Hamilton Beach Portable Blender for Shakes and Smoothies, 14 Oz BPA Free Travel Cup & Lid, Durable Stainless Steel Blades, Personal Smoothie Blender, Tranquil Blue (51172)

98% of the videos I watched of ppl complaining abt this product were bc they weren’t using it correctly!! I honestly wish I could msg them & tell them that! First thing I saw, they were saying the cup wouldn’t stay in the base to blend. YOU HAVE TO TURN IT & LOCK IT INTO PLACE! There’s a pic of a lock & unlock on the bottom of the cup & u set it in on the unlock & turn it to lock. The 2nd one was saying the lid would just sit on top so liquid would leak out. No, the lid actually fits on very well, maybe a lil too well, & it’s hard to get on. U rly have to work at getting it on but once it’s on, it’s on, & it won’t leak! Then prob the most important one, YOU MUST ADD LIQUID TO BLEND IN THIS MACHINE!!! U can’t just add fruit or vegetables & expect it to blend without adding any liquid. That’s not how this one works. If that’s what ur looking for u need a veg chopper & not this. This is geared towards a smoothie maker! There is a minimum liquid marker at the bottom & u have to add at LEAST this amt of liquid to start with & ur prob going to need more! Also, blend in stages. Don’t cram the whole thing full to the top & again expect it to blend. Here I added almond milk, frozen bananas & blended it & then added the rest of my frozen fruit & MORE LIQUID, blended & ended up stirring some & added more liquid. U may have to stir it up a lil or if ur lid is on tight & correctly while it’s blending, u can tilt it to side to side, front to back, & get ur ingredients moved around. This is also made to pulse the products & run for short periods of time. One review said she ONLY ran hers for 10-15 min & didn’t know why it started smelling funny!! Umm hello! U can’t run this lil thing that long! It’s not made to go for 15min at a time. This is an amazing lil smoothie maker if u use it correctly. This is actually my 2nd one bc I lost my 1st one & had to repurchase another one. Again, don’t use it for anything ur not adding liquids to bc it won’t work. If ur just wanting something to chop fruit & vegetables then get one of those lil choppers for that. This won’t work. If ur looking for something to make smoothies, iced coffe, soups, or anything like that then I highly recommend this!!

So I use this to make dog treats. I blend up my ingredients and pour into freezer molds. Since I got this blender I have easily made at least 20 batches of treats in varying quantities, and it has done excellently. The hardest thing thats gone in has been frozen blue berries, im not sure how ice would do but I can't imagine it would be a problem. It's quiet, efficient, and one "full" container is a perfect portion for what I need. You do definitely have to pay attention to the minimum liquid line otherwise it won't do much, but even if you're a little over the top line it still blends everything very thoroughly. It's easy to clean if you don't use super thick ingredients. My only problems with it are really to be expected for a $20 blender. The blade is built in to the cup, so depending on what you blend it might be hard to clean. The lid can also be a pain to pry off at first but as I've used it I've gotten used to the amount of force you put behind it. Even if it kicked the bucket tomorrow I have definitely got my money's worth and I will probably pick up another one if/when this one goes out.

Giving 4 stars instead of 5 as we are currently on our 4th blender over the years.. Typical length of use is 2 yrs, fyi, with regular use. Ours have broken for various reasons.. 2 for the container itself splitting and 1 for the blades detaching from the cup. Motor itself seems to stand up though. Great for smoothies and making small batches of batter.

So I picked up this little guy to replace the one I had before, right? I've been on this whole health kick thing lately. You know, the smoothies with the fruit, the protein, the chia seeds, all that good-for-you stuff. Here’s what I like: It’s small and doesn't hog up the counter like some big clunky thing. Holds just under 14 ounces, which is perfect for a quick shake. One button. That’s it. No nonsense. The lid snaps on nicely and doesn’t leak all over the joint. And cleanup? Super easy. Now, the not-so-great stuff: You gotta watch the fruit size. You throw in big frozen chunks of mangos, whatever it ain’t gonna break ‘em down too good. And listen, if you don’t add enough liquid up to that minimum fill line, those powders? They clump up like cement; they stick to the sides ah no good. But the bottom line? I’m happy with it. Works good, does what it’s supposed to.

This blender functions very well there is one button/speed but it does a good job blending by my frozen fruits and ice.

I purchased this after reading the great reviews because I was tired of spending forever cleaning a big blender when I just wanted a quick smoothie. It took longer to clean the blender than it did to make the smoothie itself, and it was always a chore! This was the best $15 I ever spent. It arrived within just a few days, well before the suggested date (but I also live in a city with a warehouse on the outskirts, so this is pretty par for course as far as delivery times go). The box had no damage to it at all, and the personal blender arrived in perfect condition. Set up was a breeze, literally just putting the blender on the base and the lid on the blender after washing. It took me five minutes from when I got it to when I made my first smoothie. So much less time consuming! I was glad I read the reviews about how to work it properly, and I avoided holding the button down. Instead, I pulsed the blender rather than blending everything all at once. Due to this, I've had no issues with overheating or any weird smells at all. It helps to add plenty of liquid, though I will admit that it took me a couple of tries to find the perfect amount. I usually use frozen fruit, yogurt, milk, and protein powder with some spinach and it never has any issues chopping anything up. When in doubt, I add a little bit at a time so I don't overwhelm the motor or the blade. All in all, I have absolutely no complaints about this product. In fact, I love it! I am so happy that I can have a smoothie every morning, and that it only takes me a minute or two to clean it out before it's ready for use again. While this is not dishwasher safe, the fact that it doesn't take long to clean by hand means that it's not that big of a deal to purchase despite its lack of ability to be washed in a dishwasher. Edited May 2017: So I haven't actually had this for a couple of years now. I wound up purchasing the Oster personal blender, which is a breeze to use and clean. It takes up less counter space, is dish washer safe, and is well worth the extra $10 just to feel less gross about the blades which I never felt like I could get clean enough. My husband liked the Oster personal blender so much that he kept stealing it until I purchased a new cup for him. Just spend the extra money, it'll last you longer and it's so much less of a hassle.

I love these things. They wear out after like 2-3 years but they're super handy while they last as they are much easier to clean and store than a full size blender, and the price point is hard to quibble over. Not too noisy, with surprising blendability and capacity--good for cooking for 2 people.

Overall great so far, crushes ice as good as a large ninja, much easier to use/less bulky, easy on the go just mix and take the cup with you. One major flaw and fair warning watch the lid, it does not twist on, latches very loosely. It can very easily come off as you're drinking or picking it up and when carrying in a tote etc. That'll be a big mess if you're not careful.