I adore mine. There was definitely a learning curve and I was flat out terrified of the pressure release at first but I use it several times a week now. I don't use mine for time savings as much as the ability to walk away without frequently stirring or checking on the meal. The dinner witching hour is real at my house so I have a hard time standing at the stove to cook but I can do the instant pot. I'll sometimes load it up whenever I have time, pressure cook, then leave on slow cook until dinner. I use it for soups, hard boiled eggs, meats like cubano sandwiches, pulled pork or shredded chicken.

To the point about the included cooking instructions contradicting common recipes...well...the few recipes I cooked from the included book didn't turn out especially well so I've switched to cookbooks and bloggers anyway. I'm careful when I release pressure and do it really slowly.