Let me start by saying I have been a faithful consumer of the Aquasana counter top electric water filter for over five years. I loved my Aquasana filter and faithful cleaned and replaced the filters as required. I was on an auto-delivery program and was judicious about maintaining the system. The only reason I had to replace the filter was because it started leaking very badly. I was going to buy a new Aquasana, but feared the filter would eventually start leaking again. Plus, a new one would cost around $150.00. So, my search began. I looked at under the counter systems that installed in-line and out of site. But the horror stories of them bursting and causing severe water damage to homes scared me away. I had an old Pur water pitcher, and considered trying another Pur product. I liked the capacity of my Aquasana, as it held a little over a gallon of water, so I decided to try a Pur system that hooked directly to the faucet. Once I got the product however, it would not fit on my kitchen hardware, so back it went. I then purchased the Pur counter top system that held a little more than a gallon of water and purchased the more expensive lead reduction filters for better filtration. I got it home and compared the water with my Aquasana water and felt like the water tasted just as good. I thought I was done. Then I saw this beautiful glass dispenser with the Zero Water filter that had twice the capacity of what I was using. The reviews were awesome so I decided to buy it. So why am I telling you all of this? Well, I left both the Aquasana and Pur filters hooked up until the Zero Water filter arrived. It comes with a water quality meter that measures the Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) in your water. I ran a test on my tap water (which is pretty good for city water) and it came out with a reading of 71. I then tested the Pur water. It tested at exactly the same 71! What? I then tested my Aquasana water. Now my Aquasana had been thoroughly cleaned and a brand new filter had been installed approximately two weeks earlier. Again, the only reason I even went on this journey was because after changing out the filter, the system started leaking badly every time I dispensed a glass of water. The TDS reading on my Aquasana water was at 101! How could that possibly be! It was actually adding in contaminants? Unbelievable! I unplugged it and threw it away immediately. The Pur went back the next day. This system is awesome. The glass decanter is big, but it sits in a corner of the counter. I purchased the metal base, and as others have noted, they could have made it so it sat down just a few more inches on that base. Honestly though, once it is filled with water, it isn't going anywhere. As others have noted, the plastic spigot that comes with it is subpar. I took Amazon's recommendation and ordered the stainless steel spigot made by Green Leaf and it works flawlessly. I don't have to worry about the cheap plastic wearing off and contaminating the water. The water tastes great and the capacity of the dispenser means I don't have to constantly refill it. As I said, it sits in the corner near the edge of the counter. Others have noted that you can't get a cup taller than about 4 1/2 inches under the spigot, but I have it so the spigot faces off the edge of the counter, so I can fill any size container I want. Perfect! The filters are more expensive than others, but you are getting far superior water. Some have complained about the length the filters last before they need to be replaced. I think this will depend on the TDS count of what is coming out of your tap. So far after two full weeks of heavy use, I'm still at zero on the meter. It's nice to have that meter to monitor things and see where you are at. Instructions say that when your TDS reading gets to around 006, you should change the filter. I will update on how long the filters last for me, but again, my water isn't terrible out of the tap to begin with. I read one review that said their water was reading over 200 in TDS straight out of the tap, so I don't imagine the filters will last as long as stated for someone in this situation. If this is your situation, someone suggested filtering the water first through a cheaper filter, then running it through the Zero water filter. Again, that's a decision based on your tap water and how much effort and money you want to spend to extend the length of the Zero filters. Sounds to me like it wouldn't be worth the extra effort. Bottom line, this is worth every penny. I signed up for auto-delivery on the filters to save a little more money through Amazon. It's glass, so it will be easy to keep clean, however the top portion where you add water is plastic. I've already noticed the metal lid has discolored the top edge of the white plastic from rubbing. No biggie. You can't see it when the lid is on. It is a large glass dispenser, so you will have to be careful when cleaning it, but compared to plastic it's a no brainer. Sorry for the long review. I just could not believe the TDS readings from the different systems and wanted to share my experience.
