I have another dehydrator that's about $60 more expensive than this one and that one has 10 trays compared to 8 trays on this unit. Other differences I know that separates this dehydrator from more well established brands is that the fan is on the right rather than the back. I don't know if this makes a huge difference but perhaps it does because this unit has an issue with even cooking.
Summary: Fairly capable dehydrator with more accessories, trays and finger mittens than my more expensive dehydrator. Just know that this dehydrator does get hot enough for your beef jerky or any other kind of meat product. The main issue that most of you folks may have is that you probably don't have enough room to fit it somewhere. But then again, that isn't a problem with the machine, that's more on us and our house/apt not having enough room for this.
Pros:
+ temperatures are around as stated in the LEDs screen, does vary a bit though but not much according to my meat thermometer with temperature probes (it's not as consistent as 1 degree F though, it does vary from 3-5 degrees F in my experience). Don't worry about cooking beef jerky in here cause it does hit 170 degrees F and 165 degrees F is the minimum of what you should aim for.
+ much better quality than my very first dehydrator which had a fan on the bottom and was also all plastic. This has stainless steel even if it's a bit thin but then again, that thin steel is what makes this thing super light.
+ the buttons are super intuitive to use in comparison to my current dehydrator which just has temp and timer.
+ this thing can run more than 24-48 hours which is frankly amazing to me because most need to cool down around 48 hours. I haven't ran this thing for more than 48 hours and it hasn't auto-shut off on me yet. And honestly, I don't think anyone should dehydrate to 99 hours, much less 48.
+ so many accessories (steel trays, plastic trays for your fruit rolls and even mesh screens for my cherry tomatoes)
+ 8 trays is still sufficient and I've never been able to use my more expensive dehydrator with its 10 trays for beef jerky anyway
Cons:
- Unfortunately, just like all dehydrators, the fan does make noise and it is noticeable. I don't know how many decibels as I don't have a measuring tool but just know, you will know it's on
- Doesn't dehydrate evenly unless you check up on it every couple of hours or so to rotate the trays. This isn't a knock on this unit so much as this is the case for a lot of dehydrators. Well except for the commercial ones with a fan in the back and have plenty of power (>1000watts). And this unit is definitely not commercial/heavy duty.
If you're buying this to make beef jerky, I think you should also buy an electric meat slicer. It will make things so much easier to prepare and get even cuts.