Handpresso Wild Hybrid

Works great for a single shot. The pumping takes about 40 pumps. Their ads may say 10 pumps, but it takes a good bit more. I had an o-ring pop out within the first week, not sure why, but they include a second o-ring in the box, so I was good to go. I ordered additional o-rings (just to be prepared) from their importer in the US (importika). Too bad they don't make parts more available.When traveling I do not like the usual coffee in hotel rooms. This lets me have a nice espresso shot in the morning without having to go out to find a decent coffee shop. I'm also the only coffee drinker in my household so it lets me have a shot anytime I might want.The ESE pods are not very available over the counter, I couldn't find them in most places I looked. So I bought a box of 100 Caffe Bourbone pods on Amazon and that will keep me going for a while, price was good. It can also use ground coffee but the pods are really easy.

Right grind and fresh roast gets it close to a real espresso machine. Also own a now retired MyPressi [broke twice. Even at minimum wage, I was losing money working for them]. No consumables so lighter to carry. Was worried about wearing out the pump and valve so bought a 3-year warranty for around $10 justified by ~4 extracts a day during trips [around 1,000 for the 3 years]. Three parts in total. Body is solid. Plastic basket looks flimsy but no sign of degradation after 3 months. Would pay $10 extra for a real metal basket.-Preheat everything with boiling water.-Load first and then pump ~30 times to give time for the grind to soak.-Crema depends on the particle size and packing force. Portable burr grinder or do it at home. Store-bought=mediocre results.-Can do [etch-sketch] reverse Latte Art by moving the flow over froth. :-)Now is a permanent member of my packing list.Never used pods.

With practice, this makes a surprisingly good espresso, comparable to very good home espresso machines. The lack of temperature stability means a commercial machine can do better. While it takes a few minutes to use, it's still much faster than a trip to a cafe.Some tips:* warm the reservoir with boiling water before making a coffee.* ensure the grind is fine and the compacting is firm enough so that extraction takes 15 seconds. A tamper will help.* ESE's are great for travel and convenience. Freshly ground coffee in the basket tastes much better.After a year of use, the pressure gauge stopped working properly. Despite the two year warranty, all I got from Handpresso was "Please contact Amazon for your after sale service."Amazon initially said they were unable to help as a year had passed since purchase, but then offered to let me return it. Thank you Amazon!I didn't take up Amazon's offer - a few minutes dissassembling and cleaning fixed the problem. Handpresso should have better support, including a maintenance guide showing how this can be done.Aside from the support problem, the only major problem with the device is that it is heavy. It would be much better for travellers if it was available in aluminium or another light metal.

The very first time I used it, water leaked out of the button you push to start the extraction. If you read the other reviews, I'm not the only person getting this. I haven't been able to stop it leaking yet, but only a few drops come out, so there's still enough to pull your shot. The water is pretty hot though, so watch out.The pressure drops really fast the moment you start the extraction. It's difficult to get good crema with this.If you're only planning to use ground coffee, don't bother with the Intense portafilter add-on. Just adjust your grind and tamp pressure. If you're using E.S.E pods, though, the Intense portafilter really works better.

I am travelling and always want to enjoy good coffee,Coffee is the one thing I do not want to compromise on even while away from home. I bought this machine for this purpose and It works well. The little down side is that you have to manually pump 16 bar. The positive side of this exercise it one can build some biceps muscles. LOLI haven't tried the soft pods yet, but I think they might produce same good resultI recommend that you buy the travel case as well

I loved my previous Handpresso, but this one never worked quite right and is not inoperable after just 1 month of use (there is a whole/leak in the reservoir). I would advise buying directly from Handpresso in order to receive better customer service.

I am not going to write a long review. This does what it is supposed to. The espresso is not what you will get out of a machine but is close enough to make camping (and an office who only offers nasty keurig) much more pleasant. I noticed some people complaining about it being hard to pump... I haven't experienced that. To me it is really easy (and I'm not a strong woman).It is worth getting. Simple as that.

I'm really pleased with my Handpresso Wild Hybrid. I've wanted some alternative to machines that need power and/or a hookup to water to make espresso. This little job is PERFECT. We are going on the road and making espresso all along the way. It took several months to arrive, but was well worth it. :)