Some homebrewers get more interested in the recipe formulation while others tinker with the process or the equipment. The Picobrew is an ‘appliance’ that handles most of the steps of making beer in a efficient robotic manner. This can appeal to some people because they like the planning and the drinking part, but they don’t necessarily enjoy watching a pot boil. I’ve seen people get one of these because they have kids now and don’t have 6 hours for a brew session, or because they have a small house and don’t want a lot of big pots sitting around. It is more precise and repeatable than your average homebrewer, and that can solve a lot of frustration about inconsistent results as well. The Picobrew costs $2000, and while this may seem to be quite expensive at first blush it can be justified with the time savings, or by allowing your homebrewer to focus on the other parts of brewing that they may enjoy more.