Bought this unit when they first came out on the market. What a great idea it was. It was small, handy, and easy to use. I used mine for several months and was very happy with the seal that I got. No freeze burn at all on the food after many months. The issues are that it was on the slow side for vaccuming the air out of the bags and my unt stopped operating after about 6-9 months of use. The bags were difficult to find and I am not certain if they could even be found now (2013). I will note that I still have not thrown it out thinking that I might be able to fix it and find the bags again. Oh well.

OB2OBX

Moyock, NC

I'll expand on that by saying that I got it when it first came out, and was being promoted with store sales, coupons, etc. So, luckily, I didn't waste too much money. At first, it seemed to work fine. The bags seem heavy-duty and zip easily. They are serious with their fill line, so don't try to overstuff the bag. The vacuum sealer is compact and fits easily in your hand. It's simple to operate, just line up the tip with the hole in the bag. The motor is pretty weak, but it sucks the air out in a reasonable time. So it seemed to work, and at first I was satisfied with this little gadget. My daughter is a vegan, so when I buy meat, it's for me and my son. Even with regular size packages, (which always cost more than those super size ones), I always freeze half. If this unit had worked better, I would have started buying the larger sizes, and saving some money. Now keep in mind, it says it "virtually" eliminates freezer burn, with virtually being the operative word. If you are storing for a short time, you are okay. But if you are planning on long term freezing, you are out of luck. As time passes, and your bag gets pushed around in the freezer, you will get freezer burn, because air will get in the bag. This is probably the fault of the bag. Like I said, they seem heavy duty, but they are only freezer bags.  I forgot to mention that the unit comes with batteries preinstalled. So, when the batteries died, which didn't take too many uses, I planned on putting in more batteries in to keep using it. No matter how hard I tried, I was not able to get all the batteries in place, and get the tiny, little screw back in. And I didn't try just once, and toss it. I am way too cost-conscious for that!  I kept trying, and getting more and more frustrated. So, the end result is that this "handy, little gadget" is actually a disposable piece of junk. It is just another in a long line of disposable junk that we are conned into buying by advertisements that are lies. If you are serious about safely storing and freezing food, invest in a real vacuum sealing system. Otherwise, just buy a good quality freezer bag, and try to squeeze out as much air as possible. Ease of Cleaning No use cleaning a disposable product. Durability As I said, could not replace batteries. Design I could not get the batteries back in, so I'd go with a TERRIBLE design.

adriadna

Hershey, PA

I bought this thing last week and thought it was the greatest thing since sliced bread.  I couldn't believe how well it worked.  I had a few things to divy up and freeze, so I called my husband into the kitchen to see how well it worked.  2 bags later no suction!  what a piece of crap!  I'm totally bummed, and not sure if I will buy another one and see if the first was just a fluke or say heck with the thing.

Sarbear

Ashtabula, OH

Just got my Reynolds Handi-Vac and love it. Was very easy to use and did a great job. I like to buy in bulk especially in winter so I do not have to go out in the bad weather as much and this is a great way to get my foods and protect them from freezer burn. I have a small kitchen and small counter space so it is also great since it fits in my drawer when not in use.

Sanwent45

South Bend, IN

This product worked excellent the first time i used it. Now it's lost all suction power. My husband is an avid deer hunter and we really thought this would be good to save our meat from freezer burn. It would be better as  a disposable vacuum sealer.

xanraven

Point, TX

I have tried the other vacuum sealers and they are not near as easy as this one and you can reseal the bags with ease.  You can use it with either quart or gallon size bags.  Besides frozen food, it also holds cheese, produce and anything you need to keep fresh and keep the air out.   This one is smaller than the other sealers and it is cordless and takes up less space in your cabinet.

dkinion1

Panama City Beach, FL

We bought this thing a couple of days ago to seal up our venison jerky we make every deer season. My husband and I have both had trouble getting this thing to seal. we have made sure the bags were not over full, and inspecting the little blue dot to see if we were doing it wrong, but it is driving us crazy. putting the suction cup on the blue dot and then pressing the button, seems simple enough, but we are spending about 15 minutes per bag, then it finally decide to start sucking the air out. GEESH! I'd rather suck it out with my own mouth.

olivefrm

lawrenceburg, TN

I was hesitant to purchase this at first but am so glad I did. I found it easy to use and really works well in the freezer. I have sealed meat, on sale produce and baked goods and have been thrilled with the result. It's small enough to fit in a drawer so I never hesitate to use it.

heymol

Plattsburgh, NY

I thought that this would save my food from freezer burn but truth be told this machine hardly gets any use at all. I absolutely hate the freezer bags that you have to buy for the machine. The freezer bags has this plastic kind of mesh at the top of the bags and when you are sucking air out of a bag that contains raw meat the raw meat juice gets caught in the plastic mesh, so when you defrost the meat later on you have to throw the bag away because it is impossible to get the meat juice out of the mesh. That is a huge pet peeve of mine since the bags are suppose to be re-useable. But when you are freezing lots of meat, that's a lot of bags that you have to throw away. That is the main reason why this gets little use in house. The little hand held machine works great, it does suck out all of the air out of the bags. You do have to apply a tad bit of pressure in order for it to suck all of the air out the bags. It's great on batteries, I have had to change the batteries in this machine only once since I've had it and I have had it for 3 years. In all if you buy a lot of meat or products in bulk I would recommend this for you.

Chantrells81

Mesquite, TX

The Reynolds Handi Vac Handheld Sealer is a great little tool for the kitchen. Easy to use,even for the first timer.When there are small portions to save, it is strong enough to handle the job, extracting most of the air,helping food stay fresh longer and eliminating freezer burn.

dockymom

Archer, FL