I was excited this weekend to find a place that had both a Speedster (to view) and a GS/3 (to try). I put the wife and kids in the car and headed over post-haste, ready to make a purchase decision.

I have been married for 13 years, and thought I had a pretty good understanding and anticipation of my wife's reactions to my hobbies/interests. She's pretty good about it - and I could provide evidence with some photos of my stereo speakers or my charcoal barbeque. She is also under the misapprehension that I do not treat myself to a lot of 'stuff', so when I do show an interest in a purchase, she tries hard to go along with it. (At least that's how I see it).

So we are standing in front of the Speedster, and she is incredulous. "This is it? This is what you want? Do YOU think it looks nice?" are the only words she can manage. Sensing catastrophe, I gently shift attention to the GS/3. She is overcome with relief, and the blood begins to flow back into her face. "Hey, if you like this one, you should just get it" she says about the GS/3. "It fits under the cabinets" she says, trying desperately to say something nice about something.

I share a very nice shot of a Daterra with the store owner, ground on the store's Kony and brewed on the GS/3. Not surprisingly, the hot water solenoid is out, but we didn't need it anyway. The GS/3 is a very convincing package for home use; petite, very quiet, nice looking in its own way - I was almost seduced by it.

We get back in the car a while later, and my wife is clearly distressed. I confront the issue head-on with something like "so what's upsetting you?". She says "it's not that that thing is hideous, it's a spectacle - it looks like a 1959 Cadillac threw up on a work bench". There's no arguing with that kind of clarity of expression, and she is absolutely correct with her assessment. I suspect Kees would feel as though his vision has been understood to hear it. In any case, it's not going to be part of our household.

Dogshot wrote:She says "it's not that that thing is hideous, it's a spectacle - it looks like a 1959 Cadillac threw up on a work bench"....I suspect Kees would feel as though his vision has been understood to hear it.

Actually, I have the sneaking feeling that Kees just might NOT feel that way.

beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
it's sad that you didn't convince her to the internal beauty of Speedster.

My previous machine was a GS3 paddle and it was an excellent machine but beauty is totally subjective. What is not subjective as "coffeecircus" stated is the quality of the construction and the parts. Those you have to remove the sides of the Speedster and I suspect the wife would then see the difference. The quality and art of the Speedster is consistently delivered to the cup. My wife of 46 years uses the Speedster regularly and it never fails to bring a smile to her face too!

Lol. One of the funniest and educational posts that I've read recently. I feel like I might have better luck for a Speedster if the choice was between a Spirit and a Speedster.

BTW - curious where you saw these machines side-by-side in Toronto?

Nik wrote:My previous machine was a GS3 paddle and it was an excellent machine but beauty is totally subjective. What is not subjective as "coffeecircus" stated is the quality of the construction and the parts. Those you have to remove the sides of the Speedster and I suspect the wife would then see the difference. The quality and art of the Speedster is consistently delivered to the cup. My wife of 46 years uses the Speedster regularly and it never fails to bring a smile to her face too!

I completely agree with this! I suspect the Speedster often draws strong reactions from people. I also think that the real beauty of the Speedster lies in its internal design and construction. I think the black panels (rather than the yellow with red writing) would have helped my wife more than no panels at all.

All I can say Nick, is 'lucky you'!

Mark

The Speedster is definitely "love it" or "hate it". I have to admit I'm with your wife on this one. One of my general espresso gripes is that good design and good espresso seem to be mutually exclusive things. While Ascaso, Breville, and Miele may not be known for great espresso machines they sure know how to design them. I now retreat to don my flame retardant suit.

You also have that opinion on the design of old home machines such as the Brunella, Caravel, round boiler La Peppina and others?

Besides, I think grinders are uglier than the machines.

The beauty of the Speedster, whatever the aesthetics, is below the skin. I happen to like the visual, but even if I didn't I wouldn't give it up for any other machine that I am aware of. Absolutely flawless for this first year of operation, and an utter pleasure to use.

I was mostly referring to the current group of higher end machines that are currently available and in production. The Brunella and Caravel you mentioned are nice examples of good design but are they still produced? I don't know. I was too quick to say there aren't good designs among good espresso machines. Perhaps I should have said there doesn't seem to be good diversity in design among good espresso machines. Most look Rube Goldberg inspired to me. Nobody seems to be doing anything with a modern feel to it these days.