Gevi 15 Bar Espresso and Cappuccino Maker with Milk Frother Steam Wand - 1.5L Removable Water Tank, 1100W Compact Coffee Machine for Home Baristas (Black) - Perfect for Kitchen Countertops, Office Breakrooms & Small Spaces

The good: this espresso machine gives wonderful Crema just as many of the other reviews have stated. The frother works perfectly and it’s even great to use separately for London fogs or for frothing milk for hot cocoa. I like that it comes with everything needed and is ready to make a latte right out of the box. All accessories are lightweight but serve their purpose if you’re on a budget. Lastly, It’s small enough to fit in an apartment (takes up the space of a keurig).The bad: It doesn’t bring out a super strong coffee flavor even with the best beans (but there is definitely still great flavor coming from this machine). The temperature I think is not accurate. Rarely have I ever seen my machine get hot enough for the dial to go over on the frothing section; I end up just brewing and frothing at the same temperature, which is different every time I turn on machine, and there is no way to control that or know exactly what temperature you are getting. The cup warmer on top is a joke, it is slightly warm to the touch, but there is no way that is keeping a mug warm… I suggest running hot water over your mugs first, because this will not heat a mug nor keep it warm. It is semi-auto which means you have to stand next to the machine and measure out your own shots of espresso rather than just pushing “2 shots” and a measured amount coming out like the more expensive machines. This means your latte will be different every time unless you’re using a standard measure each use.Overall I would recommend this to anyone who wants a quality latte (think Chain coffee shop quality) on a budget (it pays for itself after a month of use, honestly). If you need accurate measurements, A true cup warmer, or other more advanced features, this is not the machine for you.I am very happy with this for the price!UDATEI wrote a glowing review of this machine after brewing my first cup of espresso. The coffee was/is awesome. HOWEVER, I just tried to buy additional portafilters for this machine (for when I have guests) and this model and accessories are NOWHERE to be found - including on Gevi's home page. I'm seriously p'd off....... Turns out this machine is discontinued. I just wrote to their customer service folks (no one picks up the phone - surprise) and am waiting to hear back. Keep you all posted.ORIGINAL REVIEWMy expensive Breville espresso machine finally died after 10 years, so I went looking for an alternative. I wanted to find a machine that made a better cup of espresso than Breville, whose water never got hot enough to make a rich cup of espresso. After researching and reading customer comments, I settled on this Gevi which makes an awesome cup! It's frothy and dense and deeply flavored. So pleased. The only downside, compared to my old Breville, is that the Gevi is very lightweight. You have to keep the water reservoir full to keep it from sliding around the counter when you insert and lock the portafilter. Even with a full tank, I have to hold the machine on the right side to keep it from sliding around put the portafilter in. All things considered, though, this machine is a GREAT deal for the price. You can buy three of these for the price of one low-end Breville!!This is a great little coffee maker that I'm happy I stumbled upon. I was looking at other similarly priced coffee makers like Black + Decker and Mr. Coffee, but they all seem to come with a range of issues; coffee grinds in coffee from reusable filter, water overflowing and other mechanical issues.The Gevi has none of these issues. Reusable filter works perfectly, no grinds in my coffee at all. If I use the max cups of coffee, it doesn't overflow. Can't comment on the mechanical reliability, but from the reviews it seems to hold up better than other brands. On top of this, I like how compact it is, and the single-button design makes it very easy to use.I have been brewing Starbucks Verona coffee with this machine, and it tastes great, just like if you went to an actual Starbucks (I used to work there). It also comes out at the perfect temp, ready to drink. Overall, this is a simple, well-made little coffee maker that I highly recommend!This machine is easy to use and makes good shots. I had some problems at first with the shots not poring right and leaking but then I realized I had not been inserting the coffee basket correctly. Once I worked through that problem I got great shots.I warm up the milk in the microwave for a min before I use the froth feature because otherwise the foam over flows my small frothing cup before the milk is warm.I really like this machine.You can tell a lot of thought went into the making of this coffee maker from the correct angle spout on the caraffe to the mesh basket to hold the coffee and even to a little coffee scoop these people thought of everything that you would need the thing I like the most is unlike other coffee caraffe that when you're finished pouring your cup the coffee runs down the front this spout on this caraffe is that it a correct angle to remedy that situation also the type of plastic that they use is very cleanable not even water spots stick on it this is the first time I tried a gevi and I'm sold I just wanted a simple four cup coffee maker and I got so much more.Can be a little finicky at times when shots are being pulled. But this has so many options to cater to each persons desired strength of shot. Very easy to use. The milk frother can be quite loud at times. Holds a good amount of water and beans at any given time. Does not let you know that water is low in the tank.1 brewed maybe 100 cups of coffee before writing this review. I love pretty much everything about this little gizmo. The pitcher can spill a little if doing 4 full cups otherwise it doesn't. The refill lid doesn't easily stay open when pouring in water. The side charging filter holder is amazing and I have yet to have even a drop of coffee drip when the pot is removed. I like this machine so much, I just ordered another one to stay in the box for when this one dies.I purchased this coffee maker because it has no BPA in the plastic (supposedly) and its a good bran name. Having say so, while it looks great on the picture, it does not feel or look any different than a $20 black and decker as faras been flimsy. So overall this is just too expensive for the few features it has, and I feel I have been ripped off.I like this little coffee maker.