned properly either during the daily automatic cycles or the periodic chemical cleaning. One must remove the water tray, stick their hand inside machine, feel up, open a flap door, reach up to a round flat about 2" diameter disc and wipe the coffee grounds off of it. This takes about 15 seconds and done once a week has ended all clogging problems I‘ve had. I bought the machine over three months ago, and love it. I‘ve had a manual machine (Italian lever job) and a Krups electric pump before this. This makes as good as the lever, actually consistently better, and blows the Krups away. The ease of use is truly amazing. Making espresso for groups without waiting and fussing is a blessing. Frother works well. Price is not high for everything unit does, however it is a question if it will last 5-10 years without becoming disposable. If it does, its an excellent buy, if it not, its a kind of a high priced toy. If you‘re not entertaining a lot, only drink 4-6 cups a day, and you can make the time and like to fuss over your espresso, then you probably would be better off spending the money on a "classic" machine. This machine can make espresso/cappuccino fast, effortlessly, without a mess. You lose a little of the ‘art‘, but I find myself drinking more espresso, and enjoying it.
