I prefer to grind my own beans directly before I brew, so pod machines are out for me. My father recently bought a Krups espresso machine that can brew from specially made pods, or via normal grounds. The pods are expensive (compared to plain grounds, or whole bean), and they don't produce the strength of coffee that either of us liked. Once he ran out, he never bought them again.
I have a Mr. Coffee ECMP30 espresso machine which is a pump version (therefore capable of producing a nice crema on the espresso). Looking around on the web, I've found that most people dislike theirs because they are noisy (true, but not as noisy as my burr grinder, so I am fine with it), and that they are shoddily constructed.
When I first bought it, the water resevoir leaked, so I had to call Mr. Coffee and they sent a new one out to me right away. After about a year of use, the silicon gasket that seals the thing that holds the grounds (the name escapes me) to the machine tore. I called them and asked if I could buy a new gasket. They said that they would send me out a new one for free. A week later a big box arrived in the mail. Apparently, they decided I deserved a whole new machine. Now I have 2.
The steam arm has never broken on mine and it does a great job of frothing milk. The only issue I have is that it is difficult to clean.
I've had it for over 3 years now with only those problems, so I can't really agree with other user opinions on the construction.
Anyways, I just thought I would throw out my experience. This is my first post on the forum (I found it today), and I plan on being here for a while.