I still think the Eclipse type aircraft can have it's niche, but like all aircraft it's a compromise, not the solution to flight problems in general. The real issue is should we be burning that much fuel to transport so few people such a short distance? As you say, the Epic is an interesting aircraft, too bad they "stole" the design from R. Noble, but that's business I suppose. Don't know that they're planning to certify it though which makes it useless in Europe. The issue with these incredibly intelligent Turboprops, the Kestrel, PC12, TBM 700, Caravan etc. is that not enough people understand how good they are, and that the Eclipse niche really already is filled by these TPs. Except they're far too expensive I might add.
Personally I'd like to see a certified Lancair Evolution at 1 million US.
SB, if you want to step up from the Mooney, have you considered a TP, and if so which one? I can see they're far more expensive than the Eclipse or Djet but in terms of running cost they should be more economical. I could be wrong however. Just being curious...