For the most part, we agreed many fitness enthusiasts would consider this texture to be acceptable. When making crushed ice, here the blender needed a bit of help. Simply crushing ice on its own wasn’t extremely effective (it got about half of it), but with even the smallest bit of liquid or water added it made it a much easier hamilton blender task. Compact Size for Small SpacesFor a blender that needs to be stored in tight quarters, consider a single-serve blender, since their footprint takes up the minimal amount of space. The jars are typically about 14 ounces, which can handle your morning protein shake as well as dressings, small batch salsas and more.
What I’m saying is, the Hamilton Beach Smoothie Maker is not ideal for tough jobs like processing thick blends or nut butters. The model number can be found at the bottom of the base on a silver sticker. Tuyet Pham is an award-winning Saigonese chef who believes that joy is the secret ingredient to delicious food. At Healthy Recipes 101, Tuyet personally tests and simplifies every recipe, ensuring maximum flavor with minimal effort. With a background at prestigious French restaurants P’TI Saigon and Le Corto, Tuyet knows how to make every dish exceptional.
As you know, blenders aren’t typically a very feature-rich appliance. They plug in, they turn on and off, and they blend things. This Hamilton Beach model is no exception — the presets are pretty much all it has to offer in the features department.
The overall design of the Hamilton Beach is simple, but the blending cup with a fixed blade assembly inside seems to be impractical if used as a to-go cup. The materials are only average, making the blender itself look fairly jerkwater and not catchy. We began the test by tossing all ingredients into the blending cup, then blending them until they came out smooth or until we hit the time limit (2 minutes). As such, we found this Hamilton Beach to be just mediocrely capable of preparing frozen fruit smoothies.
I used the blender for about a week and made smoothies every morning. I used frozen fruit, ice, as well as refrigerated fruit, yogurt and leafy greens. Plug in the base, and set the blending cup on top and lock it into place. One of the very convenient features of this blender is that the cup also doubles as a travel cup so once you’re done blending you can simply take it with you to go. The lid has a slider to keep from spilling anything both during blending and when you’re on the move.
That doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s lacking, though. If you’re a post-workout shake fan, the Magic Bullet may be somewhat of a disappointment. In our test, it could break down the oatmeal pretty well but somehow fell short when processing blueberries and almonds.
The Hamilton Beach wasn’t able to power through ice cubes, causing the final outcome to come out almost pristine, but this is typical for this type of personal blender. If you want fluffy, snow-like crushed ice or desire to incorporate ice into your smoothies, we recommend considering a higher-powered blender, such as the NutriBullet. We tested the Hamilton Beach against several low-range personal blenders, but this machine was surprisingly the only one that didn’t pass even a single test. With its weak motor and small blending blade, it failed to blend the foods completely, resulting in grainy, rough mixtures.
That’s the $39 Hamilton Beach Smoothie Smart Blender — and it’s an excellent option for all of your basic blending needs. As you can see, these Hamilton Blenders aren’t high-performance products. However, it’s good enough for making smoothies, protein shakes and performing basic food processing tasks. Read more about other budget personal blenders in our full guide. For other types of blenders we’ve tested, check the list of the Best Blenders in 2022.
Then, if the Hamilton Beach was successful, I would try to make almond butter. Its design simplicity plays directly into its usability. The lid has a spout so you don’t have to remove the whole top when you’re pouring a smoothie (or any other blended thing) into a container.
Designed to Make Less NoiseIf you are concerned about waking up the whole family when making your morning shake, keep an eye out for blenders designed to dampen the sound. Some come with a sound shield that covers the jar during blending. Others are built to have increased airflow around the motor and rubber-mounted components, which help dampen noise during blending.