WACACO Minipresso GR Portable Espresso Maker - Handheld Manual Coffee Machine for Ground Coffee, Perfect Travel & Camping Accessories - Great for Outdoor Adventures, Road Trips and Office Use

OK ,drinking coffee since I can remember even as a child drinking Café Bustello espresso coffee.. no wonder I was always wired..lolAnyway I’ve had a taste for many different types of coffee and if you are in a pinch I need something that will satisfy your coffee urges throughout the day this little thing beats any Break room coffee by miles!!Is it going to be a high-end espresso maker probably not but definitely much better than any drip coffee out there…Brought mine to work and as it drew attention from coworkers I easily found myself hand pumping 6 cups of espresso everyone was quite impressed by the flavor and intensity of this little gadget..Of course it’s not a miracle maker it completely depends on the type of grounds you’re using as well…But I’ll save you the trouble if you’re debating on whether or not it’s worth it I would have to give it a 100% yes!!The pros outweigh the cons if you need a quick fix all you need is hot water and no electricity and you’re good to go and trust me you will definitely thank yourself for buying it….Testing it out with different types of beans and then completely surprised on how well it extracts the flavor!!I like it however I see many design flaws. First it’s plastic! I was sort of hoping it was some sort of metal. At least the tank where you put the hot water. The design flaws I find is cleaning. You can’t open the housing part where the expresso comes out. So who knows how much that will eventually build up with old coffee stains, perhaps making the espresso tasting bad (eventually though). You can only add clean water as if you were making espresso and try to clean it as best as possible. The other flaws, doesn’t keep the coffee that hot really, also it’s not enough espresso, it seems like a little less than a shot. Plus if you want to make more, it’s sort of best to let everything dry. I suppose you make another 3/4 shot when everything is wet. Also drying takes rather long! You have to shake and make sure all the water is out before putting it back together. But if you are traveling you can wait until you get home. Or just leave it open to air out. I do like the taste of the espresso shot, you get that cream too which is very nice. Plus the coffee isn’t burnt or so bitter, unless you have old beans of course. So I’m pleased with that. I think it’s a start for a decent design but I do think they should fix some of the flaws. We’ve been using this everyday and so far the press part works fine. I can see this could be difficult for someone with arthritis. But as far as the quality of the espresso, it is nice although I wish the coffee stayed sort of hot. This serves a purpose, prob best for traveling or camping, maybe not for everyday usage. I gave it 3 stars because of design flaws. Maybe I would have given it 3.5 stars if I could. I would even pay more if this were made out of some sort of safe metal. BestI have been using this product for about two months. I could offset my coffee expenses in cafes just in a month (all "preparation" included--this product, a hard carrying case, and an 18-ounce ground coffee bag). Even though it seems not to be recommended by the manufacturer, the part that is like a portafilter in a general espresso machine serves two shots. Of course, the second shot is a little milder than the first shot. The ground size and oily beans really matter for this machine. I found the coffeemaking results and the maintenance depend on the ground size. Beans that were too finely ground will make the pump flow backward and no water will go through the "portafilter."Speaking of the design, it is good in general for portable uses. Two things should be pointed out. First, the head (with metal filter) part is hard to dry. Every time I try shake it hard to remove water from the inner part of the head, but the moisture remains. I am little bit concerned about possible problems caused by the moisture. Second, again, the head part and the portable cup (which also works as a protective cap of the head) is not tightly attached. I should make the head combined with the main pump incompletely to keep the cap tightly attached. I am not sure whether this is a QA or design issue.It’s easy to clean, flavor wise it’s pretty good when you’re on the run or a camping trip.This was one of the Father’s Day gifts I gave to my husband. He is a coffee lover. The stronger the better. He drinks a ton of coffee and is going in the office about half the time now. This portable espresso maker is absolutely perfect for him to take to work for his coffee breaks. It’s very portable. Barely noticeable in his backpack and he said it made him a wonderful espresso. It now has a permanent place in his work bag.Weak espresso shot..but worth the price. If you're looking for the exact cafe style espresso... Then you should spend 50K + . ButVery bad product !!! Not worth it at all !!