If you can afford one of these wonderfully stylish workhorses, then buy one - you can't go wrong with it. If you can't, then don't buy a Kenwood, but save up for this one - you won't regret it. It's far quieter than a Kenwood, incidentally which, if you use it quite a bit, is actually moree of an issue than you might think. I never really saw the point of having a food mixer until I regularly needed to mix large quantities of royal icing, and thought that that would be all I'd use it for. Now it gets used most days - cakes, meringues, pastry (divine!), fishcakes, beefburger mix, bread etc etc - there is no end to its talents. It's also a doddle to clean, by the way. It is heavy, however, so make sure you ca keep it in the place you'll be wanting to use it. It's not a machine you can pop into a cupboard everytime you stop mixing. And do remember the tip about not sending for the recipe book, as they send you one, in a language of your choice, when you return the guarantee form.