Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

purchased this for $19.99 when on sale, and used it in conjunction with two other laminators to laminate 500 name tags for a church retreat. the other two laminators were heavy duty with a variable knob, and required a sleeve for each pouch. this scotch thermal laminator, without a sleeve, was still not hot enough to laminate a 5 mil laminating pouch. even after waiting 20 minutes for it to warm up, there would be splotches where the laminate pouch would not adhere because there was insufficient heat. the specs say that it's supposed to be able to laminate up to a 5 mil pouch, but in my experience, it can't handle the job. we ended up not using this laminator, and relying on the other two. in addition, the housing is made out of cheap plastic. my guess is that others who are rating this unit 5 stars probably are using a 3 mil or thinner pouch. i regret buying this laminator. if you hope to use this laminator for 5 mil pouches, save your time, money and frustration and pay a little more for a better unit.