The ones sold at Joanns were not a real machine. They are hobby machines. Plastic. The large 200 needle machines, might have had a plastic case, but were metal inside. I once had a gentleman come to visit my shop from another state. He wanted to see what The Toyota machine was all about. After showing him what it would do, he admitted that he also had one of Joanns machines. He had knit some simple patterns and made childrens sweaters with a boat neck. Before he left, he purchased a Toyota from me and took a couple of lessons. He was just delighted to see the possibilities of what could be accomplished in a short amount of time.