Forget the rest - get the best
www.gallacoffee.co.uk/acatalog/bialetti-brikka.html

This costs 5X times more than average for a reason: it makes seriously good coffee, thanks to a valve at the top of the spout that retards the brew until the pressure is right. Still cheaper than a half-decent home espresso machine.

The trick with any of these is to pack the coffee in just right...ie not compressed at all.

Edit: in Italy they cost about 25 yoyos
(CADmonkey rollllllllled another one, just like the other one, Sat 30 Jun 2012, 16:09, 3 replies)

Hmmmm, maybe one day,
but as my post says, the reason I'm making coffee in a £10 espresso maker is because I'm skint.
( The Awful Puppy Bakery is still bored, Sat 30 Jun 2012, 17:30, closed)

I've been wanting one of these for the last year, think I know which one I'll ask for for my birthday now...
(Something funny, Sat 30 Jun 2012, 17:41, closed)

Compression
Oh no, you have to press the coffee down and compress it.

But not a lot, otherwise it overextracts and gets too bitter.

It takes a lot of experimentation to get right for your own taste.
(MartinB9999, Sun 1 Jul 2012, 14:11, closed)