I bought this a month ago to replace my small seal a meal. It has great features, however the seal a meal offers a much better seal on the food. I am still using my seal a meal because I can cut the bags into smaller sections for food prep and have them the appropriate size. I waste storage bags with the food saver and you have to seal them one way. Seal a meal can be sealed any way...sideways, halfway, diagonally, upside down. AND food saver  bags are significantly more expensive than seal a meal.