I was nervous to purchase this because there weren't any reviews at the time I purchased it. The model below this one has plenty of reviews where most of the complaints stemmed from the foot rest not being large enough and the machine being noisy while rowing. I took a chance and got this model and it seems those issues have been addressed.The machine was easy to assemble, took less than 15 mins, the only issue I had was putting the bottom part, that goes in the back, the stabilizer, on the medal part, it didn't seem to fit. So, it was wobbly and unstable until after it was fully assembled, during my first few rows, my body weight forced the part to fit.The foot rest is large enough to allow the foot to stay on the rest while rowing and the machine is pretty quiet. I'm not sure how accurate the calories burned meter is but the counter seems to be accurate for the number of rows. AA battery not included.The actual workout, which can be adjusted with the tension selector, is a really good workout. I started on a 6 and you can really feel all of your muscles working. I've only had the machine since April 20th but I can already feel the results of the workout.I would definitely recommend this machine to anyone looking to improve their cardio and tone up a bit.