This item is pretty solid and does the job for the price I paid. It is true that the handle and dome is plastic and not metal but for the approximately $30 price it is still very good, and looks slick. The bulk of the charafe is the metal black portion which is intended to keep your drink at the temperature you want for up to 8 hours. I tested it and it did indeed last 7 or 8 hours, which is longer than a similar Charafe I bought online that was non-Oggi manufactured.Overall, I still highly recommend. Of course if you want a super latest and greatest carafe the size of 54 ounces like this one, you'd easily be looking to pay three or at least two times more. This gets the job done for sure.