Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I've used various metal detectors off and on for many years. While I would certainly not classify myself as a hardcore-detecting hobbyist, I do try to do it properly when I participate. One thing I have noticed is that there are a lot of metal-detecting "snobs" out there that love nothing more than telling you that while your detector is cute, it might as well be a giant turd with earphones compared to theirs! It's weird--I like this hobby because it's different / not mainstream, but when that stuff happens, it may as well be golf... Anyway - I'm not into this hobby enough to spend $700 - $1500 on a detector, but I do want to get my moneys worth. There are A LOT of reviews on the web for this particular detector, and I would say that 1 in 10 were negative, with the rest being very positive. For $200, I gave it a shot. My findings: The good: When I received the device, I walked out into my backyard to play around a little, and immediately, with a resounding "DING", found a penny about 4 inches deep. It seems to really like coin shooting The discrimination and sensitivity settings work well, and the various settings (coins, all metal, jewelry, etc...) work fairly well-- as far a coin shooting, the find usually is exactly what the detector says it is. I've read many reviews slamming the "pinpoint" feature. Honestly, after I READ THE BOOK and played with it for a couple minutes, I found that it worked quite well. It seems to work very well down to about 8". It may work well beyond that... I really haven't had the chance yet to hunt anywhere for really deep items. It's very light, and the display crams a lot of usefull stuff into a small area without being confusing. If you turn it off while you're digging, the batteries last a long, long time. The bad: The shaft is a bit on the flimsy side, although it is pretty easy to stabilize if you desire. It only has a couple tones - a dull beep for trash or unknown items, and a 'DING!' for coins. Honestly though, after I got used to them, they were plenty. It seems to like a slightly slower sweep than most detectors. There is no volume knob. This used to make me mad, but now not so much. Sometimes headphones are just a drag, I wish I could turn it down. In short: The bottom line is this - you really need to read the book that comes with it and spend an hour getting aquainted with the device for it to really work for you. I like it, and for the money wouldn't think twice about buying another.