I just get this cooker today , so durability be not something I can rate yet . these be the thing I like ; 1 . no plastic . this be important for I . both the bottom rice cooker and the steamer tray be metal . the lid be glass . 2 . nice and compact . I cook for my wife and myself , so I do not something huge , and of course storage space be always limit . the steamer tray be small ; on the other hand , the manual claim that this can cook up to 5 cup of rice . 3 . Easy cleanup . yes some of the rice make a gooey mess in the bottom , but a little soak take it all right out . 4 . inexpensive . 5 . multi-purpose . I have use it once so far , and here 's what I do . I put some brown rice in the bottom rice cooker , and some salmon , broccoli and cauliflower in the steamer tray . the manual say nothing about steam anything other than veggy , but I think I would try it . the result : Excellent . the salmon be cook to perfection , and so be the vegetable . so I have a complete , tasty , and healthy meal , all in one cooker , and so long as I be prepare to let the bowl and the tray soak for a bit , cleanup be a breeze . oh and you can make soup , stew , etc. instead of cooking rice . it be not a large-capacity cooker but it would make plenty of stew for two people . thing I do not like : 1 . no timer . it apparently sens when the steam be go , and then switch to `` warmer '' mode automatically . the only control be a switch that go from `` cook '' to `` warmer . '' this also mean that you have to unplug it to turn it off , though that do not bother I . that be about the only thing I have to carp about so far . it do not bubble or spit at all . if I can get at least three or four year of regular -lrb- and by regular I mean nearly daily -rrb- use out of this thing , I 'll consider it a extremely good value . Update June 2010 : ok sometimes it do bubble and spit a bit . nothing terrible . I have use it probably 25 time altogether without any problem . consider the low purchase price , I would call this thing a good value . I would buy it again .