****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
My machine has never worked properly and I have spent over a month emailing back and forth with customer service with no solution. :-(I received my Gevi Espresso machine on June 21.On June 24, I sent an email stating that the espresso from my brand new machine only pours from one spout. I have tried different ground, tamping methods, etc. with no luck.Gevi responded and asked me to send in more information, including a video of the problem, so I did.On June 27, Gevi stated that I needed to clean my machine and that would fix the problem. I followed the steps that were given to me to fix the problem. I repeated these steps three times as instructed.On June 29, the same problem was still occurring. I sent another video of the machine and emailed it to Gevi.One Jun 30, Gevi emails me back, now claiming that the problem is with the mesh basket. They advise me to take a needle and clean the hole in the espresso basket. At this point, I am so frustrated because I spent almost $200 on this machine and it still isn’t working. Somehow, as the customer, I am being asked to repair the defective machine. Still, I do as Gevi advised and used the needle to clean the hole in the espresso basket.The machine is still not working. I go out of town for a vacation, come back, try to use the machine again, and it is still not working.On July 13, I email Gevi again with a video of the problem and ask for a replacement part.I wait five days and hear no response. Gevi has a customer service policy where they will respond to you within 24 hours. They break the policy here.On July 18, I email Gevi again stating my frustration. I also write, “Please send me a new basket for the espresso machine immediately. It’s not working and it’s been over a month.”On July 18, Gevi responds and says that the funnel is out of stock and they can only send a used one.I reply, “please send a replacement part right away.” I did not say to send me a funnel. Through my previous communications, I had asked for a new basket and had been sent information on how to repair the basket. We had always been talking about the basket. Either way, it is not my responsibility to diagnose what is wrong with the machine… it’s Gevi’s responsibility to watch the videos and figure it out.Yesterday, July 29, I receive a new portafilter in the mail with no basket.I replied again and said that the machine is still not working and that I need a new basket.The response I get is, “If you need a new basket, please explain the situation at the beginning.”I cannot explain to you how unacceptable this is for a customer. It’s been over a month of trying to fix the machine with Gevi. I have probably spent five hours of my time dealing with this situation.First of all, nowhere in the manual is the term “funnel” used. The term in the manual is “portafilter.” I have never asked to be sent a new portafilter or funnel, which is what I received yesterday. I had always emailed about a basket.Second, it is NOT my responsibility to repair the machine or parts, send over eight emails to customer service that span five weeks at this point, and be hassled about an expensive machine that I purchased that has never worked properly. I have wasted so much of my time and I so regret purchasing this item. The customer service is so bad.Last, it is not my responsibility to diagnose what is wrong with my machine. I have sent several videos of the problem to Gevi. It is Gevi’s responsibility to figure out what is wrong with the machine and send me replacement parts. Say I had asked for a new portafilter… I am not an espresso machine expert. Gevi needs to watch the multiple videos that I have sent and determine which part I need. This is not my job.I see in the reviews that a lot of people like the machine. I'm sure I would have liked it too had I been sent a machine that works properly. If you order this machine and have an issue with it, good luck dealing with customer service. I am now out $170 with a machine that doesn't work. I'll have to file a claim with Amazon.The Machine:The Machine itself its a good product. It seems well put together and does what it needs to do. It comes with the non-pressurized basket in its 51mm portafilter. Overall, it works.What I like:- Easy to use- Water Indicator in Drip Tray- Large Capacity TankWhat I don't like:- The design of the frothing wand (will go more into it)- Inconsistent Steam pressure after it warmed up through the wandSo for me, I have been trying my best to dial in the machine as best as possible. Using 15g of Fine Ground coffee from fresh beans, I can try to yield at least 30g of Espresso. As much as I try to dial this in with my grind size, tamping pressure and distribution and temperature, I cannot get it to pull the Espresso around 25 seconds. It seems to want to pull it immediately. This could be my technique but I have tried a multitude of combinations to no avail.When it comes to the Steam Wand, there is a detachable sleeve that keeps falling off. This does not seem like a good design choice on Gevi's part. I thought to myself, well...maybe its not supposed to be there..but there is clearly a while gasket that looks like it holds this piece in. This design is flawed because now its an extra item to have to clean to remove part of the steam wand. We shouldn't have to disassemble parts of the steam wand each time we make frothed milk.Another gripe is that I purge the steam wand but even after letting it purge for 10 seconds or more, the steam delivery is not consistent. What does this do? It created pockets of steam that burst out causing larger bubbles in the frothed milk. I know its not the water that I am using because I have used everything from Brita-Filtered water to my current Third Wave Mineral enhancement w/ Distilled Water. I feel this steam should be consistent so as not to introduce yet another variable and this machine does not deliver on it.I will prob sell this machine and save up for a Breville but I do have to say...its a good machine to practice on and if you are not picky like I am, you will probably be able to make a great latte from this. It's just not for me.I bought this cappuccino maker last Christmas. In April my cleaning lady threw way the portafilter cap. It is practically unreplaceable. I contacted the Spanish speaking company. No reply. Nothing. It's September. I still don't have one. Buy something else. Buy one that has replacementable parts. Things might happen to yours.I’ve read the low star reviews and I understand the bit about the espresso shot sitting for too long while the milk is being frothed. That aside, I have found by following the directions carefully and starting with a cup warmed with boiling water beforehand (either in microwave or from Instahot boiling water spigot), it makes a good cup. I tend to heat up my milk in the microwave anyhow. Don’t forget to run the cycle without coffee and milk through both espresso-making part and frothing part regularly to ensure it doesn’t get clogged up. If you don’t allow time for the water to heat up as directed, you will get a watery weak cup. It’s not the best espresso maker on the market, but for the price, it’s really good.
