My faucet has this. Moen Brantford. I don't use the spray an awful lot so I can't say that it's a must have for me, but it is convenient. I would say it's about like when you are pumping gas and use that little catch thing on the pump handle so you don't have to keep squeezing it the whole time the gas is flowing. Actually it's not nearly as much work to hold a spray button as to squeeze a gas pump handle (imagine for people with arthritis in their hands) so maybe that's not the best analogy, but it's the same concept.

On my faucet the spray reverts to stream when you turn the faucet off and on again, or when you hit the pause button. Now the pause thing really is a nice feature, and I never would have thought that before I had it.

My previous kitchen faucet was a Grohe with the stay on spray and I got used to that. My current faucet is a Hansgrohe that doesn't have the stay on feature. I found it annoying at first, but now I don't notice it and sometimes kind of like it because I don't have to fumble around for the button to change back. The one limitation is that you can't let go of the faucet in spray mode so you can't use it for any job that requires two hands. I haven't noticed that to be a big problem for me.

I bought the Whitehaus Metrohaus faucet for our bar sink, but it isn't installed yet so can't yet speak to that faucet's functionality. It is gorgeous though. It has a nice and solid feel.

You don't need it. Get the one you like. If you have some ailment that you need it then you can take that into consideration but otherwise it is no problem to hold the button down IMO of course. You will leave out a lot of good selections if you make that your deal breaker.

You don't need it, but I love it. I have Moen Arbor. I use it to thaw a mound of something like shrimp or frozen peas in a colander under the spray. I use it to bathe the dog or rinse off her feet or undercarriage. I use it to clean the sink up under the reveal or to rinse a very big item that I've washed.

You can definitely live without it, but it is one of the improvements that I do notice (especially when I'm washing the dog).

I have Brizo Talo and I LOVE it. It has two buttons for spray or stream and the magnet in the head so it doesn't fall. I think it would work well for you too.

Hi,
I have a pair of Vinattas, and they are on "spray" all the time. I also have a pot filler for getting water into vessels.
Casey

I have a Hansgrohe and I don't mind holding the button for spraying, which I only use to chase things over to the drain or rinse off the Ajax.

I'd rather have the feature of it going back to stream by releasing the button, rather than having to turn the faucet off and then on again.

I have the Grohe Bridgeford and have used it for a couple years. The only time I wish it had that feature is when I'm rinsing off lettuce from my garden. It would be more convenient to use both hands as I'm washing (thoroughly) under the spray. However, it's not a big deal and the regular spray works just fine for this.

I don't regret this faucet at all. It IS ergonomic and sexy. ;)

We don't find it to be a detriment. We chose our Grohe Ladylux Cafe because it felt good in our hands, and ergonomically seemed like it would work really well (e.g. size-wise, getting inside smaller pots and pans, and the tight corners of our sink).

We didn't (still don't) LOVE the look of our faucet (they've since come out with a sleeker version), but for a kitchen workhorse, went with function over form. The need to hold down the spray button wasn't a big factor in that decision.

We often use hold down feature of the spray when rinsing produce. It allows me to have the faucet on spray and use two hands for other things. We wouldn't be happy with a spray button that had to be held down because it requires one hand to stay on the faucet.

I've had both and they both have their pros and cons. I think you adapt to whatever you have. Last faucet I had was push button to activate/deactivate spray. Current faucet is spray only when the lever pressed and the prep sink has a side spray.

I say get what you like, what feels good and you'll adapt. I was planning on a Grohe Bridgeford before going with a Waterstone. The Grohe is beautiful and was highly recommended by the plumbers I talked to.

Pooh's right, get what you like. There are lots of things to consider in addition to features like spray hold.

But to clarify from an earlier poster, although the Moen faucets go back to stream when the are turned off, you don't have to turn the water off and on again to switch to stream; you just push the same button again. There's also a separate "pause" button that I find handy sometimes.

You don't but I love my new Waterstone PLP - It does latch spray - and my DH loves it even more than I do!
Actually we both have a history of CTS (carpal tunnel), so like not having to hold on to the sprayer.
Basically - go with the faucet you like with the basic functionality that matches your specifications and enjoy!

Remember with a pull-out or pull-down faucet, you can leave the faucet head turned to spray while it's still seated on the faucet. You don't have to hold it at all. This leaves both your hands free, which is the most efficient way to perform many prep tasks, from defrosting peas to cleaning produce and meat. To me this is probably the critical feature of a pull-out or pull-down, and without the hold option, you might as well just get a sidespray. What's the point?

Another two-handed (or unattended) produce-washer here (Whitehaus Metrohaus).

I apparently didn't think about what I was typing when I wrote earlier that I had to hold the button on my Hansgrohe to keep it spraying. It keeps spraying *without pressing the button* until you turn it off with the handle. That would have been a lame situation indeed.