Oster BPST02-B Professional Series Blender, Black

We have owned several blenders, some average and some 'professional.' None come close to power of this one. First, you can tell by the weight of it that it is well built. Metal construction and very powerful. I put whole ice cubes in the blender and turned it on. (Only one speed with a pulse on that same speed). The ice turned to sluce before I could blink. I could not believe how fast it blended the ice. It is absolutely amazing. If you are looking for sheer power for making frostys or other ice crushing capabilities, this is the one. I would have given it 10 stars if I was able. You can not go wrong with this powerhouse!

I bought this blender because of all the rave reviews it received in using it to make smoothies. Please note that if you plan on blending FROZEN chunks of anything, it has a hard time pulling chunks to the blades. I use it primarily for fruit smoothies with small frozen fruit chunks and everytime I make one I have to stop the blender several times to manually push the chunks down toward the blades. It spins incredibly fast, creating a pocket of air right above the blades, which is probably why the frozen chunks don't get pulled down to the bottom. Not sure if the taller skinnier jar design has anything to do with that, either. Once everything reaches the blades, it does completely pulverize solids, but it takes several manual attempts to get the food to reach the blades.

Also, WOW, this is one loud blender! You almost need ear protection to use it! Best of luck!

This is basically the smoothie-o-matic. My wife makes yogurt and fruit juice smoothies for the kids so they'll volunteer to get their protien and their vitamins. We filled the container with ice cubes, and then added orange juice and vanilla yogurt. I hit the switch for about 10 seconds and it was done. In fact, the ice was just about turned to water. Maybe I'll give it a second less next time.

The big rubber feet on this new model are helpful too as they help stabilize the unit. One thing though, when you first unpack and start using this thing, remember that those blades are mighty sharp!