I own two of these, one for my MAC eyeshadows and the other one for my Urban Decay (sorry UD, I love your shadows but hate your bulkier overpriced palette).

I wanted to streamline my makeup routine and also organize it so that it looked pretty while sitting on my bathroom vanity. I depotted my MAC eyeshadows and Back to Mac'ed them (FREE LIPSTICKS, yay!) and any new eyeshadows I now purchase are in the pro pan form ($3 cheaper) and magnetize right in.

I have access to all my shadows at once without having to open each container at a time which sames time!

While the photo attached to this page is of the 15 pan palette, the reviews and title seem to be for the small 4-pan empty palette, which I love.

It makes so much more sense to purchase Mac shadows in the pro-pans (they're much cheaper, when you consider what you save on 4 of them) and them put them into these palettes. You can easily move shadows around and rearrange and re-organize your 4-pans for a specific need, as I often do when I travel. I find it easier to take 1, 2 or 3 of these rather than one 15-pan - it's more practical for me personally. In my own bathroom, which is where I apply makeup, storing 15 pans is not do-able (the shelves where I keep my makeup are quite narrow) but I can easily stack multiple 4-pans in a fairly small space.

I have to say that I prefer the "older model" palettes to the newer ones which are much trickier to open and, unless you think to ask for a demo, much harder to get the shadows out (I'm so glad I asked when I got my first of the new design because it looked like once they were in, you couldn't get them out again, as with MAC's "pre-made" palettes).

Just 2 other things....for starters, why the heck can't MAC make EASIER to depot their shadows (LE ones, for example)? Why do people have to resort to hot irons, clamps and vice grips, surgical implements, etc.? Why not just an easy screw on/screw off collar so those of us who prefer using palettes can remove the shadows easily and with little risk of damaging them? And why can't they include a MIRROR?

I remember many years ago buying my first MAC eyeshadow.. and then suddenly I had 15 or so pots floating around my makeup area.. so annoying! I love the small and large palettes because they help you stay organized.. you don't have to flip over 10 million little pots looking for the color you want. You can simply label your palettes and know exactly where to find every color in your collection. The small palettes are GREAT for vacations or over night trips.. I don't need more than 4 eye shadows if I am going away, its just a waste of space. I love the new small palettes because the see-through lid is great! Looks more expensive than the old version too.

Also, pan versions of MAC eye shadows are cheaper! but don't worry.. its easy to depot your shadows from the pot and stick a magnet on the bottom.. they work just fine in the palette too!

These are awesome. Eye shadows can be popped in and out, you can custom make your perfect palette and the eyeshadows for palettes are cheaper to buy than the ones in pots.

In the end, I did not like having all these little pots of eyeshadow that I would need to waste time and energy and get bored in choosing between, flipping lids etc. I was also really chuffed to discover that the old fantastic quality Urban Decay depotted perfectly into the MAC as well.
I only became aware of the 'pro palette' system by reading on the internet, and numerous shadows that languished unflipped open are now being considered and used frequently.
I wish MAC Australia would gear up and get their palettes going!
PS I researched and tried various methods to depot...I am quite practical (have a farm, use lots of tools, etc) and assumed the no-heat, cut the container system would work best for me...but maybe my snips, pliers etc were the wrong kind, but I actually found that the scorch-over-the-candle method was easiest for me. But YMMV.

It AMAZES me that other brands have not tried to copy this (Fashionista in Superdrug I think might have something). I have three and although in one the insert doesn't sit quite square, the shadows are held firmly in place but also flip out pretty easily when you need them to. Brilliant.

Got my first one in a multiswap and I couldn't be happier. This palette screams expensive and looks great on your vanity. It looks like it would be heavy, but it isn't. It is quite light weight and the magnet on the front is very sturdy. The shadows look great from behind the clear "window" on top and it's great for organization since you can see the colors before you open the palette. I wish the large eyeshadow palette had the same feature. It can get a little dusty with use and if you remove the shadows you'll notice how much shadow dust gathers under the pans. You'll find yourself cleaning these quite frequently. Removing the shadows can be tricky since you have to remove the entire shadow panel to do so. It gets easier to do with use. I would buy again and am currently planning on doing such.

The new palettes look really nice but they need a manual to show how to remove the shadows! You have to 'pop' the insert out in order to remove the shadows.

I really like the see through lid, they should do that with the 15 pan palette too.

These are so convenient to store Mac eyeshadows in! The pain is to depot them, stick the names on the back of each pan and find magnets for them so they can stick to the palette, but once the task is over, voila: Pretty, safely stored eyeshadows that you can look at and examine whenever you want. This layout also helps to get you out of your makeup rut - when you see all the colors at the same time you get more inspired and adventurous. I looove the appearance of these palettes. They're so flat and sleek, I adore all Mac packaging, I find it uber chic and minimal. It's really a joy, having all my eyeshadows in one place (well... a couple of palettes for the time being), taking them anywhere I want without having to choose which ones I'll leave behind due to space restrictions; I couldn't re-live Sophie's choice one more time, and now I don't have to! Get one of those babies and you won't regret it. Will keep repurchasing.

I just bought my first palette and almost filled it with my old shadows. depoting was super easy (used the flat iron method). i like that i can look at all my shadows at once. will definitely buy again....when i need more space