Just arrived today, so expect updates as time goes on. As always, pay attention to the reviews. In the interest of full disclosure I paid for this product and was not in any way compensated for this review. Unboxing was really the hardest part of the assembly. They used a fair bit more tape than I feel was needed, but it's nothing to write home about. I will grant that the picture instructions were confusing. That being said, if you can't figure out how everything is supposed to go together just by looking at the pieces, you should seriously reconsider owning a cat because even opening a can of cat food might be a bit too complicated for you. Granted, I am pretty mechanical, but assembly took less than five minutes. It took me longer to get all of the parts out of the box. On that note, the handle was taped in a strange place, on the outside of a cardboard ring that fell back into the box, so for a moment I thought it was missing until I double checked. Moving on, a lot of the reviews seem to exaggerate the dimensions on this thing. Externally, yes, it is a bit bigger than my current, basic covered box, but not by much. It's only about 4" taller, 2 inches wider and 4 inches longer. Internally... yes, I will agree it could stand to be bigger. The sifter mechanism does take up quite a lot of space, more than I expected and the gap between the actual litter "cradle" and the rest of the bottom half could stand to be a bit smaller, but there is a fair bit of room inside. Specifically, the inside tray is 11x16" and when filled to the fill line, it holds about 2 inches of litter. If you have a hardcore digger, a large (15+ lbs) cat, or a cat that likes to stretch out while doing their business, this box may not be right for you. It's also important to note that the entrance is 14 inches off the ground, so if you have a kitten or a senior cat, they may have trouble getting in and out. My 12 lbs, 7 year old DSH doesn't seem to have any problems so far. That being said, he hasn't actually used it yet (took care of that in the old box before I got home), but he did go inside to check it out and he fit just fine. Many of the common complaints (flimsy latches, weak plastic) seem to boil down to owner misuse as opposed to an actual problem with the product. One thing that does concern me is the handle. It is VERY thin and flexes a great deal when operating (I did a few test sifts). I am worried that it might break after a while. I'm currently using regular weight clumping litter, as I still had a whole bucket, and there is a lot of strain on the handle. The flexibility also makes me worried that it might come loose from its stay while in use. Time will tell. It does seem to be a robust type of plastic, so I'm optimistic. If it does break, it should be fairly easy to fix if you have some mechanical skills, a few basic hand tools and a decent local hardware store. A good lightweight litter should mitigate this issue. As others have mentioned, to operate the sifter properly, you have to make sure you do not overfill the tray, and pull the handle slowly. Pulling too hard or too fast will result in clean litter spilling into the collection tray and may break the handle (see above). Otherwise, the product works as intended. In summary, it seems to be a good product so far, aside from the dubious handle. It concerns me enough to remove a star, but not enough to write it off.
