Hamilton Beach Classic Stand and Hand Mixer 4 Quarts 6 Speeds with QuickBurst Bowl Rest 290 Watts Peak

Update 6-1-19: I've been using this mixer on a regular basis for four years now. Just wanted to let everyone know how extremely pleased I am with it. In fact I changed my star rating from 4 to 5. The more I've used it, the more reliable I realize it is. Have had NO problems and it's done everything I've asked of it. I'm in my 70s and always wanted a Kitchen Aide mixer with some of the attachments but could never bring myself to spend that much money. Hand mixing and mashing was getting too hard for me and I didn't want to give up making certain recipes so decided to try this one. I can't imagine being happier with any other mixer. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go take my 1 pt Chocolate Banana Pumpkin Muffins out of the oven. Yummy!! -------- ------------------------- ------------------------------ ------------------------------ ---------- This Hamilton Beach stand mixer is a pleasant surprise. It's sturdy and sits solidly on the counter when in use. I would like to see the slowest speed a wee bit slower but aside from that the 6 speeds are helpful. I made cornbread last night. Although the bowl doesn't automatically spin on it's own, it only took a spin of the wrist to set it in motion. Yes, as mentioned in other reviews, I did use a spatula to clean down the sides a few times while it was mixing. I don't consider that a big deal at all. If you're a casual baker like me who doesn't work with really heavy dough all the time, you might find this is all you need. The mixer head can be removed easily to use as a hand held mixer. The base has a lever so you can have the bowl sitting in one of two positions. One position has the beaters closer to the center of the bowl and the second position has the beaters closer to the side of the bowl. It's not a Kitchen Aide but it's definitely a very nice mixer for the money. It has all the power I need. It's got a nice compact design. It's doesn't take up a lot of room on my small kitchen counter so I can leave it out for quick last minute use. All in all, I consider this a good buy and I think it will hold up. Read more

For several years I have had a VERY heavy and large Kitchenaid stand mixer that I've used many many times over the years that has been great yet at the same time, for me, a pain in the ass! I do bake, on occasion, and I do cook pretty much daily but the Kitchenaid unit wasn't worthy of taking up that much counter space. And that thing is soooo heavy that, when I put it away in one of my lower, taller cabinets... I found myself deciding not to use it because I don't need a hernia! and opted to use my lightweight hand mixer sometimes to get the job done. But sometimes you want a good mixer to do the job. Ugh So I decided finally to do something about that and found this little beauty here on Amazon. I really love this mixer! It's much much lighter weight and smaller. And what I love even more is that you can take the top unit off and use it as a hand mixer if need be. I bought this in the blue color. It's perfect for me! And the price was fantastic! I think I paid like $50. It's actually small enough that I can leave it on the counter if I choose to but it's lightweight and I can easily put it away or retrieve it without hurting myself. Yeahhh!! I received this only just earlier today but washed all the components right away and put it straight to use on a cake mix. It works fantastic and has plenty of power for what I like to make. I did mess around with the settings and stuff. Runs great! I saw some reviews about some who didn't like that the beaters don't go to the bottom of the bowl. I understand that, but it's an easy fix to place a small plate underneath the bowl while your mixing if that's a problem for you. It does lift the bowl up just high enough. I checked it out, and that does work. The beaters are not that far up away from the bottom. Only slightly. Honestly I didn't need to do that I just used my spatula to scoop as always. I'm not a professional baker. I'm just a grandma who likes to bake sometimes. Now I will actually bake more because this mixer is so much more user-friendly!My husband has already gave me a list of things he wants me to make. And now, because of this wonderful mixer, I won't mind. I wish I had bought this a long time ago but I had felt obligated with that $400 Kitchenaid macine sitting there in my cabinet... kept me from buy something like this. Like I would be a traitor or something. I'm selling my Kitchenaid machine and keeping this one! We'll see as time goes by how well this machine stands up. From what I can tell now it should last me a long time. It's well made and has great attachments. The mixing bowl is big enough for regular sized stuff like cake mixes or the like. I hope my review helps you if your on the fence. I mean, what's not to like? It's a great little machine and sturdy. If you're baking huge batches of cookies for the whole neighborhood all the time or for a business I doubt this would ever come close to what you need. Because this is your average light use mixer. If you're like me and you just whip up a cake or some homemade goodies sometimes, definitely get this! Even for stuff like whipping egg whites, this will be great! Now I'm excited again about making things I haven't made for a long time. It's great! Read more