It's made in China, so probably not as good in terms of quality as a Hypertherm, but you're not paying Hypertherm prices either (about 25% of their price). I think this machine has its place, especially for an enthusiast's use at home. If you plan on using a plasma cutter to make a living then...
They probably just saved yours for the end since you're in Texas and that's where they're shipping everything from. They were probably just making sure that they could hit their delivery dates. People further away probably got theirs shipped first.
Yeah, I remember reading one lady's negative review on sears.com for a tire chuck, saying that when she applied it to the valve, all it did was let air out of her tires. :rolleyes2 Pretty sure she didn't have it hooked up to a compressor.