I almost always look at Amazon reviews before I buy anything these days. Shopping for an espresso maker with this method was extremely frustrating because the reviews for most machines are all over the map. The same machine will be loved by some, hated by others. This seems to be because people are looking for different things. The would-be barristas (why would anyone dream of working at Starbucks?) want all the bells and whistle and others just want the basics. For me, this machine does a pretty good job of covering both worlds. I have had it about a month and use it many times each day and have had no problems. I mostly use it for espresso using freshly ground beans and it works well for that. I have also used it with pods a couple of times and that seems to work well also. I think the Cappucinator attachment is pretty cool. Basically, you pour some cold milk in a cup, stick a little plastic hose from the Nina's Cappucinator attachment in to the cup, place another cup under the Cappucinator and turn it on and out comes steamed milk with froth. I get a nice froth with 2%, not so much with skim. One other reviewer notes that you need to prime the pump for making espresso after each of the steam wand and/or cappucinator. This is true but it is a simple and quick process and doesn't bother me. Overall, I'm very happy with this machine.