I got this for my 17 year old son to make smoothies. He made the most delicious peach smoothie from ice and the Big Train Fruit Tea Smoothie Blast syrup also bought on Amazon. The consistency was smooth and perfect, just like a professional frozen drink. I asked him to make me one. On the second smoothie the motor died. We thought maybe it needed a little “rest” but sadly, it was the end of the road for that blender. When pressed for details, my son admitted that he noticed a burning smell before the motor stopped dead, and yet he kept pressing that button! Bottom line: great design, lightweight, nice personal cup size, easy storage and cleanup. The motor is just not very powerful, and can’t take long blending times. Still, we are going to order a replacement and see if a bit more TLC while blending gives this blender better shelf life. Seems like it worked for some of the other reviewers.
Update: we got the new blender and it is working out great. You just have to be careful to pulse the blender as you go along, and stop for a few seconds (10?) if you start to smell the motor smell. Ice is blended into drinks very well, with no big chunks. The only downside is the no dishwasher requirement. I feel pretty tempted to try it, but as this is already the second blender I will resist.
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I was looking for an inexpensive small personal blender that was powerful, easy to use, and could blend a perfect smoothie. I did a lot of research and looked into about a dozen other brands including the famed “Magic Bullet”. What I found out was that not all personal blenders are made equal. The “Magic Bullet” didn’t get very good reviews even though it is by far the most popular. After all my intense research, I settled on this one… The Hamilton Beach Single Serve Blender. Here’s the scoop on what makes this surprising blender the “cream of the crop” 🙂
Pros:
-Simple and easy to use -Easy to Clean -Powerful enough to chop frozen fruits (and probably ice too) -Pulse button allows you more control because you can start or stop it. -Seems very sturdy and only has 3 parts to it. (lid, glass, and base) -This thing is freaking cheap… got mine for $15. -Blends Smoothies perfectly with no unchopped pieces of fruit. -Power cord can be tucked in and wrapped around bottom of base for storage.
Cons: -Emits a slight ‘burnt oil’ odor while it is in operation… but it’s not as bad as it sounds. -The Lid seems kind of flimsy.
Conclusion: At $15 this little blender is not only a bargain, it gets the job done and does it well! In fact, it works just as well as my friend’s personal blender which costs more than twice the amount I spent on this one. The elegance and simplicity of the design is also to be admired. The plastic blending container also doubles as a travel mug and the Lid to it doubles as a sipping lid when used as a travel mug. It’s a nice surprise to see a product in which you can see that they put a lot of thought into it’s design. It’s positive aspects greatly outshine the few negatives… especially when considering the price. So if you need an amazing blender but you’re on a budget, pick this one up and never look back! By the way, this thing is also available elsewhere… like “Wally World” and “Target” …and at the same low price 🙂
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I’m about to buy my 3rd one. I’ve got one at home, and one I take on the road with me. I’m buying a new one because the one I’ve had for a little over a year has finally gotten a small crack at the bottom and leaks slightly; I don’t know if it’s because I had stored it for a short time in sub-freezing temperatures, or just because I’ve used it until it cracked. Who cares? It’s $12, that comes out to a buck a month. I use it anywhere from 2-10 times a week, depending on how warm it is and what I’m in the mood for.
I was reading some of the other reviews complaining about several things, and I wanted to address my thoughts on those issues after having used one of these for about 2 years.
Leaking around the lid: I just now filled it 3/4 full of water to test it out, since I usually make smoothies or shakes with it, and they are much too thick to leak. Yes, it will leak a bit around the slide cover of the travel lid, if you are blending thin liquids. It wasn’t very bad, and if you hold your hand over the lid it won’t get everywhere. All I can think of is that some of the reviewers aren’t snapping the lid on completely and it’s leaking around it. I’ve never had a smoothie leak through or around the lid.
Not blending anything solid/only blending stuff on the bottom. People, if your mixture is too thick, it can’t get down to the bottom to blend up correctly. A large kitchen blender will blend thicker stuff because (a) it’s got a more powerful motor, and (b) a much larger blending container. When you are using this, it’s better to put the liquids in first, and then the harder stuff up top; otherwise, you are going to have a very thick mixture on the bottom that can’t rotate up and let the thinner stuff down. This isn’t a design defect, it’s just physics and the way things are. When I make smoothies, I put the ice in last, and it grinds up large chunks of ice very smoothly. If it’s still a bit too thick to blend up, I add a bit more milk or juice or whatever so it will work properly. Once it gets going, it has a nice whirlpool effect and everything gets blended well.
As far as the smoking motors, I have had no problem with either of mine. You can smell the motor bushings when you use it, but it’s the same smell you get from every electric motor, just ask anyone who owned a model train as a kid. I only blend for less than 20 secs at a time, so maybe that’s why I have never burned the motor up. You can’t leave it going continuously like you might a large kitchen blender.
People, this is a one serving blender, and for $12, you get more than what you pay for. I’m sure there are better ones out there, but not for even twice the price of this one; if I have to buy a new one every year, I can live with that. You can’t compare it to a full sized kitchen blender and expect it to do everything the big one does. I thought about taking one star from it for a couple of things I would recommend changing about it (I think a blending lid would be a good idea, and it would make it easier to clean if you could separate the blades from the bottom), but in the end I decided that I couldn’t expect those things from, once again, a $12 blender.
In conclusion, it does what it professes to do (makes smoothies and shakes), does it very well if used properly, and does it for what I consider to be a bargain price. That should be the gold standard for 5 stars, in my humble opinion.
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Great design, go easy on the motor, though,
Update: we got the new blender and it is working out great. You just have to be careful to pulse the blender as you go along, and stop for a few seconds (10?) if you start to smell the motor smell. Ice is blended into drinks very well, with no big chunks. The only downside is the no dishwasher requirement. I feel pretty tempted to try it, but as this is already the second blender I will resist.
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|Awesome and Perfect for Smoothies!!!,
Pros:
-Simple and easy to use
-Easy to Clean
-Powerful enough to chop frozen fruits (and probably ice too)
-Pulse button allows you more control because you can start or stop it.
-Seems very sturdy and only has 3 parts to it. (lid, glass, and base)
-This thing is freaking cheap… got mine for $15.
-Blends Smoothies perfectly with no unchopped pieces of fruit.
-Power cord can be tucked in and wrapped around bottom of base for storage.
Cons:
-Emits a slight ‘burnt oil’ odor while it is in operation… but it’s not as bad as it sounds.
-The Lid seems kind of flimsy.
Conclusion:
At $15 this little blender is not only a bargain, it gets the job done and does it well! In fact, it works just as well as my friend’s personal blender which costs more than twice the amount I spent on this one. The elegance and simplicity of the design is also to be admired. The plastic blending container also doubles as a travel mug and the Lid to it doubles as a sipping lid when used as a travel mug. It’s a nice surprise to see a product in which you can see that they put a lot of thought into it’s design. It’s positive aspects greatly outshine the few negatives… especially when considering the price. So if you need an amazing blender but you’re on a budget, pick this one up and never look back! By the way, this thing is also available elsewhere… like “Wally World” and “Target” …and at the same low price 🙂
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|Great little blender for the price.,
I was reading some of the other reviews complaining about several things, and I wanted to address my thoughts on those issues after having used one of these for about 2 years.
Leaking around the lid: I just now filled it 3/4 full of water to test it out, since I usually make smoothies or shakes with it, and they are much too thick to leak. Yes, it will leak a bit around the slide cover of the travel lid, if you are blending thin liquids. It wasn’t very bad, and if you hold your hand over the lid it won’t get everywhere. All I can think of is that some of the reviewers aren’t snapping the lid on completely and it’s leaking around it. I’ve never had a smoothie leak through or around the lid.
Not blending anything solid/only blending stuff on the bottom. People, if your mixture is too thick, it can’t get down to the bottom to blend up correctly. A large kitchen blender will blend thicker stuff because (a) it’s got a more powerful motor, and (b) a much larger blending container. When you are using this, it’s better to put the liquids in first, and then the harder stuff up top; otherwise, you are going to have a very thick mixture on the bottom that can’t rotate up and let the thinner stuff down. This isn’t a design defect, it’s just physics and the way things are. When I make smoothies, I put the ice in last, and it grinds up large chunks of ice very smoothly. If it’s still a bit too thick to blend up, I add a bit more milk or juice or whatever so it will work properly. Once it gets going, it has a nice whirlpool effect and everything gets blended well.
As far as the smoking motors, I have had no problem with either of mine. You can smell the motor bushings when you use it, but it’s the same smell you get from every electric motor, just ask anyone who owned a model train as a kid. I only blend for less than 20 secs at a time, so maybe that’s why I have never burned the motor up. You can’t leave it going continuously like you might a large kitchen blender.
People, this is a one serving blender, and for $12, you get more than what you pay for. I’m sure there are better ones out there, but not for even twice the price of this one; if I have to buy a new one every year, I can live with that. You can’t compare it to a full sized kitchen blender and expect it to do everything the big one does. I thought about taking one star from it for a couple of things I would recommend changing about it (I think a blending lid would be a good idea, and it would make it easier to clean if you could separate the blades from the bottom), but in the end I decided that I couldn’t expect those things from, once again, a $12 blender.
In conclusion, it does what it professes to do (makes smoothies and shakes), does it very well if used properly, and does it for what I consider to be a bargain price. That should be the gold standard for 5 stars, in my humble opinion.
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