When I first bought this machine I wrote: This is the first espresso maker of this type I've bought (I've got a stove top) and having read loads of reviews of many different machines was pretty fearful of making a bad choice by not taking account of some important nuance. The main reason I plumped for this one were the abilities to: a) make several cups, b) put large cups under the spout for large lattes, c) take a pod or ground coffee, d) great value and e) nice design and size. After a week or so of use almost every cup has been absolutely perfect with an amazing thick crema, good temperature, flavour, volume, etc. The only ones that weren't good were when I didn't heat the cup enough, and when I switched to a different brand of coffee and needing to adjust the pressure of compacting the grinds. The one oddity is that it makes an odd thumping noise when I use the steam wand which I assume is OK but had better check with Dualit to be sure. It does take a bit of care to get perfect coffee but that certainly applies to every machine, and hey: my three year old boy is mad keen on helping make the coffees (or I should I say me helping him!) and I reckon he'll have it mastered too soon so if he can do it at that age, anyone can. Just read the instructions really carefully. Most importantly - prime the machine and heat the cups before each first use. Overall, a fantastic machine, at what really is a bargain for the quality, compared to how much you can pay for some of these machines.
Now I add: That machine failed after only a few months - the steam wand started producing hot water on both the hot water and the steam setting. So the replacement machine arrived and seemed OK for a while. Then it failed after a few monts too - it started dispensing coffee unevenly - different amounts from each outlet, sometime it would clog, sometimes it would explode when you removed the grind holder. So we sent that back.... Now on the third machine. I angsted for a while whether to get a third machine or to switch to another brand. When I checked the reviews they all seemed OK so I trusted our supplier who told me they'd had very few failures and Dualit said the same thing. Looking at all the reviews here the faults we've experienced look like they're not so rare. However - both the supplier and Dualit were very good about promptly repalcing both of the machines and so far (tempting providence here I know) it's working VERY well. So if this one lasts I'll stay reasonably pleased overall and very pleased each morning. If it fails again I will definitelty switch brands but I'm not sure what to as this is the best value (when it works)...