My AeroPress Experience

I was totally fooled. Its almost funny how sure I was that I was getting a vacuum (syphon) pot for my birthday. It turns out I received an AeroPress instead. This is not bad news, not at all, just different news. So, as you might have guessed, I tried it out several times that night. The first few were rough, just like anything is the first time, but it's leveled out a bit now. Am I impressed? Adequately. Blown away? No. This contraption is very inexpensive and probably the easiest total use/clean-up I have ever experienced. So, should I expect the same results as my Chemex, French Press, or even espresso machine?
I took a myriad of pictures while playing with the AeroPress. Micalah took even more. I've selected a few to post on here: steps in its use and clean up.

                 Starting Equipment with grounds (above)

     Adding 190-200 degree water (rather than the prescribed 175, for more thorough extraction)

 Stirring grounds (upside down because if done how prescribed, watery coffee escapes through the filter)

                            Adding filter and cap

                            Pressing (gently)

                              Removing Cap

Rinsing off excess grounds (the rest were ejected into trash like an espresso puck)

Final product made roughly 8-10oz (cups used were the Bodum Assam)

Overall, a good experience, but I did have some very notable changes to the officially prescribed process. I used roughly 1/4 the amount of coffee grounds for one press, I used it in the "upside down" fashion, and I used much hotter water than prescribed. I'm still in the working-out stages, but finding those changes to be necessary was a big help.

Lord, thank you for the chance to play around and enjoy things. I pray learning opportunities like this would be available for my kids as well. Keep me head deflated and on straight. Here we go.