DH and I tested several eliptical machines, from $400-$2000. We ended up getting the $400, not because it was the cheapest, but we truly liked it better. It's a Fitness Quest HR 1100A. We chose it for it's size (small), price (obviously), warranty (90 day plus we bought the inexpensive 3 year), and feel. It is very smooth, quiet, and has 12 different programs as well as pulse taker, etc. We got it from November 2005, and DH has been using it every other day for a half hour at the time. He doesn't see any difference when he looks in the mirror, but his clothes are hanging more loosely and I can tell. He also has more energy now. I'm pregnant and so I won't be trying anything new until after the baby comes, but I plan to use it to get rid of that baby weight!
We did have someone at a "professional" fitness store that told us that we would never find any kind of quality eliptical for under $800, that it would be a waste of money, etc. In the end, we figured that we would spend the $400 on one now, it has a three year warranty, and if we stick with it and want to upgrade to a "fancier" one later, we can and we aren't out anything...we've gotten our money's worth. And if we hated it and didn't use it, we only were out $400 and not $2000. Does that make sense?
