Gaggia Pure

The vibe:
This is a sleek espresso machine at an extremely affordable price.  Its essentially an updated Classic.

Water:
It has a  large, durable, stainless steel water boiler, that is really quick.  This also allows for a strong steaming power.

Operation:
All you have to do is to press the button once to start and then stop the coffee flow.

This espresso maker lets you choose between pods and ground coffee, or not – you can take turns using both, whichever is your preference at the moment.

Value
Gaggia Espresso Pure machines are priced at a highly affordable level.  This is a great beginner machine that will produce a good cup of coffee.  It has a lot of the same features as higher-priced models, but at a much lower cost. It basically has three iterations (all with the same mechanics): the Pure (the simple black plastic cheap one), the Color (one color, red, costs more than the Pure evidently because of the color), and the Dose (which can be calibrated to deliver a fixed amount of liquid per button press, but is more expensive, and honestly, not really worth the extra expense)

Cons:
The Espresso feels cheap and flimsy. No metal in sight, and the machine (in my case the Dose) looks like a big ugly hunk of plastic. The steam control knob feels like a child's toy and is so poorly mounted on its stem that it feels like you could twist it off. The warming plate is ugly white plastic and produces markedly little warmth. Most importantly, the machine weighs only 10 pounds, which makes tightening the portafilter a chore as you have to pin the machine down to keep it from tipping over or just being shoved around the counter.
In addition, it doesnt produce a consistent fine grind - so unless you have a quality grinder you may not get the best results out of this machine


Summary:
underwhelming