Product Description

Rock solid with plenty of juice, what more could you want in a blender? Constructed from good-looking, hard-wearing cast metal, this blender also features a glass jar with a generous 50 ounce capacity. Crush ice? Piece of cake. The simple controls and dishwasher safe parts make operation and cleaning easy and convenient. A three year warranty backs this blender up, and a recipe booklet full of luscious entries such as Chilled Melon & Mango Soup and Creme Caramel Shake will make this your new favorite kitchen partner.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #15284 in Kitchen & Housewares
• Color: Brushed Stainless Steel
• Brand: Cuisinart
• Model: CBT-500
• Dimensions: 8.25" h x 10.00" w x 14.50" l, 12.24 pounds

Features

• Heavy die-cast metal base prevents jumping
• Digital count-up timer; flashing LED lights
• 50-ounce glass jar with durable plastic handle
• Measures 9-3/8 by 8-1/2 by 16-1/2 inches

Amazon.com Review
Super powerful, this handsome 600-watt blender effortlessly crushes ice to perfect margarita or daiquiri consistency. The heavy die-cast metal base with brushed stainless finish sits in place and won’t jump around, even when the blender is working hard. Sharp precision blades mince even small amounts of herbs and garlic, and the blade unit unscrews for easy cleaning. The wide-mouth 50-ounce glass jar with durable, metal-look plastic handle and base is perfect for puréeing soups or whipping up smoothies. A digital count-up timer displays automatically when blending begins, and LED lights flash red when the power and speed buttons are pushed. Operation is very simple: there are two speeds, high and low, for regular blending or pulsing, and a separate button for ice crushing. Ingredients can be added midstream through the top. The blender stands 16 inches tall, and is covered by a limited three-year warranty. --Ann Bieri

Customer Reviews

Reinforce your counters
I have yet to see a blender do everything perfectly. This blender isn't likely to go very far on your counter; maybe not because you'll use it all the time, but because it's a pain to lift. Good if you have dedicated bar space, but you'd like to be able to use it for regular kitchen work too. I don't really use a blender for chopping, the knife and kitchen robot are better for me, but for liquids it's the way to go.

Questionable features are the digital timer and flashing lights, I don't know about Cuisinart's forays into electronics. I would expect those things to fail before the motor. And why a glass jar with a "durable" plastic handle, huh? As if they were trying to save weight on this one. It's some unnecessary cost-cutting that lowers the robustness a bit and makes cleaning a little trickier.

Separate ice crushing button and being able to add things through the top are both helpful features, and the warranty is excellent, they will usually stand by their products.

Smells like burning tires!
We've had our Cuisinart for over a year and use it infrequently. One of the reasons why it gets so little use is the size and the weight. This is a heavy, heavy blender. And while I normally equate heavy industrial kitchenware with quality, in this case, I'm afraid Cuisinart has let us down. I never stress the motor on our model, yet even blending salad dressing, I get a faint whiff of burning rubber or... There is also an issue with the actual glass, the lip of the blender is so wide that pouring liquids is a pain--tons of spills. I have a feeling that Cuisinart's best men/women were out to lunch the day this design was passed. Maybe we can blame it on the interns. And while pictures of the product look nice, seeing the thing sitting on my counter, well, it's so large and bulky that that is exactly how it looks: Large and Bulky. No real elegance and it's not funky cool the way KitchenAid mixers are. Seems to me we got more longevity and easier use out of my cheaper model that I tossed to make way for this one.

A Glorious Smoothie Machine, But...
I had this unit for two weeks and used it once, or sometimes twice a day. It makes glorious smoothies! Unfortunately, it's so noisy that you can't speak to someone standing next to you without shouting (96db at the operating position, if you care). It's impractical: there are lots of little nooks & crannies for food to be trapped in. It can't pour for @#%*... who designed that jar?! But it makes glorious smoothies!

One morning I was admiring the glorious smoothie process when I thought I heard a change in the motor's pitch. My nostrils began to detect a delicious toasted aroma. Little-by-little the smell grew more-and-more acrid, until I realized that a delicate haze was permeating the kitchen. I switched off the blender and lifted the jar, only to see a cloud of black smoke waft into the room. Had I burned out the motor? No! The little high-speed spindle that rotates the blades inside the jar had over-heated and melted the plastic surround! When the plastic was gooey, it slowed the motor down -- once it had cooled, it fused solid, hopelessly locking the motor.

It's going back to the store, where I'll ask for a replacement. Why am I bothering to replace an impractical, noisy, poorly designed fire-starter? Well, it might be a one-off... and did I mention the glorious smoothies?