Sorry I'm late to the party, but I may be able to chime in for anyone who has similar questions regarding Grohe & Hansgrohe. I am in the process of a renovation and wanted to go practical high-end (Im not sure what that means either). To make a long story short, I obtained a series of faucets: Dornbracht Tara in chrome, Hansgrohe Focus 31730 (chrome), Grohe Atrio in Satin Nickel, Hansgrohe Metro in steel & and a KWC Systema in steel. I also purchased a Everpure drinking water faucet in nickel. My mother had purchased the Dornbracht for me (yes nice gift) and ultimately this is the faucet I chose to put in the bathroom. But I had purchased a Hansgrohe Focus that I was planning on having installed. As well as a Everpure faucet for my Everpure water filtering system (quality of the Everpure was on par with the Hansgrohe Focus you will read about). When I received it (Hansgrohe Focus chrome) and put it in my hand it just felt so light and insubstantial. I am not saying that it felt "cheap", hardly, it is a nicely made unit, however I was not impressed with it. However it was certainly nicer than anything I saw in my local Home Depot. I ultimately decided I will put it in one of my girlfriends rental units. Next, I purchased a Grohe Atrio which is similar in style to the Dornbracht Tara. Now let me remark on the differences between the Hansgrohe and the Grohe: First of all, the Grohe feels considerably heavier and more rigid. The routing is cleaner in the rear and the tolerances are tighter between the parts. The handles also feel much smoother to the point you actually can distinguish this. The plates are also heavier and more "substantial" than the Hansgrohe ones. The brass diverters are also heavier on the Grohe though the Hansgrohe ones are visually more appealing. For the kitchen I purchased the Hansgrohe Metro because I liked the way it looked and it had pretty good reviews. The faucet itself is definitely of higher quality than the Hansgrohe Focus I had originally purchased to put in my bathroom. Though I think the pull-out spray spout feels "plasticky". I decided I wan't happy with the quality for the price and plan on returning it. I ended up going with a Swiss made KWC Systema, the quality is sick, so is the price. Throughout this process I have looked at quite a few Grohe and Hansgrohe pieces. I think there is no question that Grohe is the superior product.

I realize you have already made your decision but in case someone else is pondering this and reads through the thread... I have always had a side sprayer and a GOOD one for the last 6 years. I like it so much better than my MIL pull down (maybe her's is just cheap, I don't know) but the MAIN reason I like the side sprayer is b/c frequently it seems like I am using the side spray and then the DH comes over and just needs a quick spurt of water in a glass or to wash his hand or a utensil (I don't even know what really) and I just let the thumb button goes, he gets the water he needs out of the main faucet and 2 seconds later he is out of the way and I am back to doing what I need to with the sprayer. This wouldn't be the case with a pull down spray b/c I'd have to switch it to the other setting (which never goes well when I try it on my MILs) and had it over to him, etc etc. Might sound silly but it impacted my decision.

farmdrmer, We got the touch activation Cassidy on a whim and I have to say I do like it! You just barely touch it and it "starts". Then another touch and it's off. The commercial where they show the dirty hands turning it on with a touch is spot on. I'm glad I got the stainless. It cost a bit more but it looks as good as it did when it was installed 1 1/2 years ago. We got ours at Overstockdeals.com during their black Friday sale at a really good price. I bought all of our faucets and sinks for our new house during the sale and saved scads of $.

I ended up here, because I'm redoing my kitchen and trying to make a decision about the faucet. I have various faucets throughout my house from Kohler, Moen, Restoration Hardware, and Newport Brass. I think the Restoration Hardware fixtures are made by Newport Brass, because we had to call them when we needed to replace. We've had them from 10-12 years, so I don't know the styles or even if they are made. Almost all are polished nickel, and the Kohler and Moen are always spotless, laundry room and bathroom, respectively. I'm not crazy about the pull down sprayer on the Kohler. The Moen Showcase (do they still make this line?) is in the bathroom, and I love it so much, because I can just pour water over it and it will dry spotless. It's amazing. It is wall mount, and I wish I had it in every bathroom. Because of my success with Moen, when I needed a faucet for my kitchen, I bought an inexpensive (relative to all the other faucets I have) Moen at Home Depot. It is the only non polished nickel faucet I have. It is stainless steel, still looks brand new (10 years+), and the pull down sprayer works wonderfully. Unfortunately, I'd never buy fixtures from Restoration Hardware again. They spot like crazy. The Newport Brass are slightly better, but they also spot. I'm looking at Kohler and Moen for my new kitchen, but the choices are limited in polished nickel. Now I'll look at California Faucets, too, but I'll skip Rohl, since someone mentioned the polished nickel spots so much.