My favorite price/performance rice cooker (T-Fal) stopped working so I had to find a new one. Always have used standard ones - this would be the first time using an induction type rice cooker. Overall, I'm just OK with this machine. It makes rice as it should but not better nor faster than any others I have used. It takes about 20-25 minutes to make 3 cups of uncooked rice. In fact subjectively, I feel that the rice comes out slightly softer than the T-Fal or Zojirushi NS-TSC18 using the same rice/water amount.

Some observations... I use a rice cooker for many types of cooking in addition to rice. I like making rice porridge, casseroles containing chicken legs/thighs, very tender baby back ribs, etc. I like using the cookers because it's almost no supervision - just setup, cook and then serve.

With the Crux, the settings are not as versatile as the others I use. Sometimes I need to cook at a setting for a much longer time and this particular one can't do it - the time is always limited depending on the dish setting on the touch panel. The manual is not that good. It doesn't explain the individual settings so I have been left guessing how each mode works. For example, there is no specific MEAT setting. So I have been using MULTI COOK. Well, there's no explanation what this means. I like the OATMEAL setting to cook my Rice Porridge, but the maximum time I can get it to work is an hour at a time (even though I prefer to cook it overnight for 4 hours). In the end it works - but with a bit more input from the user as I'll have to do 2 or 3 cycles to make it the way I want it.

Another thing that is misleading - almost every single rice cooker mentions the rice capacity as UNCOOKED CUPS. Well, for the CRUX, it says 20 COOKED cups (and the "cooked" designation is not in the title but rather inside the description on Amazon. Why are they using a different measuring method? To confuse the buyer that they are getting a larger capacity unit? I thought I was getting something bigger but ended up being the same as every other cooker that I have used (which is 10 cups - uncooked).

Third, I really do not like the lid latch. You have to push at the EXACT pressure in order to get it to open. Press too hard or too softly, the lid latch doesn't disengage and open up. Actually the design is a bit counterintuitive. Since the button is "on top" of the lid, if you push down on the button, you are technically pushing the lid down to close it. With all other cookers, the button is actually next to or below the lid so that no matter how hard or soft you are pressing on it, you are not affecting the lid too. It looks cool but in actuality, doesn't work as intended. This is probably my biggest gripe - something so simple ends up making a lot more complicated.

In the end, I bought this because for the price. It's really affordable for an INDUCTION model. However in real practice I actually prefer what I've always used - a standard heat plate rice cooker. These gimmicks they put on the models these days don't really make rice and dishes cook any faster or better. I'm actually reviewing this cooker after 4 months because I want back what I used before and keep this one for a backup.

I was brave and used my new Crux 12 Cup Non Induction Rice Cooker for the first time when I was cooking Easter dinner for my family of 8. I made an old family recipe for Broccoli Casserole and it was perfect because of the perfectly cooked rice. I've made this recipe too many times to count and got comments like "Your Broccoli Casserole was better than ever today". I'm anxious to try the other functions because my first try with it turned out so well. It is lightweight and small enough that I don't mind keeping readily available on my counter.

Wonderful Sleek Small Kitchen Appliance This Rice Cooker is so classy on the counter. Usually the design on most rice cookers are industrial looking. You could leave this on your counter as a nice small appliance to add a sleek look especially since the cord is removable. You can place it inside the cooker or in your kitchen drawer. So easy to use and clean. The push button to open lid is really cool along with the LED back display. I used it for my pork fried rice recipe. The rice was cooked perfectly! Not sticky or uneven. It was fluffy and easy to remove. I decided to add some sesame flavor to the rice as it was cooking. Great move! It tasted amazing! Sautéed my chicken and vegetables separately. I gradually added my rice and mixed it up. It was a fast easy meal and minimal clean up. Excellent product. I look forward to making my chicken soup and my chili.

With this Crux rice cooker, I finally figured out how to have an "extra burner" for my kitchen! Looking forward to upcoming entertaining events, I used the rice cooker feature last night for the first time. This product is very easy to program and use and I was so happy with the results. I really appreciate the carrying handle. I have a small kitchen, so it's not something I will be able to keep on my counter but will be able to easily to pull out from a shelf below. It seems like so much thought was put into the design. I wish the instruction manual contained more recipes to apply to the different functions. I highly recommend taking the time to look at the cruxkitchen.com website. The website contains some great recipes and info about other Crux products. This is perfect for a wedding gift and I plan to purchase more in the future and encourage friends to add to their registries

I can see it was a good purchase, it's easy to use, and easy to clean. Just it takes a bit longer to cook rice than any other previous rice cooker we owned.