I have one that I've used in a 3 cat household for roughly two years now. I think it is a life-saver. You have to be very particular about the type and amount of litter you put in it, but it sure beats cleaning multiple boxes multiple times a day.

Personally I think it really depends on the person and cats using the box. My mother has a self-cleaning and a regular box because her oldest refuses to use the self-cleaning box. It started its cleaning mode once while she was in the room and it scared her a lot. So I wouldn't recommend it for highly skiddish kitties.