If you've been plodding through life with a standard bathroom mirror, you owe it to yourself to get a decent magnifying mirror, and this one doesn't disappoint. You know those hotel room swivel-out mirrors with enough magnification so that you can see in gory detail every screaming pimple and every disgusting, clogged pore -- I mean, so that you can see clearly to shave or put on your makeup? Now that's what I'm talking about!I purchased the chrome finish model to go with the other chrome fixtures in my bathroom and it matches well. I've only had this installed for a couple of days, so can't comment on longevity yet, but with that caveat, let's jump into the pros and cons.Pros:- Solid and sturdy. I am very happy with the solid, heavy feel of the product. This is not a flimsy imitation that feels like it is going to break every time you move it. This is a well crafted product that looks like it will be able to stand up to quite a bit of abuse over the years.- The magnification on the 5x is clear and easy to look at. I'll admit after I first got it installed I spent quite a bit of time on some deferred facial maintenance, and didn't have any problem staying with it for a while. The image is crisp and has a decent focal length, so my eyes did not tire even after a long, long time of working at those pesky hairs, pimples and pores. (Note, I do not wear glasses, so can't comment on whether that would impact the experience.)- Good looking chrome finish.- On/Off switch, makes it easy to use with or without the back lighting. The switch feels solid and should stand up to a lot of use.- Mine shipped with a spare bulb and 2 solid drywall mounting anchors (though I would strongly recommend 4) and 3 wire nuts. The latter two things not a big deal, but the spare bulb is definitely helpful. Now if only I can remember where I put the bulb a year from now when the first bulb burns out . . .- Backlight. It is helpful to have a backlight to even out the lighting on one's face for consistency. Probably not that big of a deal for shaving, but definitely helpful for makeup or other detailed work. But . . . (see con's) . . .Cons:- Backlight is not very strong. Be aware, this mirror needs to be mounted in a place where you have illumination from your main vanity light or other light source. The backlight is not nearly strong enough to use independently. Just to check it out, I tried turning off all the bathroom lights to use just the Jerdon mirror, and, yes, I could see my ghostly reflection peering darkly back at me, but with not nearly enough light to do any serious work. In fairness, I think the product was never intended to be its own primary light source. The light around the edge of the mirror is really intended for evening out the light on one's face, not for full illumination. That said, it might have been nice to have a bit more light.- You need some electrical skills to install. Buyer beware that the unit is designed for flush wall installation, with direct wiring to a junction box. This is not for mounting just anywhere and then plugging it into your bathroom outlet -- there is no cord option included. So your mounting options are:(i) Cut open your wall, install a junction box, feed your house wiring over to the junction box, splice in the mirror wiring (which will probably require additional lengths of wire). Folks, please don't do this unless you know what you are doing with electrical wiring! Or . . .(ii) Do some metal work on the unit itself (cutting an opening in the wall housing, the back plate and the wire cover plate), and splice in your own cord. Folks, please don't do this unless you know what you are doing with electrical wiring! And, yes, this would almost certainly void the warranty. :(In my case, although I have a fair amount of home electrical experience, given where I wanted to mount the mirror I did not have an easy way to install a junction box and feed the house wiring to splice in without some significant damage to the wall. So I went with (ii). If I can, I'll post a picture of how it turned out. I am pretty pleased with the result, but again, it probably voided my warranty and took a fair amount of time and some know-how.- Mounting brackets insufficient. Come to think of it, why did they include those drywall mounting anchors in the box anyway? The unit is supposed to be mounted on a junction box. Hmmm. Anyway . . .This unit is heavy (yes, that was one of the pros, but it also impacts mounting). If you go with a heavy duty junction box (heavy metal, please, not a flimsy plastic one) stably mounted to a stud, that might be adequate support. However, I would recommend, if possible, finding a way to use 4 screws/anchors, rather than just the two suggested in the included instructions. Probably the thing that will be most impactful to the sturdy look and feel of the unit when all is said and done is how stably it is mounted to the wall. If the mount is flimsy, the whole thing is going to feel like it can break off at any moment and you will be much less comfortable using it day in and day out.In my case, since I went with the 'warranty-voiding-cut-holes-in-the-unit-splice-in-your-own-cord' option, I was able to mount it where I wanted, which allowed me to put three heavy-duty screws into a 4x4 stud, and use a solid anchor for the 4th screw hole. The result is an extremely solid and stable attachment to the wall, which translates throughout the body of the unit for a wonderful solid feel.- Different magnification on the other side? I'm guessing this unit will most often be used in a bathroom or vanity area where you already have a standard 1x mirror. As a result, for me at least, this unit would have been more useful if the other side were a different magnification level than 1x. In other words, instead of 1x and 5x mirrors, perhaps 5x and 7x or 5x and 10x (now that would be scary to look into!). Anyway, I'm not sure this is really a con, as some people may want to use the 1x, but for me I'm likely to only use the 5x, so the 1x side is kind of wasted.-----Well, that is too much already. Hopefully that will help. Summary: Well made, solidly built product, with a good mirror and a nice look, but mounting options are a bit tricky and will take some time and electrical skills.-----Update May 8, 2014:I have now had this mirror installed for over 4 months, so time for a quick update.- I use it virtually every day. With the 5x mirror side, that is. As suspected from the outset, I haven't had any occasion to use the 1x side.- Still working very well and still has a great look and feel. Again, I can't stress enough the importance of a heavy-duty mount -- it will make all the difference in how it feels over time and how much you enjoy using it.- Still on the first bulb (no surprise). Now where did I put that spare bulb in case I need it . . . ? Incidentally, the key to having the mirror be "fog free" is to turn the mirror light on right before you jump in the shower. Then when you get out of the shower the mirror will indeed be fog free and you can use it right away even if your regular bathroom mirror is completely fogged over. The fog-free capability comes from a combination of (i) the air-flow openings around the outside of the mirror housing, and (ii) the warmth from the bulb.- Would love to give this 5-stars. They way I have it installed and working it definitely merits it. The only reason I can't is because the unit should come with better mounting options, rather than the purchaser having to get creative. Again, if you're not handy it could be a bit frustrating; if you're comfortable with electrical and willing to do a bit of work, you'll likely be very happy with the purchase.