Being that I had never sipped an espresso I have no basis for comparison. That might be good or bad. We shall see. I have spent at least three or four weeks reading, shopping, and reading some more to come to the decision on what equipment to purchase. I have already become a pompous snob when it comes to espresso and may very well become more so in the near future.
Life is too short to drink bad coffee.
The amount of information on the Internet concerning all aspects of coffee, particularly espresso, from FAQs, reviews of equipment, the experiences of others, and the various retail sites, offers a tremendous resource to the consumer when shopping for espresso equipment as well as just trying to learn about how to create espresso at home. I need to begin working on a page of links.