with all the competing products being priced competitively I really feel that service makes the difference. here is my aqueon story: I won a 950 unit on eBay for under $20 including shipping to Alaska! after getting my pump I noticed it seemed to "rattle" I contacted aqueon's customer service and he quickly sent me out some new bushings to see if that helped. when I told him it didn't he then sent me out a brand new unit! I don't know if any of you have similar experiences with this company or others but that is the way to win life long customers!