Ahhh... a very attractive little 'bug' ain't it? 

BUT.....if you don't have one...is it REALLY all THAT and a box of scraps?  Well, in my opinion.. NO.  And, YES, I'm qualified to make that statement.

I'm a huge crafter.  I worked for a retail chain store for nearly a year, where I was fortunate enough to try out items like this particular 'bug' before they hit the shelves.  I have to admit, I was immediately attracted to this cute little 'bug'...I just love the green..it made me GREEN with envy <ha ha>!!!!  BUT, as a professional, I had to look at it objectively. 

I found that while it's really 'neat' and easy to use and it DOES have it's place.  If you are the type of scrapper/crafter that has muscle problems...say you might have arthritis or degenerative muscles (sorry if I spelled it wrong)... this 'bug' is for you.  It's not hard on the muscles to operate.  It's small. It's compact.  It is not as heavy as expected..the handle makes it easy to move.  It's just down right cute!  HOWEVER...I learned quickly...DO NOT USE IT TO CUT DIES OTHER THAN THE DIES MADE FOR IT!!  You know which ones I'm talking about too ~ sizzix, quickutz, ellison etc.  STICK with what it was made for.  I KNOW I KNOW..."but the book says you can"... .trust me... you can DO ANYTHING if you try...but after doing it TWICE during a demonstration and breaking the spacer plates...I wasn't about to do it a third time.  Needless to say, I was VERY glad I broke the one at work and not my own.  It was easy for me to walk to the rack and grab another two pack of spacer plates...but if I have to pay for them...I will be even more upset.  Another thing that I don't like is the suction...while it's neat that folding down the cutting surface 'wings' activates the suction, much like it's smaller competitor, the suction lacks.  If you don't have the right surface for it, it loses it's suction QUICK.

I have read that ProvoCraft knew the problem with breaking plates and supposedly they were sending out replacement plates to those who did try to use other dies (specifically Sizzix) with it and broke them....but to be honest...I cannot see going through that expense and aggravation.  Face it folks...if we try to create shortcuts...we often create a mess.  Stick with the dies it was made for. 

As I stated earlier, I was attracted to it and YES, I bought it.  I got a GREAT deal on it and now I'm finding that since it didn't really grab the market by storm...dies are cheaper!!!  It has it's home in my craft room...it gets used by me and my kids...hubby too...and it does a great job so long as I don't mix and match dies.  This little 'bug' does not play well with others....