Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I really wanted to like this machine, I thought DeLonghi had given us an affordable pump-drive cappuccino maker. And it just isn't quite. (n.b. I'm trying to get customer images up. If the technical difficulty goes away please refer to my customer images for visual reference.) Things to like: 1. Pump drive! So much better than steam pressure machines. It works pretty well too. 2. The espresso comes out very good (though in small amounts, see below). All 3 proper layers are discernable, crema is especially satisfactory. 3. The removable tank is very handy. And large. 4. Price is right, I don't think there's a more affordable machine with such quality performance "guts". These pluses are solid reasons to own this machine. Why I am returning it: 1. The holder for espresso grounds is WAY too small. There are two of them and the bigger one is less than half the size of any standard equipment. Unless you only ever plan to pull 2oz at a time the espresso will come out weak. I usually pull 2-3 shots minimum and can't be bothered to pull, empty, and tamp for every 2 oz I want. 2. The frother is so low to the counter that even a small frothing pitcher won't fit under it. Boo. 3. The wand is so shallow that I cannot properly froth any decent amount of milk since the wand only goes down into the very top of the milk. Also boo. I can't make milk stretch with this gizmo and it's one of the reasons I picked this machine. 4. The only thing that fits under the espresso spout is a shot glass or espresso cup. 2 inches of clearance offers no flexibility for pulling into a mug or small pitcher. I could have lived with this if 1-3 were not already problems. All of these issues, which I consider design flaws, could easily be corrected in a product redesign. The internal works are fine. A taller machine with a longer wand would fix all my problems. As is it takes too long to get coffee I don't want and there's always a clean-up mess. I started with a super-cheap steam drive machine and upgraded to this one expecting an affordable way to take my coffee production to the next level. This machine should be great and instead it's just frustrating. If you're only looking for a small shot in some modest foam and don't mind some hassle this is a fine machine. I regrettably will be looking for something else.