Hamilton Beach Blender for Smoothies with 5 Functions Including Auto Smoothie Cycle, Wave Action System for Ultra Smooth Results, 850 Watts, 40oz BPA Free Glass Jar, Stainless Steel (56208)

I love my smoothie blender. It's perfect. I use it every morning that I go to work, throw everything in there and hit start and put my lunch together and then its ready. I never have a problem with it blending up everything smoothly and it works really fast. Just make sure there's enough liquid in it. It's also really easy to clean and comes a part to go in the dishwasher. So I rinse it out every day and run it through the dishwasher once a week.

I got the blender to make my morning protein shake which is powder, almond milk, and ice cubes. I've also used it a few times to make fruit smoothies with chunks of fruit and it had no issue. I think it's absolutely perfect for what I wanted. I had another well-known brand that started smelling like motor oil and not working well. I then started using my big KitchenAid blender but the problem with that is that when it would start up on any speed it would throw the powder of the shake up into the nooks and crannies of the lid and sides of jar, even when I tried to mix it up before with a whisk. So I was interested in something that had less space for that to happen, but still powerful. This smoothie blender is actually engineered not only to be the right size for smoothies, but it has the same function the previous "well known brand" does - a smoothie button that runs for about 45 seconds and does a great job.***Also important to note- this blender has a three year warranty which is 2 years longer than all of the other brands I've looked at including the very popular and expensive ones.I can tell you they stand behind their products, because initially the lid I received with the blender had a slight tear at the bottom of the spout part. There was a seam there, and apparently it can separate on the old lid style, which is what I must have received. I reached out to Hamilton Beach and they were great about sending out a new lid at no cost to me. The replacement lid is different, so I'm assuming they updated the style. Like other reviewers have said, the lid I now have is somewhat difficult to get off but what I usually do is place the blender in the sink and then hold it against the sink wall while simultaneously removing the lid. It's a harder plastic than the initial lid I received. I'm guessing they changed the design because of issues with the old style splitting? Anyway, yes the lid is a little hard to get off, but I would rather have a lid that's hard to get off then a lid that falls off when you're pouring out your smoothie :-). Bottom line, this is a great blender that does what it is intended to do, it has a great warranty in the company stands behind their product. I think it's a great value!

I got this blender after much deliberation. I knew I didn’t want a plastic vessel but I didn’t want a large pitcher really either. Well, I couldn’t have both so I stuck with glass. My last blender died recently, it was a gift at my wedding in 2011, the blender lasted longer than the marriage, but I digress…all that to say, any comparisons made are on a teenage blender so keep that in mind.This blender is much lighter and quieter than my last one which is a huge plus for me. I’d have to plug my ears while blending in the old days. I greatly appreciate that while it IS larger than I need, it’s not so clunky and difficult to carry around from my cabinets to countertop. The only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars is because there’s no 4.5 option and the lid is kind of annoying. I wanted to throw in a handful of ice and I couldn’t just pop the lid off. I had to grab a bowl, put the ice in that, take the pitcher off the base and use both hands to remove the lid. Not convenient for quick recipe changes but I’m sure I’ll get used to that or at least be more prepared next time so I’m not freezing my hand off trying to get that dang lid removed.Anyway, this is my first Hamilton Beach product and so far, I’m pretty happy. The coffee smoothie I made for breakfast was indeed smooth so thanks!

My wife and I are great fans of smoothies. Especially in the summer when it’s just too hot to cook or even eat for that matter. We’ve been taking advantage of all the fresh fruits and vegetables that summertime has to offer along with all of our favorite ingredients to whip up our most popular smoothies. And our Hamilton Beach blender is just the best for this kind of fare.We went through 2 other blending devices in recent months before settling on the HB…again. Unfortunately the previous contraptions either burnt out or had so little of its advertised power, it wasn’t able to put a dent in the softest of bananas. One went south (yup, smoke rising from the base and other scary stuff you don’t want to see in a small kitchen appliance) when trying to crush the 3 pieces of ice I typically use in my smoothies. I realize now that I should have stuck with HB since, in prior years HB had always been dependable. But the allure of a super smoothie machine or a “powerful” hand held mixer got the better of me. But I digress.My advice? Save your money, time and frustration by sticking with what you know. Because a day without a pineapple, banana, and berry smoothie is like a day without a pineapple, banana, and berry smoothie. 😜