NEO Flex

The piston issue has now been sorted. The first design broke all the time. I know this because I'm now on my 4th. But since they redesigned the piston with a much thicker base, it hasn't been an issue. I use mine twice a day, every day, and since getting the new designed piston everything has been fine.

The creaking sound isn't coming from the frame. It's coming from the friction inside the piston. I changed from black bands on the piston to red ones, and not one creak since.

Coffee is an expensive hobby. People here buy hand grinders for beans that are more than your machine budget. If i had 15k i would just get a 5k manual grinder like timemore c3 or izpresso q air and 10k on flair neo flex. If i was tilted more towards black filter style coffee i would just get a hario v60, gooseneck kettle and a manual grinder

Flair Neo Flex is a good entry level device. It has a small diameter portafilter which needs to be accounted for when reading the discussion on the Internet. Makes you aware of your brewing parameters.

Maybe not the most popular answer here, but if you went manual and didnt expect to make milk drinks, you could get a flair neo flex and King grinder K6 for combined $350 and have a better setup than many people have.

I have a decent basic semiautomatic, and grinder. I picked up a Flair Neo Flex for fun ($99 on Amazon). It does pull nice shots. Better yet, it uses the same 16g doses as my semi, so the grinder is set, works for both machines. I also picked up a temp-controlled gooseneck kettle. Nice for the Neo and my Aeropress.

Flair Flex Neo for $100. Then when you can, I would add a Kingrinder K6 hand grinder for $100. This will give you excellent espresso for very little money.

If you have just $200 for the whole setup and you want espresso, then your only option is to go full manual. Kingrinder K4/6 as a grinder and Flair Neo Flex for the maker. You will be able to get very solid espresso from this setup, but I certainly would not call it beginner friendly.