Works as described. It’ll heat your cold water and make the shot, or you can heat the water before and just make the shot. The downside is that using a Nespresso OE type pod, or the tiny 6g included portafilter, the water flows through quickly and makes a thin watery coffee. The pump motor is very powerful. But that is not the fault of the machine, it’s the fault of trying to make good espresso with a tiny amount of coffee. The result from using a pod is the same as if you used a Nespresso machine, which is actually not that bad at all. If you use restraint and add less than 20ml (or less than 15ml) of water, you’ll get a better shot, albeit a tiny one. You can tap the button mid-shot to stop the pump too, so just stop it when the shot looks right. The other downside is that it is relatively big and heavy. Almost certainly not for minimalist backpackers. Car or motorcycle campers and hotel travelers are the target market. The best thing to do with this machine if you want serious espresso is to also buy the Nano Basket Plus. It’s an 18gr stainless portafilter add-on that you fill with good coffee properly (very finely) ground & tamped that will produce a pro-level awe-inspiring shot. That combination will absolutely replace a $2000 Italian espresso machine on your counter. But for a very portable machine for the office or travel, this paired with good quality Nespresso pods is a major step up from hotel room coffee, or having to stumble down to the coffee shop in the hotel lobby in your PJs and slippers to get your morning fix. That is my use for it- hotel room use when I travel. Fill it with water before I go to sleep, stick a pod in there and leave it on the night stand. When I wake up, press and hold the button for a few seconds, it’ll heat the water and dispense the shot into the included cup in a little over 3 minutes. Caffeinated before I even get out of bed. If you go the Nespresso compatible OE pod route, I strongly recommend the Starbucks brand. That part of the company is owned by Nestle (who owns Nespresso) so the pods are real-deal, but they have good fresh coffee in them. Honestly, the hassle of grinding coffee to make a 6gr shot is not worth it, just use the pods. The coffee only touches the lower parts that screw off, so clean up is just a quick rinse. It’s mostly plastic but it seems like high grade durable plastic that’ll take some abuse. There is nothing about this coffee maker that seems cheap, lightweight or under-engineered. To the contrary actually, it’s heavy duty and well made. Like all battery powered tools, the battery is a wear component of this device and when the battery dies, your coffee maker dies. Unless iFixIt comes up with a tutorial on how to replace the battery. Hopefully it’s a really good quality battery that will last years.
