Cleanblend Ultra Blender Low Profile Blender for Shakes and Smoothies - 40oz Compact Countertop Smoothie Maker - 8-Blade

I am not a high end chef, I make smoothies 2-3x per week so want a good blender but paying $499 for a blender seems ridiculous and way more than I need. If you are looking at this blender you probably feel the same and are wondering if this $99 blender is worth it. My advice: Get it. 1. Makes a good smoothie, better than the $200 Breville blender I have been using which had reached its useful life. I dont use blender for anything else except smoothies so cant speak to other uses. 2. Like the wide bottom pitcher, easy to clean. I run blender with some water and dish soap. 3. Like the smaller size, fits on counter under kitchen cabinets, easy to store. I am able to store this in a cabinet where the Breville didnt fit. 4. Powerful, manages frozen fruit and blends everything completely. I start on low setting then increase power. Hit the pulse button a few times. Voila. Thicker and better consistency than prior blender. 5. Like the cord storage on bottom. 6. Designed to look like the more expensive blender, seems sturdy, doesnt feel cheap or inexpensive. Sits in nice sweet spot between cheap blenders and the more high end ultra expensive blenders. Cons It is a little wobbly, I put my hand on top while blending. No timer, cant turn it on and walk away and have it turn off automatically like I could with Breville. Only had for a few weeks so cant speak to the longevity, seems sturdy and well built. Expecting it to last for a few years. For $99 I am not worrying that much. Happy with this purchase. Happy that I didnt pay $$$ for a high end appliance that is way more engineered and way more expensive than I want or need. Read more

Update after a couple months: dropping to 4 stars because of the difficulty of making a single portion. Still a great blender for making larger portions (2-4 people). Original review: This is an awesome blender. It is very powerful, blends quickly and thoroughly, and is easy to clean. This is not your standard kitchen-aid, it is an industrial blender like something you’d see in a smoothie shop. Size is perfect for 2-3 people and fits under my kitchen cupboard. Amazing with fruit, and very good with greens. Fruit smoothies: this is a beast, in under a minute everything is perfectly smooth. I have not needed to use the included plunger stick yet, just set speed to half-way, and pulse occasionally. Green smoothies: greens are hard for any blender, in the past I would need to juice greens separately to have a green smoothie (I’m too lazy to do that). This blender breaks kale leaves up to barely visible specs. Perhaps with patience, or more time, they would have become invisible specs, but as I said, I’m lazy. As it was there is no feeling of grittiness in the smoothie. For me, this passes the test on green smoothies. Capacity and size: Perfect for 2-3 portions. I think you could do smoothies for 4 people, but if that is your plan, maybe get the version with the bigger jar. I really like that this fits under a cupboard in the kitchen (about 16.5 inches with lid on). My wife and I will fill it up about 1/2 to 2/3 full (so less than half full when blended). It does not do well with single portions, which is the only flaw I can find with it. Noise: It is loud, but not as bad as I feared. It is really hard to describe noise- it is loud, but not vacuum-cleaner-loud. For reference, my cat was eating on the floor when I started making a smoothie. Instead of teleporting to another room as a frightened cat is wont to do, she gave me an angry look, grabbed a mouthful of food, and then ran away. While louder than a cheap blender, it isn’t as distractingly loud since it is a fair constant low sound, instead of the modulating high pitched whine that motors make when pushed beyond their limits. Cleaning: Very easy to clean. There are no parts to take apart, the blades are permanently attached to the jar. I like this as it seems like there are fewer places for nasty stuff to hide. I just put some water in it and blend for a few seconds. If I used nut-butter in the smoothie, I’ll add some dish soap to the water and maybe wipe down the sides with a sponge. The blades are not super sharp, so it you do have to reach down there, you probably won’t cut yourself. The only real question most people will have is “is it as good as a vitamix?” I can’t really answer that, as it has been years since I’ve used a vitamix. I was considering a vitamix, and have no regrets about getting this for far less money. The consistency of the smoothies seems to me as good as you can get from a smoothie shop. Whether it is as good or not, this meets and exceeds my needs and I’m really happy with it. Read more

I had been pricing, researching and contemplating high powered blenders for a while (a couple of years- it takes me a long, long time to commit to a big ticket purchase. Probably to a fault.) I wanted a quality blender that would really break down tough, fibrous greens and veggies into -smooth- smoothies, primarily. The price tags on the two major luxury blenders caused me pause. I understand that their warranties are substantial, but honestly that's a large chunk of money to plop down up front. When I saw the price of the Cleanblend and all of the positive reviews, I was skeptical, but overall decided that I was happy enough with the specs and price point to take a chance. I have gotten exactly what I was looking for with my Cleanblend, and I am thrilled that I purchased it. It get the job done well and has become a fixture in my daily routine. Fruit-and-veggie smoothies are just as good if not better than those I used to buy at Juice Generation - who I believe use Vitamix blenders. I have used it every day since purchasing a month ago. The interface of the Cleanblend is simple and, well, clean. Clean-up is simple, as well. Just add a little dish soap, water, and blend. Wipe the base with a damp cloth. I have not yet used it for functions other than blending up a smoothie, milkshake or a "bulletproof" coffee, so I could not speak to that yet, but I do plan to attempt nut butter some time in the near future and will happily edit my review to reflect the results. Read more

If you’re looking for a powerful and reliable blender that can even crush ice with an unheard of “5 Year” warranty, then this could well be the right choice for you. For what I paid, it was no more expensive than others I tried that had great claims, but lacked in performance, and one leaked after the second use ! I highly recommend. Read more