raw foods: I see a lot of the square black models, the Excalibur? Is there a big difference between that and the old school round ones? I was going to get a round one because they are less expensive, just making sure it has a thermostat, will this work for raw food cooking?|||My family uses this one, we are about 80% Raw and it is perfect for us! http://rawpeople.com/store/dehydrators/g鈥?/a> Hope I helped you on your raw journey!|||I agree with prettysmart! Another vote for the Excalbur for all reasons mentioned. I have a 9-tray with timer & love it! It's not a cheap option, but I think it was the best investment & I am very happy with it.|||I don't own one, but I've heard good things about the excalibur. Mostly because it's square and fits more food. I would ask this on a raw food message board, you'll find more people who use dehydrators. :-)|||Before I bought my dehydrator, I researched very thoroughly (at that time, I was unaware of raw vegan communities online, so I did the research on my own) I looked at the round ones and realized that I would probably not use one of those very much because you cannot make large things like wraps or bread, and because they stack, so you have to take everything apart to get to what is on the bottom, and then put it all back together to continue dehydrating what isn't done. I saw there would be a lot of complicated cleaning involved as well. I ended up choosing the 5-tray Excalibur with the thermostat and timer, as I can set it and walk away, and it will turn off by itself. There are less expensive Excalibur models available on ebay and other places on the web (as well as directly from Excalibur, which gives a long warranty and quite a bit of support) http://www.excaliburdehydrator.com/ Although the 4 tray dehdyrator was a good bit cheaper, I chose the 5-tray because the trays, screens, and teflex sheets are interchangeable with the 9 tray model (I was worried that I might have to upgrade at some point, and so I was looking ahead (space-planning-wise, as well as supply-wise.) Most of the time, the 5 trays are enough for me -- I often use just one or two, if I am dehydrating leftovers or a small amount of herbs, for example (although sometimes, like when I am making seed breads, or dehydrating 40 lbs of tomatoes, I wish I had the 9 tray model). It is very easy to check on the items on the trays because the machine is front loading - you just take off the door and pull out the trays to check. The trays, screens, teflex sheets, and machine body are very easy to clean (this is the next biggest item in my book after ease of use) Although my dehydrator cost a little over $200, I felt that the money would be well spent (at the time, it took me 3 months to save up for it), and, having lived with my dehydrator for @ 6 years, I know I made the right choice. Since I got it, I have come up with lots of things to make with it, and it is easy to add something new every day if it comes to that, because of the ease of loading and unloading. I also now know quite a few people who bought the round dehdyrators and then found themselves upgrading to the Excalibur within a year or so.