Kenwood SB056 Smoothie 2GO Black

I believe the smoothie maker really is a must-have, especially for all those looking for a cheap, quick, and (most importantly) a delicious way to bring more fresh fruit and veg into their daily diet.

Apart from the colour (black), this is essentially the same model as the silver-coloured Kenwood Smoothie To Go SB055 Smoothie Maker, which I originally bought over two years ago now, and which is still going strong. (And used at least four or five times a week on average over that period, that's my first and only smoothie maker). So I suggest you check out the other reviews (including mine) on Amazon about that model too.

Note for first-time users: Don't be conned into buying any smoothie recipe books; it's like telling you how to boil an egg! I say: The recipe for any smoothie is simplicity itself: Half a dozen ice cubes (essential); some tap water (or other liquid) for lubrication (also essential); various fruits of your choosing, veg, nuts, fresh yoghurt - and you're away! Be original: Make up your own recipes as you go along, So now you have no excuse for walking past the fresh fruit and veg counter next time you're in your local supermarket. Equally good with frozen ingredients, even frozen spinach works (although better tasting with fresh soft fruits, easier on rotor blades too, see second update below).

Please note that the motor in this smoothie maker, based on my experience with the silver-coloured model, is robust and reliable, but common-sense tells you it is not designed to run like a car engine. I've used my smoothie maker regularly for almost two years now, it still runs as good as new: but I never keep the motor running for more than ten or fifteen seconds at a time. It's simply not necessary - indeed, I usually find less than 10 seconds is more than enough time to do the business. (And I believe this also keeps the motor in good health).

Highly recommended. The smoothie maker is a must-have, especially for those looking for a cheap, quick, and delicious way to bring more fresh fruit and veg into their daily diet. Don't miss out!

Update: July 5th 2010 - Today, I had my first problem after over two years' regular use with this smoothie maker (silver model). Motor whirred round, made a lot of noise, but failed to turn mixture and make smoothie! Cause - Overloaded with fruit, I had not properly sliced the mango/apple chunks, and I had perhaps also been too sparing with the tap water for lubrication. Remedy: Switched off motor - immediately - when this happened. Simply took out some of excess load (into the second beaker) and also cut up/sliced up the apple/mango more/added some more water. And tried again. Voila! Problem solved. Even regular users of this product can sometimes misjudge and overload the beaker in this way - but the problem is easily remedied - just remember to switch off and reduce the load - and not to blame the smoothie maker! And of course never keep the motor running when the mixture is clearly not turning, you must reduce load and/or add more liquid.

Further update: July 28th, 2010 - Today, another problem! This time, smoothie maker (silver model) made horrible loud screeching noise, and turned mixture much too slowly. Cause - Rotor blades damaged. The rotor blades are in the lid unit, these are delicately balanced, and they can be damaged by anything too hard, and once this happens, difficult to repair, even though they still look okay, they must remain in perfect balance. This was my mistake (again)- a small, very hard piece of fruit included in the smoothie mixture, should have been removed. The motor in the main unit still works fine - and as I also have a spare Smoothie 2Go SB055 - previously unused - I found that merely replacing the rotor blade unit in the lid solved the problem. I decided to phone Kenwood to buy a spare rotor blade unit, but they refuse to sell this as a separate item, so if you don't have a spare, you must buy a complete new smoothie maker! (The customer rep told me that they can't sell the rotor blade unit as a spare because it is now 'obsolete'. But as I pointed out, it is not obsolete at all, as Kenwood continue to sell this item whenever they sell a complete Smoothie2Go unit, indeed it is an essential component, of both the SB055 and SB056 models. I said to the Kenwood rep that I wanted to complain about this poor service, and was referred to their website, but could not find anywhere there to record this complaint).

Anyway, in summary, my smoothie maker (silver model) continues to work just as well as ever, despite this problem, albeit I had to cannibalise my spare for a new rotor blade unit, which Kenwood refuses to sell as a separate spare item, preferring to inform customers that it is now 'obsolete', so they must buy a complete new smoothie maker. (What would you think if you had to buy a new car, whenever the fan belt goes, because the manufacturer refused to sell the fan belt as a separate item, telling you it is now 'obsolete'?) I still think five stars for the smoothie maker, but now I deduct one star for poor service from Kenwood.

I got this to replace my large blender. I use it all the time and it makes quick work of ice and chunky fruit! Great blender for people on the go.

The small plastic knob used to turn it on and off has sheared off
its made from very light plastic and no reinforcing ring around it as seen in other knobs
this is a design flaw probably so it fails at about 1 year after purchase
sadly i used it daily so i accelerated the procedure :¬(