I have had my 350E for over a year and it just adds so much with so little effort to about anything I do. Last year for Christmas I embroidered kitchen towels with each person's name and snowflakes in different colors. I have both Maxine CD's and those are a hoot to do. Since Joann's will have all their thread on sale beginning 12/30/10, would be a good time to stock up on some colors. I like having the USB port. I purchased a portable hard drive to use instead of tying up my computer. It was a well spent $80. I know that some of the embroidery thread sounds expensive but the larger spools have 1,100 yards compared to 400 for cotton. Stock up on Black and white and find colors you like. Also, lots of the quilt shops carry the Dakota Collectible embroidery cd's and each quarter, there are several that are reduced to $19.95, well worth the money. I got tired of trying to download and copy and I just put everything on a cd. It is simpler with less hassles. There are lots of embroidery sites and some have great bargains. There is one site, designs by sick, which have lots and are super reasonable. Enjoy your machine. You might also want to get you a pair of embroidery clippers, sure helps to keep your threads clipped close and those little nippers really help.