"I've had The Infuser about a month along with the Breville Smart Grinder which I purchased a couple weeks before. I am new to pump type machines so it took me about 2lbs of beans to get the grind, dose dialed in to match my tamping

Since I bought the machine I retired my old combo steam espresso and drip coffee maker in favor of French Press. I don't think drip can come close to French Press but I kind of miss the convenience of the drip coffee maker because I can get coffee started while I am dressing and it when I return it would be ready to go and clean up was fast.

I like the machine. It looks good and has several good features which you don't need me to tell you about because you can look them up. So I will tell you what I wish would be better.

Really like the feature that allows me to set the amount of water that is dispensed for the shot(s). However be sure to follow the instructions. I was holding the shot button in and overflowed the shot :-). You have to press the shot(s) button and let go then press again when want it to stop. I would suggest doing it with coffee in the portafilter to get the right shot volume you want.

The hot water dispenser will only dispense about 7 or 8 ounces then it will shut down. You have to turn it off then back on to continue. This makes it tough to make a 16 oz French Press. My 4 cup press fits under the nozzle but drawing enough water has to be done in 2 or 3 phases.

There is not enough cleareance under the portafilter head to put a tall mug. Like wise for the hot water dispenser. When making an Americano I have to put the water in a separate vessel then pour it to my tall mug. Then pull the shots. It's a minor thing I know but when you are rushing in the morning every minute counts.

The dry puck feature doesn't seem to work very well. But that could be because I am not yet consistent with the dose and tamp quite. Sometimes the puck is drier than others. I have learned to let the portafilter stay in the head for a while after extraction but that is a problem when making 2 double shots for a tall (16oz) Americano.

The warming tray takes quite a bit of time to get warm and even then doesn't get warm enough fast enough. For that reason I waste expensive purified water flushing the head and warming the portfilter and my cup or mug.

Oh, I almost forgot, the steaming wand is very nice but is slow to get up to temp or doesn't have enough power. I am pretty good a steaming and frothing milk and I feel like it takes too long with this wand. But it's still a very nice wand that is very flexible in terms of movement. But I wish it was on the left side.

All in all it is a nice machine and since it's my first semi-automatic pump machine I suppose it's worth the price. I just wish it didn't take as much time to make an espresso and clean up because I don't have that much time in the morning before leaving for work. As you have no doubt gathered I don't like getting up in the morning. When I retire in a few years it won't be an issue :-). I would have given 4 stars but I consider the lack of clearance for a tall mug (16oz size), a hot water dispenser that stops after 7-8 oz and a coolish and slow to warm warming tray things Breville should have caught during the design phase."