Mr. Coffee ECM20 Steam Espresso Maker

First off, I LOVE this product, but will not purchase another! It was so easy to use! Within one month the plastic retainer on the filter broke and this past weekend (4 months old) the handle on the filter snapped right off. It was great, but I'm going to have to move on to a higher quality product.

I too bought the even cheaper version aka the walgreens brand, and I have to say I only bought it for $17 hoping it would break soon enough to get a prettier one. I now have had it over a year of daily and sometimes twice daily use without a single sign of aging/overuse/breaks. Its probably the fastest espresso maker I have owned, giving me coffee in less than one minute. Overall its great and even better for the price.

I'm an avid latte drinker at 5-bucks, went every single day until one day i started to use a cc to earn points. seeing my monthly bill hit home. while out shopping i came across this little gem around 6 yrs ago. living in texas, it was pefect for iced lattes using their syrups and beans.

little mishap true in other reviews is the pot handle does break easy. but since i drink mostly iced, i turn it on before i get ready for work and make my latte as i'm walking out the door, so the pot is cold. i don't need the handle.

i recently moved to the east and gave my first away rather than packing it. thought i'd step up to a fancier espresso machine that had rave reviews here.. the problem is, it didn't allow me to turn it on and go about my business, i had to start it, wait for the green light, let it make one shot and start over. very time consuming since i use 3 to 4 shots. sold it on amazon after 2nd use and ordered my faithful mr coffee espresso maker.

the new design is easier to use, the top has grips on it makeing it easier to open and close. the other parts seem more sturdy too but the pot handle is still fragile. altho it wld be easy to put a shallow wide coffee cup in its place if the handle breaks.

if you like straight espresso, this isn't for you. if you make latte's, its perfect and takes minimal time.

I purchased this for use in my home and immediately regretted it. The handle broke off of the carafe after its first use (not from misuse, it was flimsy to begin with). I continued using it (no handle, had to use an oven mitt to pick up the carafe after brewing). Within a couple of months, the little plastic piece used to hold the filter basket in place when emptying, etc. broke off. I continued using it. Now, about 3 weeks later, the steamer has stopped working, even with proper maintenance and cleaning.

I would not recommend this item, even to an enemy.

The cost for ANY espresso machine, outside the US, is out of the sky. This little beauty (@$30) is just too good to be true. Yes it won't last forever but I had my first one for two full years and used it just about every day at work. I'm now on my second machine and couldn't be happier. Great Espresso, great foam and my $400 machine can barely stay up!