Others say...

"what? rice again?!!...............you bet!!"
i just wanted to add my two cents to help offset some of the negative reviews. i bought this particular cooker due to the positive reviews both here and on some other websites. i wanted a cooker due to being tired of cooking potatoes with most meals and getting tired of them. i received the unit very quickly and immediately tried it out. i wanted to try brown rice first, so i washed it briefly and put it in the machine to cook. shortly, a mass of bubbles filled below the lid and started 'sputtering' through the steam hole. not happy about the mess it was making, i endured it and ended up eating some fairly good rice with my first meal. i thought "yeah, they were right, it's messy, what a bummer". so, round two and three, i cooked some more, this time trying varieties of white rice and both resulting in a repeat of the first messy attempt, along with some 'browning' of the rices on the bottom of the pan. again i thought "this is no fun, friends or guests are going to think this is a piece of junk". by this time, i had been reading quite a bit on the 'net about rice, and concluded that a more thorough rinsing of the grains were in order, so my fourth round started off with such, along with an accurate measurement of rice and water, and....a pat of butter thrown in......i thought maybe it might help it from sticking or browning in the bottom. the result......perfect rice! i'm now making that my preparation regimen and i'm getting better results each time. i'm convinced that the errors others are reporting are not the machine's fault and i'm also convinced that, like most other machines, the user needs to figure out how to use it. in a short time a person should be able to make perfect rice repeatedly. to help the bottom-sticking, i'm also now opening the lid and giving a couple of stirs a couple of times through the cooking cycle. also note, like others have said that washing the rice is a must (maybe up to and including soaking, but i haven't tried that yet), as you are washing off a lot of the starch that helps make the mess in the first place. take note of the type of rice you buy. some rices have been stripped of their vitamins and have them 'sprayed back on', the bags will have instructions on them telling you to NOT wash the rice. i would avoid those types. i have yet to steam veggies or whole meals in it, but i'm sure i can get good results from it just as well.

good luck and good health!

"Second Zojirushi, great product"
This is an upgrade of a smaller capacity Zojirushi I bought through Amazon a year or two ago. I loved it, and the only reason I am replacing it is that my brother loved it as well. Since we have a family of six and eat rice every day, I figured I would just buy a bigger one and give him the smaller. He is happy, I am happy. My husband is Thai, so we cook only Jasmine rice. To make Jasmine, I use the ratio of one provided cup full of rice to one and a quarter provided cup of water, and it comes up perfect. Definitely rinse your rice, otherwise you will have white stuff spitting everywhere. Also, when the rice is finished cooking and it clicks over to warm, make sure to stir the rice first, otherwise it will brown a bit on the bottom. I have made brown rice as per the directions and it was great, though I discovered I prefer mine a little undercooked. I cannot fault this machine at all, it is a breeze to clean, doesn't take up an inordinate amount of space on my counter, and lets me get everything else done without having to risk a burnt pot on the stove. I see no need to spend more money on the fancier rice cookers with AI or fuzzy logic or whatever it is, and the price here for a basic rice cooker is even cheaper than our local Asian market for similar products. I recommend it to people all the time, and if you are like me and feel that a pot on the stove works just as well, upgrade. I still use the pot on the stove for browned rice, but if you mostly eat just plain rice like we do, you will not regret the purchase.

"The Second One"
My sister and I bought this model for my mom years ago and it still works without any problems.

The only reason that I bought a replacement now for my mom is that the nonstick coating has finally worn out from daily wear and tear.

The replacement came in last week and it's working fine. I would recommend this rice cooker without hesitation.

The only thing I think might be a negative is that you have to watch the rice cooker in case it boils over. It could be the way one cook's rice. I don't know but it happens sometimes with my mom's. Though she's already got that problem under control.

"Time Saver"
Just received the unit from Amazon.com.

First try, cooked two cups (6 OZ each) of rice and 1 pound of french cut carrots in the top tray. Carrots cut approximately 1/8 inch thick. Let it go 20 minutes after warm light went on and all was PERFECT! Gave the rice a stir and let it keep warm while the rest of dinner was being finished.

Easy clean up and unit nicely made. Thank you for a Double Duty appliance!!!!

The instruction books leaves a lot to be desired. Be sure to rinse your rice B4 cooking. No problem with boiling over here.

"no mess, cooks rice really well"
Since we eat rice practically everyday,I was looking for a rice cooker that would be easy to use, easy to clean and would cook rice in minutes.
This cooker does it all, at the end of a tired day, my rice is ready within no time and the best part is that none of it sticks to the bottom of the cooker.I use my own water measure for each cup and I have had no problems and the rice turns out real nice n fluffy.Considering the price I bought it for, I would say its a super deal!