Autopots have no waisted water from runoff or reservoir dumps, no pumps or water chillers, they have a wider PH range (5.6-6.2) even higher drifts upwards of 6.5-7ph they will still grow on.
I fill my reservoir at 5.6ph and it drifts up over a few days alot of times, I try to bring it back down once it gets of 6.2ph.
But many times it’s 6.5ph or more before I drop it nack and they dont miss a beat.
Getting the 1pot xl trays is best “imho” because they can be moved around and you can use any container that fits inside the tray.
I use all kinds from 3gal up to 7gal, plastic and fabric.
I use trash cans for reservoirs as they are way cheaper then a tank from autopots.
That’s a 31 gallon reservoir i got for $20
one this size from autopots is a couple hundred.Plus the trash can has wheels if I ever need to move it full.
Autopots useing an inert medium like coco-coir and perlite or expanded clay pebbles and synthetic nutrients is by far the easiest form of hydroponics as long as you follow a few basic rules.
- No organics!
- Water by hand from top till plants establish roots (first week or so). Once established and they are hooked to the reservoir, absolutely nothing goes in from the top!
This is very important as autopots are a “wicking hydroponics system”, meaning they wick the nutrient solution from the bottom and this builds “salts” or excess nutrients in the top layers of the media like this.
Notice the white stuff on the coco-coir and that clay pebble.
If anything gets poured in the top at this point, it’s absolutely going to cause issues if not complete lockout as it pushes the salts back down into the root zone.
I can go on and the pros all day, like they really are set it and forget it.
The only con I really see over a water only system is buying coco-coir 
It’s a good trade off imho though.
I sift out my clay pebbles and lots of the big chunky perlite and reuse it after I’ve washed it out.
That last picture is made from recycled glass and its called “buddystones”. They work the same as perlite or expanded clay pebbles but I think the company is out of business because I can’t find them online anymore. But they are easy to wash and reuse.
Check out my journal it you want to see them in action.