Product review (3 stars): Good quality, value, and looks, with a few shortcomings
The Good:

1) Pretty sturdy and good looking, if you like the clean "commercial" look.  The sheet metal is thick enough and not flimsy at all--I can't imagine why anyone would one it thicker.  The installation is pretty straight-forward--four screws to hold it up, and make the electrical connections.  Any heavier, this would be unnecessarily much harder work.

2) Dual venting options.  With the optional ductless vent accessory, you can install and use it without a duct to outside of the house.  You can then later opt to put in a duct without having to go buy another hood.

The Bad:
1) I do agree with the other reviewers that the fan can be very loud at maximum, to the extent that you and people nearby will need to speak loudly to be heard, whether you are at the stove or in the same room.

2) The controls are poorly designed, in my opinion, as the toggle switch between the two knobs would make one think it's the light switch, but it's the fan switch, and the right knob controls the lights and the left knob controls fan speed.  The controls are also recessed behind the front edge, so depending on the installation height, you may not be able to easily see them and would have to feel around a little bit, even have to bend your head and look under the first time.  Some might like that clean look, but personally, I find it a clumsy design when paired with the non-intuitive toggle switch, which I still hit trying to turn the lights on.  Better design for the fan switch and speed controls would have been simply combine the two functions into a single knob, rather than two separate controls.

3) Lastly, the light bulbs are too dim.  The CFL bulb for the high setting is somewhat serviceable, but the low setting bulbs are so dim, they are almost useless except for use as a night lite.  As others have done, definitely worth looking into brighter replacements for both.

All in all, not disappointed with the purchase and many people have commented on how nice it looks.