Overall the bed we received turned out to be exactly what we wanted, but it has some quality control issues. The fit of the parts is very poor (slats were cut slightly too short), so we were only *barely* able to get the parts screwed together, through the use of brute force. Disassembling/reassembling the bed (e.g., in case we move or switch bedrooms) will likely not be possible. (And if we had had to return any of the myriad parts for a replacement it would have been a nightmare - king beds are huge and heavy!) Unlike other reviewers, I bought the black and have no complaints about the finish - it's a true matte black. And, now that it is together, it is quite sturdy. As other reviewers have noted, the bed is a little lower than average but I like it.