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A friend of mine got the Magic Bullet for making baby food. She had a full-size blender but found the Bullet much simpler--and it was small enough she could leave it out on the counter.

my friend has this. i dunno how i feel about it. usually i am wary of as-seen-on-tv stuff.

I was just talking the magic bullet up to my friend in NY this past weekend. She had a brand new one in her drawer and was unsure about it.

I told I got one for free at the restaurant and used it every day until it burned out (I think it lasted 3 months!) That's like 3 household years.

The little thing reminds me of a household PacoJet. When you say it ripped through the ice to create an almost ice cream like texture it is because of its super sharp blades and fast rpms.

The PacoJet http://www.pacojet.com/html/en/pacojet.htm turns at something like 2000 rpm (that's almost $2.00 per rpm).

this is one of the only as-seen-on-tv products that i have even been tempted to buy. the guacamole section of the infomercial gets me every time, even though it's not hard to make it by hand. i don't know what it is, but it appeals to me. alas, i already have a blender and a food processor so i can't remotely justify purchasing the magic bullet.

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I love the infommercial. Who knew you can make alfredo sauce in under 3 seconds? Dinner doesn't have to be a production anymore. At least not with the Magic Bullet!

I LOVE the Magic Bullet!! My parents bought one for their house in Oklahoma, their house in California, their RV, and for each one of their three children! It's so easy to make a smoothie for breakfast in the morning with just frozen fruit and yogurt. In short, I love the thing.

I love my magic bullet. It was great in college because we had little room, and even now, its good when you only are making a milkshake for one.

I love the fake party on the infomercial. Especially when they make nachos with a horrible looking cheese sauce and someone says "Let's get this party started!" I fear the direction this party may take when the camera stop rolling.

And I forgot the disturbing comfort lip rings.

i got one from my bf's mom when i moved out by myself. i like how i can leave it on the counter top, how easy it is to use and clean up. plus it is great for one person. i never made smoothies etc when i lived with my family because we had a huge blender...not worth the trouble of getting it out and cleaning the huge thing for one drink.

i should say i was totally against the magic bullet before i got it because it is an 'as-seen-on tv' product. i was convinced it was lies. I still say the knife that cuts concrete is lies no matter how much the bf wants one.

I always wanted one. But then again I too belive that knife will cut thru concete :). I don't trust myself as i want every new item to come out.


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Mine broke after three uses. For the same money (or much less, according to Consumer Reports), you can get a real blender.

I was also skeptical since it was in one of those TV infomercials, but when my mom got it for me for Christmas, I used it and have loved it ever since.
I think it's an excellent starter blender. Sure, you may want to move up to a real or powerhouse blender in a few years, but I find that it is more than adequate for my needs of making green smoothies, frapping coffee drinks and grinding flax seed to name a few of its tasks.
I also like how easy it is to clean, as compared to most blenders. No hauling the huge contraption to the sink with awkward scrubbing techniques.

Is it really better than a high end stick blender (you know, the kind that you can hold in one hand, stick in a pot of soup and puree)? My braun stick came with a little container attachment that works like a mini food processor. I use it all the time. Somehow, I think a stick blender is much more useful than this gizmo, since you can make shakes, mayo, or puree with it in any pot or bowl you choose, AND use it as a mini food processor (for those times you need to mince a few onions or a chicken breast, and don't want to haul out the big cuisinart).

i like mine, but the way they advertise it is as a blender and a food processor. I never got the hang of the "pulsing". I would end up shaking the thing and it would be puree at the bottom and chunks at the top. so as long as you see it as a blender you'll love it.

I just got rid of mine. I got it as a gift two years ago, used it twice and hated it. It sat in my closet because I was too guilty to get rid of a gift.

My roommate has one, and when I tried it I can't believe that it works so well. Eventually it wore down, but my roommate just bought a new one from a store (it was much cheaper than $55) and then a few days later returned the old/broken one with the new receipt. I know it's not right, but she said the old one had something wrong to begin with, that's why it didn't last longer....
I'm moving out, and I'm buying one for myself from a store (Bed Bath Beyond, Target...) and return it if it has some problem. It really works!

favourite infomercial of all time

I buy infomercial products for a large electronic retailer so I see all of the As Seen On TV items. This is one of the great ones. I recently set up my Magic Bullet 2Go and it is amazing! Perfect to take to the pool with the girls! Can we say strawberry margaritas?!

I have a full-size blender, a stick blender (we call it the "boat motor") AND the Magic Bullet and I have to say we use the Magic Bullet the most. It's a great size and it's super easy to clean: just put a drop of soap in it with hot water and blend it and everything gets clean and you don't have to even use a sponge.

i've been wanting one forever. in college my friends and i taped to the infomercial. that was probably an altered decision, but in any case, we all had bullet envy. now i'm going to go get one. they have them at our local cvs... there's a whole little section of as-seen-on-tv stuff there... is this true of anyone else's?

I am more than a little embarrassed to admit that sometimes when there's nothing else on tv, I occasionally see the magic bullet infomercial in the tv guide listings and intentionally switch to that channel to watch it.
I know, I know.

I've got a full-sized blender and an immersion blender. I hate my big blender. If I got the magic bullet, could I toss the full-sized one?

I went berzerk and paid the extra -- what? $50? -- or so to get a 2nd one when I bought mine, because I have a friend who I was sure would love it; we both did at first, and I STILL love mine, in theory, but haven't used it very much, because I never quite got in the habit of it.

But then, the only food preparation I do at home tends to stick to making toast in the toaster, pouring milk on cereal, boiling water for iced green tea, throwing a roast chicken from Associated onto a plate to eat it, and sometimes heating up the contents of a doggy bag.

So, it's not the magic bullet's fault that I don't use it much. Because, I have to say that it really does work beautifully; it makes amazing smoothies. And they really are smoothe.

LOVE mine....I too was sucked in by the guac and alfredo allure of the infomercial, but I do love and use it often. I think that I use it to finely dice garlic more than anything else, but I use it several times a week!

I LOVE MINE..

If you already have a blender, but don't want to fork over $55 for a Magic Bullet, make your own. The ring that holds the blades for blender and screws onto the glass pitcher is the same size as the opening of a mason jar. I've tried this with two blenders, so I assume the size is standard. Instead of the big glass pitcher, I now just screw on canning jars that I have lying around because most of the stuff I blend tends to fit in them. They're about 10x easier to clean and take up a lot less space in the drying rack or dishwasher. In fact, I'm pretty sure whoever invented the Magic Bullet figured out this very same thing and decided to sell it.

@louiedog,

you so smart.

I'm going to try this immediately.

One of the nice things though about the bullet is the way it is activated--just by pushing down on the jar. And the jars are plastic--no danger of breakage.

I finally got the Bullet as a gift for Christmas. It's really convenient for my small kitchen. Don't use it religiously but when I do it's for coffee drinks, alcohol drinks, protein shakes/smoothies, and occasionaly to grind coffee.

Surprised how it crushes ice cubes. Nice little gadget!

@art

Breakage is the only thing I've ever worried about, and I haven't put ice in it. I'm not too scared using it for breadcrumbs, coconut chutney, all fruit smoothies, etc. I also never turn it up to high speed.

The Magic Bullet people sell extra cups, I bet they'd fit. But, at the price, you might as well buy a complete system. I know my plastic Trader Joe's peanut butter jar fits, but it doesn't feel as tight so I haven't tried it yet. The plastic isn't that thick either, so again it may not be a good idea to put ice in it.

Hmmm, it chops ice that well, huh? I didn't think I *needed* one before, but I might now that I know that.

In other infomercial news, I watched the one for this thing twice this weekend. I really want one. http://www.gtxpress.com/
Its like a giant version of those sandwich maker things from when I was a kid. I swear thats the same woman in the infomercial too.

I found a Magic Bullet at a yard sale for $5. I got so excited that the seller raised the price to $10, which I still consider a steal. I use it all the time, and I adore it. I find it has more utility than my stick blender, but I use then for very different functions. I lost the blender attachment, so if any of you naysayers want to get rid of yours...

I got a "smoothie kit" for my old-skool 20-year-old Oster blender, which consists of a smoothie-sized plastic jar that fits onto the base, upside down, so all you have to do is turn it over, pull off the blades, and stick a straw in it. I couldn't bring myself to buy yet another appliance but I was sick of cleaning the giant blender jar when I wanted a smoothie or a frozen margarita.

Plus it was like $20 instead of $50.

I have tried my Magic Bullet Express many times. Every time it has leaked to the point that whatever is in there winds up in the machine and on the counter and floor.

I know I am attaching the lid correctly and tightly. I have checked that every time after the first flood (orange juice and organic raspberries). I've even tried it with just water, shaking the heck out of the cup with the blades screwed on. It didn't leak a drop until I attached it to the base. Then, the flood.

Off to go clean up the last stick messy from the Magic Mess Maker!

My SO watches in rapt fascination every time the Magic Bullet informercial comes on and has done so for years. I finally broke down and ordered it for her for the holidays.

I'm happy to hear so many positive reviews. We currently have two big blenders, and I think this one is going to replace them, based entirely on the size of it; plus if it crushes ice the way y'all report that it does, I'm sure it will be used all the time.

However. I am currently knocking my head against a wall Charlie Brown-style, having found the same product available on Amazon for about $50 and FREE shipping. I stupidly bought the pair of them, thinking I had either to get two or get none, for $100--PLUS the $40 "shipping and handling." Man, I feel violated.

Don't be like me. Go to Amazon, not buythebullet.com.

Hope we enjoy the damn thing now. Shoot.

I have a tiny apt with no space for a lot of appliances my magic bullet does the duty of a blender and a food processor. I bought my magic bullet at walmart after using it at my Aunt's house. I've used it to make blended coffee drinks (it DOES do ice really well), smoothies, pesto, cookie crusts, faux mashed potatoes (cauliflower cream cheese blended smooth), salsa, gazpacho, and even whipped cream. It's just the right size for cooking for one or two people.

I knew I needed one...

mine lasted for about 2 years and a tiny part broke (the part from the motor that spins the blade). i probably could have avoided that if i didn't try to pull the cup out immediately while the blade was still spinning. so, i felt it was pretty sturdy and excellent for foodies w/ tiny kitchens.

it was great and i'd get it again. i made crepe batter, whipped cream, pesto, smoothies, milkshakes... you could probably do a nice bean dip or hummus. i'm not sold on the alfredo or cheese dips from the informercial. i bet salad dressings would be great in this or even homemade mayo if you were careful!

Mine does not chop through ice the way that the rest of you describe :[
Maybe I'm using the wrong type of ice cubes?
What am I doing wrong?

i hate to disagree with a much-trusted Kitchn editor.....but, we bought one of these and absolutely HATED it. every time we used it--even just to whir a quick tomato sauce--it smelled as if the motor was burning up. and what a racket! blending anything with ice was not even an option. this, and all its various accouterments (there were MANY), wound up at the thrift store about one month after we purchased it. we've been blender-less for about six months now. sad story!

@plumeria -- are you making a drink or just crushed ice? I've been making my blended coffee drinks with regular ice cubes from standard ice cube trays. I pulse it, take it out and shake the drink to make sure the large chunks go towards the bottom, and pulse again till it's uniform.

If you're just doing crushed ice, maybe try adding a tiny bit of water so you get a bit of slush going.

I really like my Magic Bullet. I confess I have never seen the infomericial. I mostly use it to grind coffee beans, make smoothies (including ice) and whipping cream and it does all that very well. I think a good compliment to it would be a stick blender for soups and larger quanitites but I want that really expensive Swiss one - the Bamix I think it is called - and have not been able to justify it yet.

I got one for making smoothies, but it doesn't do very well with ice at all. Just sort of noisily chomps it up and it takes about 5 minutes to get them into reasonably-sized pieces with only a few big chunks. I rarely use it for anything else because the base half is such a pain to clean effectively and it gets sticky and gross. Also, it doesn't chop very well unless whatever you put in the cup is very wet. It just sticks to the sides and mocks you in your torment.

Always wanted one of these, but I can't justify having another appliance (especially in my mini-kitchen) when I already have a stick blender. My friend loves hers, though!

I love blenders like this. I have one from Koreatown in Los Angeles. Same size, similar shape, and it comes with different sized cups to attach. Much more powerful than I'd expect.

Much less unwieldy, I've found, than a big blender.

When did getting more things become a downside? If there were a price drop for a minimalist version then maybe, but from my perspective this is added value. From what i can tell, if you don't want all the accessories, extra Magic Bullet supplies are a quick sell on eBay.

I really, really love my Magic Bullet! I was a total doubter at first, but my in-laws, who swear by the thing, let me try theirs out, and it was awesome! It does take a few tries to get the pulsing technique exactly right (pushing down too zealously/for too long/with the plastic cup tabs in the wrong place can grind up the tabs on the plastic cup or start burning up the motor), but once you've got it down, the Bullet works great. I mostly use mine to make smoothies (although I have also made things like hummus in it with very good results) - it does a much, much better job of pulverizing the ice and getting the smoothie to the right consistency than my blender (which is a fairly high-quality model). If yours is having problems processing ice in smoothies, make sure you have enough liquid in the container - sometimes just adding a little more liquid will make the blending a lot easier. Also, I like to shake the container a couple of times in between pulses just to make sure everything is distributed properly. I've had my Bullet for a couple of years and used it heavily with no leaks or problems at all, but my sister had one that seemed to leak right off the bat - I get the impression that if that happens to you, your unit is probably defective.

I have a similar product, but it's a different brand (Tribest). I like it a lot, and I can buy parts for it.

random question, but does anyone know where the ring in the picture is from? or maybe something similar, i'm helping my brother pick out an engagement ring for his gf and she would LOVE that ring!!!

I'm with Damfino on this one. Almost every time that I use it, everything ends up on the sides and in big chunks, rather than being blended, chopped, etc. by the blades. No matter what I do to help it along.

It's so frustrating.

Not to mention that it can't even deal with small frozen strawberries for a smoothie like in the commercial, and is so loud that I need earplugs just to use it!

It does a couple of things "ok" but I really haven't been happy with it at all. It's too difficult to make things in, there's a million parts and it sucks to clean by hand (no dishwasher).

I wish it was as good as the commercial--I would love it then!

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