I received this set as a gift and was surprised Henckels would allow their logo to be displayed on these knives.  The quality is obviously not the same as the German made knives.  The edges seem to be crudely sharpened and the handles are tiny as another reviewer mentioned.  They do seem to be better than many of the knives that used to be manufactured in China but that is no longer true.  You can buy some pretty impressive knives made in China now but they cost more.  For the current price of $99.99, this set is worth considering if you are willing to take the time to properly sharpen them.  Out of the box, they will cut OK but they are capable of so much more.  The German steel should perform just fine if the knives are given a proper cutting edge instead of a quick pass on a 200 grit grinding wheel.  I am assuming that heat treatment was done properly but who knows.