8/31/2019 Update - Been using the device every single day, so I can comment a bit on how it holds up over extended heavy use. In a nutshell, it still works like the day it arrived from Amazon. I have noticed, though, that the filter screens are beginning to warp a bit - mostly the upper filter, where all the back-pressure is at, when you use a too-fine grind. Stick with a medium to medium-fine grind, and you won't have that issue. I also found a paper filter that works reasonably well. The AeroPress filters were OK, but were a bit of a pain to fit. I tried the Melita pod style filters - they actually work pretty well. They're a bit wider than this press, but it doesn't hurt anything, and it makes it easier to put the top on. I actually use a pair of scissors to trim around the barrel, but it isn't necessary.The only complaint I have with this coffee brewer is that coffee gets into the seam between the metal outer ring and the black plastic insert in the lid and stays there. The next time I go to use the press, I've got cold, stale coffee leaking into my hand as I prepare to brew my next cup. It's not a BIG deal by any means, but it is rather annoying that when I pick up the lid in the morning, I've got yesterday's coffee dripping onto my hands, or on the counter top. I've tried rinsing and rinsing and RINSING the lid, but can't seem to completely rinse away the residual coffee that gets caught in the seam. But, in all honesty, the device still makes the best cup of coffee I've ever had. And I've had a lot of fun, trying lots of varieties of coffees.++Original Review++I can't pretend to be a coffee aficionado. I know that I liked the taste of coffee when made in a French press, but I hated the mud and sediment in my cup. That quirk, I think, limited my ability (willingness?) to explore really good coffee.After growing tired of the expense and waste of single-serve pods, I grew interested in the AeroPress, after seeing a YouTube video on it. I was just about to pull the trigger on one when I happened on another vid comparing the AeroPress with the It's American Press.I liked the simpler and sturdier design of the American Press, but took note of the fact that it was quite a lot more expensive than the AeroPress. I also took note of the fact that there were paper filters made for the AeroPress, while there weren't any for the American Press. No one talked much about the filters, and the vids that talked about them made it seem like they were more of a nuisance than anything. The paper filters - to me, anyway - mean a clean cup of coffee, without mud and sediment, so when I saw a vid where the barista said he used the AeroPress filters in the American Press with great success, I decided to go that route. Plus, there's this 'you can do it THIS way, or you can do it THAT way...' thing going on with the AeroPress, which I thought was maybe a bit too avant-garde for my simpler mind.Anyway, cut to the chase, I love the thing - the simplicity, the clean cup of coffee, the TASTE of the coffee, that crazy column of clear water disappearing under the column of brewed coffee thing, the whole thing. Love it. I have to do a bit of 'engineering' to make the AeroPress filter work in the American Press, but it's pretty simple, especially once you rinse the filter. The filter also increases the brew time by quite a bit. The manufacturer talks about a 2 to 4 minute brew time ("freaky full-bodied cup"!) but with the filter I'm always really close to 5 minutes, with a straight push-down brew, none of that push-pull-push stuff.For my first batch, I decided to use Pike Place with a medium-coarse grind, and no filter. It was actually hard to press slowly enough, and I wound up tossing that first cup. I played a bit with the grind, and settled on a medium-fine grind (6.5 on my KitchenAid Pro burr grinder). No filter again, and I was more prepared to keep an eye on how quickly I pressed it. I got a much better brew, still coming in under 4 minutes, just a touch of sediment, and CRAZY good cup of coffee. I stayed with that grind, and added in the filter. Now I was approaching 5 minutes, and, more importantly, I felt I was FINALLY getting a cup of coffee where I could really appreciate the nuances of flavor. As in, I was tasting coffee in a whole new way, and it was a beautiful thing. So, yeah, that whole 'play with the type of coffee, play with the grind, how much to put in the basket, tamp or not, filter or not...' all kind of opened up for me - I can really fine tune my coffee the way I like, instead of just trying one brand or type of bean over another. And now that I think about it "How I like it" may still be a bit of a moving target... So, yeah - I've got a whole lot of exploring ahead of me, but I've got the one tool I need to do it right. Really glad I took the chance on the cost for the Its American Press. Think you'll like it too, especially if you - like me - are at the point where you really want to find out just what 'good coffee' really means.