I’ve never made espresso before and this is the first espresso machine I’ve ever owned or used. This machine didn’t have a lot of reviews, but the reviews it had were pretty good. The price was great and it didn’t look super cheap, so I figured I’d give it a go.Shipping was super fast (overnight) and the packaging was very protective. There was nothing broken when I opened it up.Set up was super easy. You plug it in, fill up the water tank, and it’s ready to go. I read the reviews and people said to run the steam wand before brewing to get air out of the lines so that’s the first thing I did. I ran the steam wand and then I ran an espresso shot without the coffee to make sure the lines were clean and working. Everything worked exactly as it should!I then ran the a double shot with grounds (I used pre-ground Cafe Bustelo) and it worked beautifully. There was no mess and the grounds were easy to clean out of the filter. The instructions told you how to steam froth the milk and it was very simple. It took less than 5 minutes to make the coffee, and the taste was phenomenal! I can’t wait to try different homemade coffee drinks! So far I am very happy with this purchase!