This is COMPLETELY worth the money!  It is not real wood, but is heavy particle board with wood grain print.   The color is nice and maybe is a little darker than the photo (see my photo) like some people have mentioned.  It did take a couple of hours to build, but I managed just fine by myself.  If you REALLY follow the directions, lay out all your parts, you will be fine.  LOOK at the drawings to really understand the positioning of the pieces.  When you put the top on, I recommend putting all of the dowels and fixture pieces in the top and dropping it down onto the legs.  (You'll see when you get to that part!)  

Overall, worth the money, easy to put together and looks great!