Very cool. I appreciate these articles; they have helped me immensely when evaluating products for my own use.
For what it's worth, I have the Nesco Deluxe Food VS-12. It has been one of the most reliable and easiest to use vacuum sealers I have seen. I understand what the article said about not having a removable tray, but honestly I've never had an issue where I needed one and it's not hard to wipe out. The thing just works, works really well and feels like it's never going to break. It can also do pulse vacuum sealing with the external hose which really won me over.
For zip-style bags and containers, I tried the Fresh & Save gear for a while. I really loved their industrial design and ease of use, but the bags and containers I vacuum sealed kept losing their seal inside the fridge and freezer. I switched to Luvele's vacuum containers instead; they're a little more expensive, but the vacuum pressure on them is also a lot stronger (thanks in part to the strength of the stainless steel lids) and the overall quality is pretty stellar.
Speaking of Luvele, I heard that they're bringing their vacuum sealer to the US market very soon. You may want to reach out to them to see if they're willing to spare a unit to include in your testing next year.
