This is my first juicer, which I chose from reading tons of reviews. I have learned with things like this, don't go blowing your money on THE BEST when you don't even know if you'll use it. I spent $450 on a Vitamix, hated it, and sold it. For some reason Amazon has this super cheap and it's a great deal. This juicer would be worth full price anyways. It's small, decently quiet, not too terrible to put together/take apart/clean, and moves at lower RPM so it doesn't destroy the nutrients. I don't juice tons of things so I can't say how it does with everything, and yes of course you have to pre cut stuff. It's just how it goes. You can't throw a whole apple in any juicer, no matter what you see on TV. Overall very happy I didn't go too high end. If you're a casual/beginner juicer, this is all you'll need!