If you look at the lineup of Aroma (the brand the OP chose) rice cookers, you'll see that the author could have bought a simple one-button model just like his o

If you look at the lineup of Aroma (the brand the OP chose) rice cookers, you'll see that the author could have bought a simple one-button model just like his old one, but chose not to. http://www.aroma-housewares.com/kitchen/appliances/products/Rice%20Cookers.html http://www.aroma-housewares.com/kitchen/appliances/products/... In terms of whether his cooker will last 25 years, I'm not really sure how good Aroma is as a brand, but most of the Asian people I know (I'm Asian too) buy top end Japanese branded rice cookers like Zojirushi and Panasonic (aka National) -- and these cookers last a really long time. When you eat rice daily or almost daily, spending a little more for reliability is a no-brainer.