I got the fireplace in black and it looks just as pictured. It was very easy to put together by myself. Unfortunately, the firebox did not work when I had it all put together (the heat sensor apparently was knocked loose during shipment, which they knew because the display kept flashing EE). I called RealFlame and they sent me another one, took about a week to get it. This one worked for about 1 minute, then flashed EE. After I asked RealFlame whether this is a common problem, they said it happens rarely. I just apparently have bad luck. Third time was a charm, though, and it looks and works great now. It's a little louder than I expected, but really isn't too noticeable. RealFlame customer service was excellent. Even with the two broken fireboxes, I would purchase this again.