dfk41 the fit and finish is top notch, better than my bianca. And they built it to last (xl has warranty for up to 200k shot which is on par with any commercial machine), so except for the cheap tablet I think it is very well made. Sure a significant amount is spent on software and support and profit but hardware-wise the machine is worth it.
Now the misconception about decent is that it IS for experiment. It allows you to do that should you want to, but if you just want something consistent and reliable every time, it can’t be beaten. Imagine this, you had a shot in the morning, it is fine but a bit too sour to your taste. You drink it anyway. In the afternoon you probably forgot many things, and you are not sure how you should adjust your grind. With decent you can see your last shot, realize it was a bit too fast, and adjust grinder. That is how it saved me a number of shots. This is just one of many examples how Decent can help you take controls. But you can also dial it right, and then forget about it, and it delivers the same cup every time.
Some people claim decent produce a “less body” shot, which is explained that it has more headroom on the group head, so you can just add more ground or use a lower dose basket. It is capable of producing as good shot as any machine out there. And given how you can choose many profiles, you can pick a profile that shines the best for the coffee (but maybe that is not something you want to, just stick with best overall pressure profile and you’re good)
For me it is just consistent and when I plan to come to the office I pull 4 shots in a row and they come out the same every time. In that regard, my bianca did not come close!
