Foodsaver V3880 Fully Automatic Vacuum Sealing System - Best Price

FoodSaver V3880 Fully Automatic Vacuum Sealing System - I Pick This One

FoodSaver® Custom Tip Book,
Quick Start Guide & Reference Manual.
Fully automatic operation auto detects FoodSaver® bag and starts vacuum sealing.
Air-tight heat seal removes air from specially designed bags.
Pulse Vac feature allows complete manual control of air removal.
2 vacuum speeds automatically adjust based on food type.
2 seal levels that auto detect moist or dry food
Rapid marinate mode marinates in minutes instead of hours.
Accessory mode for containers and canisters seals any FoodSaver® container air-tight.
Convenient rolls storage, and built in cutter to create custom-sized bags.
Patented removable drip trip catches overflow liquids and is dishwasher safe.
•BPA Free

Marinator Features:
•Marinate in minutes instead of hours or overnight
•Preserves and enhances food flavor
•Vacuum process tenderizes the meats
•BPA Free
•Stain resistant and dishwasher safe
•Works with FoodSaver® vacuum sealing systems
•Airtight and odor-proof

Specifications:
Foodsaver, the leading brand in vacuum sealing.
Newly. Designed V3880 Vacuum Sealer with Brushed Stainless Steel Frontplate.
Fully Automatic Operation.
Touch Button Controls.
Pulse Vac Feature.
2 Vacuum Speeds (Normal & Gentle).
2 Seal levels with Auto Detect.
LED Progress Indicator Lights.
Roll Storage.
Built in Bag Cutter.
Patented Removable Drip Tray.

Reviews of Foodsaver V3880 Fully Automatic Vacuum Sealing System

Great machine with a couple of reservations
Rating by : Nicholas Robinson,

Upon doing a search for "Foodsaver" I came upon a couple of review sites. They weren't for this particular machine, but they may as well be, since the issues discussed are common to pretty much all Foodsaver models.

I was puzzled, though, at how many "one-star" reviews there were, with not a few of them saying things like "If there were minus stars, I would have used them." Now that's pretty virulent when talking about a machine, so I wondered what could have worked these people into such a froth. Foodsavers are pretty much describable as "machines that use a proprietary system to remove all air from freezer-safe plastic bags in order to preserve the product in a frozen state without degradation from being frozen for as long as possible." (I'm ignoring the other uses, such as vacuum packing clothes etc. to fit into suitcases more snugly and just concentrating on the food aspects of the Foodsaver).

Most of the negative reviews had beefs (sorry!) with the bags not sealing properly, requiring two or more efforts (and the discarding of bags), and contamination with moisture etc.

I got the impression that many of these reviewers had not read the instructions carefully enough, if at all.

I bought my first Foodsaver, the Professional II, through an "As Seen on TV" type commercial, on a whim (admittedly an expensive whim -- I believe it cost me over $200 on eBay at the time) over ten years ago. After a few false starts, I was getting more than my money's worth out of the machine; in those days, Costco did not stock Foodsavers, nor any of the accessories or bags, so I had to make do with eBay. I must admit I was a little bent at the fact that you could only use Foodsaver bags; I actually tried Ziplocs and others just to make sure they wouldn't work (they didn't) and I felt a bit ripped off by having to buy the Foodsaver bags, which were (and still are) quite expensive.

But I had the marinating container and the other round container (can't remember what it was for) and I quickly learned that you could marinate an entire chicken (in pieces) in a matter of about 20 minutes, so that pleased me no end. But getting back to the bags: the negative reviewers focused on the fact that you have to leave room -- a lot of room -- on both sides of a vacuumed product, thereby, in a typical vacuum one-off, losing up to 4 inches of bag space. This adds up. That did, and still does, peeve me quite a bit, and I can see why they got lathered when they were misjudging lengths and had to throw bags away (which I'm known to do as well). That said, once you get past the irritation, and get the measuring down to a mini-science, it becomes pretty much a non-issue.

What a lot of these people didn't seem to understand was, that you can Foodsaver a loaf of Wonder bread if you do it properly! You can't Foodsaver a warm pot of minestrone, folks -- you just can't. You have to prepare methodically, namely, FREEZE the item to be Foodsavered thoroughly, so that the minimum of moisture is available to gunk up the works. This means freezing meats and pastries to rock-hardness before you Foodsaver them.

My first Foodsaver, the Professional II, was infinitely more difficult to use than the one I'm reviewing, the 3880. In the old one, the cutter was blunt and you had to develop a knack to use it. The rubber insulating ring kept coming out. Little stuff like that. The tube that went to the containers was very squirrelly when you tried to make a seal with it -- just a bunch of small annoyances. Then again, I must say what it is I tend to use these machines for: going to Costco and buying meats and poultry and cheeses in large bulk, then dividing them up and Foodsavering them. I've found that chicken can last at least a year with no discernible deterioration, steak the same, and cheese in the refrigerator for over six months, easily. So when I use the Foodsaver it's usually a long session with assembly-line-like processing.

And the 3880 really outshines the old Professional II -- in all respects all the steps are much easier. Yesterday, to carve up an entire filet of beef -- about nine pounds -- into inch and a half thick steaks, several pounds of chicken thighs, several pounds of chicken drumsticks, several pounds of stew meat and several pounds of top sirloin took me altogether about an hour to process, once I got into the rhythm of it.

The machine performed flawlessly, except when I tried to "miser" the bags, and even then, I believe I only had to trash two at the most out of perhaps 30. The setup is childishly easy, with instructions printed on the inside panels.

I feel sad for those reviewers who had such a bad experience with their machines; they should know that not a few very well-known chefs, including those such as Daniel Boulud, swear by their Foodsavers by name, often employing them to do "sous-vide" cooking (please Google, as it's too complicated to explain here) and as far as I know, besides industrial machinery, this is the only thing out there for us consumers, and with a little effort and less frustration, this machine can save one lots and lots of dollars -- well worth the unwanted excess lengths of plastic.

Just for the record, I paid $110 for my 3880 at Costco in Richmond, California, in December 2011.

Glad I got this one
Rating by : Daniel,

I have never used a vacuum sealer before, I was overwhelmed by the negative reviews of the V3xxx upright models, and was ready to buy the 2840 model instead. Then I saw V3880 was on sell at Costco with the price tag I can't refuse, so I gave it a try.

Lots of reviews complained how difficult it is to trigger the automatic vacuum/seal process on the 3xxx series, I am happy to report this 3880 model worked for me with 100% success rate. I don't need to slide the bag from left to right, just simply insert the open end into the channel until it is triggered(about 1.25 to 1.5 inches). To make a bag from a roll, I wasted about 2.5 to 3 inches by sealing both open ends, instead of 4 inches or more reported by other reviews.

I packaged and sealed some moist food like steaks with 100% success rate as well. Read from some reviews that the blood/liquid can cause leakage in the sealing, so I tried to press the Seal/Stop button when the blood comes up(yes it happens even after I selected the moist food mode), but I was always too late, and it still seals perfectly anyway, so now I just let it runs by itself automatically(in moist food mode).

I guess that FoodSaver probably heard the negative reviews and fixed these issues with the V3880 model. Actually I think they over-engineer it a little bit, the PulseVec button is redundant, you can stop the vacuum and start the seal by press the Seal/Stop button.

I am glad we got this model so far, this equipment has been a very useful tool for us, we use it to vacuum the mason jars to store coffee, herbs, vegetables, fruits etc.. The bags are used for Sous Vide cooking, as well as fish and steak vacuum packaging. It is very easy to use, the buttons are easy to understand and user friendly, instructions are posted inside and out, this is a well designed piece of equipment.

WORKS PERFECTLY!!!
Rating by : WatchaTink,

This beautiful peice of machinery saves me lots of $$$. I am now able to stock up when local grocery stores have a great deal on meat. In the past I was using ziplock bags to separate the meat into smaller portions, so waste is not really a factor. This is not just for meat. You can freeze just about anything for an extremely long time without it getting freezer burn. Its one of those products you need to be long-sighted to appreciate what it has to offer. Worth every penny!

Fully automatic operation auto detects FoodSaver® bag and starts vacuum sealing; Air-tight heat seal removes air from specially designed bags. 2 vacuum speeds ...

FoodSaver® V3880 Vacuum Sealing System w/ Marinator Includes 2.25" Quick Marinator Canister, 1 - 11 inch x 18 feet heat seat roll and 12 - quart-sized heat seal bag

This review is from: FoodSaver V3880 Fully Automatic Vacuum Sealing System. ... This review is from: FoodSaver V3880 Fully Automatic Vacuum Sealing System.

With a BRAND NEW DESIGN the FoodSaver® V3880 fully automatic vacuum sealing kit is full of features and benefits you’re going to love.

FoodSaver V3880 Fully Automatic Vacuum Sealing System in Home & Garden, Kitchen, Dining & Bar, Kitchen Storage & Organization | eBay