I had this grinder for over 2 months and it has been working great! For my French press, I set it to the 6 grind level and for my espresso I set it a few notches before the end - both work as they should. As for the number of cups, it has been my experience that it is the equivalent of 1 tablespoon of coffee. A lot of people use that ration - 1 tablespoon of coffee for 1 cup of coffee. I did not find that it had that much static - a lot less than my previous $100 grinder. As for cleaning, it's pretty easy too. Overall, I am very satisfied with it. You do have to make sure that all the parts are in their position otherwise it will not start. One time, the upper cover of the coffee beans compartment was not properly closed due to some residue of the beans that felt on the side and the machine did not start. Once I removed the residue and closed properly the cover, the grinder worked. I read a lot of the negative reviews - maybe the company improved the grinder.