It's a serious and well made point. It's worth pointing out that there are a spectrum of options. For me I went with a Gaggia Classic, a not terrible grinder (less than $200) and not terrible supermarket beans. I don't wait for the machine to heat up for 30 mins (only till the light comes on) and I might even grind the beans the day before, and I always use a double shot of coffee to make a single espresso. All this is a horror to someone who likes speciality coffee but I have compared it to Nespresso and it's far superior tasting and cheaper even if it does fall short of what's possible.