Side by Side Comparison of: Ninja vs Pyrex vs HomeHero

When there are 1-2 star reviews stating problems, I hesitate to purchase. Mine arrived NEW, well packaged, and operated as expected making my first protein smoothie. The instructions are clear - I will try to follow them as I imagine one would have issues if assembling the blades, splash guard, etc. incorrectly. (Maybe you are like me and read/follow directions if all else fails, which has caused me problems in the past, so because of problems others had, I was "good" this time & read them first.) I hope the plastic doesn't crack as others wrote - toward that goal I'm not using a whole lot of ice cubes & it doesn't take long to blend the smoothie. The thing I like most is the large pitcher gives me room to use 20 ounces of liquid with the protein powder and still have plenty of room for the pulsing process. Other units I've used have a limited MAX fill line for what I like to use, and even if I used LESS liquid it overflowed easily. So for now, being a new unit, this meets my needs.

I purchased this as a gift. I also own one, I probably use it 3 or 4 times a week. I have had it for a couple of years and am thinking about buying another one in case my breaks, just so I will have it. It is so easy to use and the clean up is amazingly easy. The blades are very sharp but you can pull them out to clean them. Hence not cutting your fingers! I highly recommend this product!!

So now that I've used this blender for 2-3 dozen times. I do believe I can properly review this(ninja master prep professional QB1004)!

#1 Many Complaints about people cutting themselves with this blender....Well....the blades are sharp!! Use common sense!!!! They need to be sharps to cut up leafy vegetables!
#2 Cutting of the outer plastic container. HOW?!? I haven't figured! The only way to do this is if the lid just isn't properly on. Not using common sense.
#3 Blender melting to blades. Well this one had be worried. But after using it. The blades have yet to get hot in that spot. You would literally have to use this blender for 10 minutes non stop to make that happen. If you plan on abusing your blender. This blender probably will not work for you.

Due to my worries. I splurged and spent 4 dollars on the 4 year extended warranty. I understand that 4 dollars on top of the 39.99 for the professional series type blender can break the bank. But I decided to not buy myself a coffee that day and to go for the warranty.

BTW the food processor and chopper both work great. No problems. For blending, I have thrown everything at it, no problems.

I have been using this blender for a couple months now, nearly daily, and it's incredible. I make smoothies every morning with frozen fruits, protein powders, veggies, etc. and I have not been disappointed yet.1) It's powerful enough to really blend that frozen fruit and to throw raw spinach around (that initial jolt is really powerful, so I would suggest to always put looser, lighter ingredients on the bottom). And it's a sort of double-decker blade so it really blends everything, unlike a regular blender that only blends on the bottom.2) It's really easy to use--since the motor is on the top (and not heavy), and the cup is plastic, it's super easy to use.3) It's huge. You can make margaritas for a small-sized party in one batch. I make personal smoothies that fit in my Trimr TRIMR Shaker Bottle Tritan BPA-Free Mint 24 oz with Straw Hydration Shaker Cup For Protein Shakes bottle (also another highly recommended product) and it only takes up maybe a quarter of the thing, if that.4) It comes with a smaller food processor cup, which I didn't even realize.5) It's safe! The motor won't start without the lid in one specific place. It's not hard to do, but I just learned this after the lid was just a millimeter off.6) SO EASY TO CLEAN. This is probably the biggest plus. It's a sturdy plastic cup, and the two blades come apart really easily. The lid has a few more crevices to clean, but it's not impossible.7) Easy to store--since the motor is pretty small. It doesn't need to sit on the counter top, really. But if it did, it's small, and not cumbersome.

I can honestly say that I cannot live without my Ninja! I had bariatric surgery 2 years ago and have to drink a protein shake every morning. My Ninja has been used at least 1-2 times per day for the past 2 years and is just now starting to show a bit of wear. The medium pitcher is starting to show some areas of cracking, probably from the dishwasher, but still holds liquid. It also has some divits around the inside of the pitcher because I use it to blend ice. Overall, I love this product and would definitely buy it again! One caveat though, it works REALLY well in chopping so it is easy to over-process things and make them mushy, especially things like tomatoes or other soft fruits/veggies. Otherwise, you'll love it!

I love this blender very much and I use it almost every day. The only downfall is that the medium sized one really needs some blades that are higher. The only ones it has are very low...which means that I have to push stuff down with a utensil in the middle of my blending. It still works well though and I'm not disappointed!

I previously owned a Ninja Blender years ago prior to relocating twice, losing it, and ended up buying another.I've had this one for over a month now to sufficiently review it with confidence.My main pet peeve is the little nib on the sides meant to help you align the top of the large pitcher and keep you from improperly attaching it prior to blending anything. It drives me BONKERS. I am constantly having to stoop to eyeball the nib and get it in the channel before I do anything. That feature alone made me knock off a star because I have more trouble attaching the lid due to that feature than I've ever had on a Ninja product. Their blenders years ago weren't nearly as cantankerous as they are now.If you ignore this safety feature, the blender itself cleans very well after a rinse, bit of water and soap, blend, then rinse again and set aside to dry. I use it thoroughly to make smoothies rather than anything else. However the smaller one chops vegetables very cleanly for stir fry. If you like making pancakes, this also works when you throw all the ingredients in together. Try to make sure your liquids are at the bottom rather than on top to prevent any powdery residue sticking at the base.The blades are insanely sharp so watch out. There's a reason this blender works so efficiently. I gently knocked my pinky against a blade on the drying rack and it cut very deeply. So make sure you set something on top of the drying blades to prevent any accidents. Remember it's under there too. I recommend a clear plastic storage container.

The blender on the 450 watt power pod had 3 levels of blades on the blender. The 400 watt only has two levels (lower) This still works fine for my needs but if you have plans on filling that pitcher to the top it might be worth the 8 bucks to get the 450 watt and get the extra blade. I paid 28 bucks for this and am happy with the purchase. (I really just needed an extra pitcher)

I kept reading/viewing blender reviews before settling on this one. There are some on Youtube by these two chicks who do the "runny" test. Seriously demanding blender reviews. Anyway. I'm a single guy, I love smoothies and this is probably what I'll use this for. So far it's great. It takes a bit to get used to positioning the parts aligning perfectly --otherwise the motor won't start-- but not much. It crushes ice, it blends great and it gets cleaned very easily. Just handle the blades carefully--they are sharp. The price is certainly right. I don't know how it would hold up long term, but at 30-some bucks I'm not that worried. My only peeve (and hence the four stars) is that the power cords is too short, and since it's pretty portable anyway, I can't easily transport it from one side of the kitchen counter to the other. Otherwise I would gladly recommend this to someone who loves smoothies, a frozen treat, chopping veggies.

There is an undocumented feature I would call a flaw because the instructions make no mention of it. The splash guards are keyed and must be twisted/rotated into place to seal and properly mate with the jar. It would be all too easy for an inattentive user not to realize this and place the splash guard on the jar without it locking it into place and sealing. If the contents are liquid they could leak out and make a terrible mess. Once you figure this out, the jars seal just fine. Figuring it out is the tricky part as the instructions make no mention of it; I would not consider it a flaw if the instructions said something about it. On the small bowl I've found it best to twist the splash guard into place. It then comes off simply by lifting.I bought this thinking I would be able to use the six-leaf blade assembly to chop onions. The six-leaf blade only fits the largest of the three jars, which is way too large unless you're chopping a LOT of onions, and I'm not sure if the motor could handle such a large number of onions. I could probably have gotten by with the "Express Chop" for $25 less but it's a hideous red. The black of this unit is much easier to look at.On the bright side, the small bowl has a four-leaf blade assembly, double the number of my previous chopper, so hopefully it will do a better job of chopping. The bottom-most blade is fairly close to the bottom of the jar so it should have no trouble mincing small items such as garlic cloves.Also, make absolutely sure the blade assembly is properly seated on the spindle before using.[EDIT]After quite a bit of use it has proven to be efficient and durable. The motor is powerful and it does a good job of chopping onions, garlic, what-have-you.I'm adding one star but it still only rates four stars due to the above-mentioned issues which are largely omissions in documentation.

I brought this item as a replacement for my cheap blender that no longer served my purpose of making smoothies. i tried to make a green smoothie and it came out a little chunky and not smooth like the picture is depicting of the strawberry concoction thats depicted in the picture. I am going to try it again to see if maybe i try a different technique to see if the results would be smoother or not but so far with other things that i have blended in this blender its great at quickly chopping and purering things quickly and easily. the parts are very easy to clan and assemble and the best part is the rubber ring around the base that makes it stay in place and not slip slide all over the place. You truly get what you pay for with this blender getting that its a very reasonable purchase and I believe that this is a great blender that will crush and blend your drinks depending on the size of the item being used with this item.

It works very well, but it is already cracking after just a few months and it is a pain in the butt to clean. Seriously, so hard to clean. The lids are awkward and there are so many creases that food gets stuck in. I had to buy baby bottle tools to clean it, and there is still food I can't get to. It does blend extremely well though, and for the price, as long as you're willing to work to get it clean, I'd recommend it.

The Ninja Master Prep works great, but it could definitely work better.When I received the blender, I went on a blending-spree for a little over 2 weeks and have used it every other week since then. (I've had it for at least 7 months, now.) The blender blades were sharp, but after some time, I've noticed at the blades aren't as sharp as they used to be. This means that it takes a bit longer to blend things after some use. As far as blending, it leaves more to be desired. The blender will not always blend smoothly the first time - you'll need to scrape the sides down, even if the mixture is fairly liquidy. Blending things like spinach can be a challenge. However, blending ice and frozen fruit works wonderfully as long as pulse. The best thing about the blender is that it is extremely easy to disassemble and clean.

Although this machine lacks some of the versatility of a full size blender, it is extremely easy to clean and still has a lot to offer. From a cost perspective, as the basic model is only about $30, it is also a bargain. Do not expect it to crush ice into micro particles or make you a master chef, but it will do just fine for most tasks, including fruit smoothies, protein shakes and makes great frozen drinks. It also does pudding and whips cream pretty darn good. Yet mine has had one recurring problem which is why it only gets 3 stars: about once every 6 months or so of daily use, the rubber pitcher lid rim gasket wore out whereby the lid would no longer fit secure and leaked. Eventually, the lid will not align to close properly and the motor would not start because the lid was not in a secure closed position causing the safety switch to trip. The first time this occurred, Ninja replaced the entire lid and gasket assembly at no charge. Ninja customer representatives have been quite helpful and professional on the phone, but after a year, I was charged $5.95 for, "shipping" and the last time I called Ninja I was advised the replacement lid and gasket assembly would cost $10.00. My pitcher has never been in a dishwasher, and I only hand wash it with regular dish soap after each use. For an occasional user, this will likely not be a problem, but if you plan on using this device daily, I recommend something more durable.

So I decided to do a pros and cons list for this blender. Background info: I am a frequent user of a blender (to make various things, not just smoothes/milkshakes) and by frequent, I mean daily use. I have had several blenders by brands like Oster and they have not compared to this blender.Pros:The blades really do chop/mince/liquify every last thing.The design and the fact that it comes with essentially 2 blenders in one is nice.The product is very light weight.Assembly is relatively easy.The base has a rubber outline to prevent the product from moving when you are blending.Nice color (mine is gray).Does a really good job of blending-EVERYTHING (depending on how long you pulse it for) comes out very creamy, especially when you make banana ice cream (blended frozen bananas).It gets the job done in a short amount of time compared to typical blenders.The price is right. This is a good deal for this type of blender and for what you get.Cons:Too many awkward crevices that you won't even think about until you have to clean it (just wait...you will miss places and it will still be dirty sometimes, including in the top part where the power comes from-and I consider myself to be a clean freak)!The blades are SO sharp and are difficult to clean without cutting oneself because there are not many places to hold it when you wash it.While assembly is relatively easy, if you don't get the pieces in (like the blades) just right you won't be able to use the blender at all.Sometimes you still have to take the top off of the blender multiple times to push down whatever you are blending because it will just keep rotating on the blade instead of fall in with the rest of the mix.*I haven't used it for mincing anything yet, but when I do I will be sure to submit a review.

I've had this item now for about 2 months. It's ok. I think I'm more of a blender person.Even now, I'm sitting here hungry and wanting to make my morning smoothie but the thought of all the parts and assembling it makes me lazy to do it! Please don't misunderstand -- it is a very good product. But for me, there are just too many parts: the motor; the blade; the pitcher; the rubber thing on the bottom of the pitcher; the lid between the motor and the pitcher; the rubber thing that goes on the lid between the motor and the pitcher.And don't even get me started on cleaning each of the aforementioned parts. I use flax seed and everything has to be rinsed immediately after blending or it will become very difficult to clean. Some of the parts, like the lid, are not easy to clean. It has edges and difficult to reach spots; I have dried flax stuck in some of these spots. I just can't get it out.It grinds up ice beautifully and makes great smoothies BUT I do have to put in each ingredient one at a time and blend it. I cannot just throw everything in and have it all come out smooth and good like with a good blender. Not with this product. I put in the water and greens and blend. Then I put in my fruit and blend. Then powder supplements and blend. And each time, the motor has to come off and then the lid has to come off. One time, early on, I was in a rush getting all my ingredients together and throwing stuff in...only to realize I forgot to put the BLADE in. Aaarrgggghhhh..... It's just the WORK of it all that frustrates me. This is NOT a smoothie on the run kind of machine at all.Again, it does its job well. I recommend it solely on that. But if you don't like dealing with more than 3 parts, this isn't for you. I've used it too often already to bother returning it. Next product I get will most certainly be a nice, sturdy blender.

I bought this because of the Consumer Reports blender comparison that rated it above a Vitamix: http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/business/2013/07/cr-best-blenders-100-model-beat-650-one/I didn't test the product or check it out in a store, so I had no idea how it worked. I was disappointed to find that you have to hold down the button on the top the entire time you are using it, which means you can't just flip a button and walk away - you have to stand there the entire time you are blending. It's not that big of a deal, but it's super annoying when I'm preparing a meal and want to be able to take care of other things in the kitchen while it's blending.Otherwise, it does work very well as an every day blender, and I like all the attachments, but I think I might actually spring for the Vitamix, or maybe just get the next model up in the Ninja product line.

Surper cheap plastic, period. I'm sure there's some teeny-tiny lawyer print somewhere telling you not to use the dishwasher on this junk but how many busy family's have to time to constantly hand wash something like this? And hand washing the blades is frankly dangerous as the blades are wonderfully sharp hence the two rating.My advice is save your money and get something with a strong warranty. As I often say in these reviews things are cheap for a reason and that cheap and high quality NEVER cross paths.I'll add pictures if requested.

So many pieces! I'm disappointed in this, overall. It works fine with smoothies made from fruit and almond milk, but those with yogurt didn't work as well... it clogged the machine. I wish I'd just put the $ spent on this towards a regular blender!

Bought in October and replaced in November. Loved how it works and used it nearly daily. After three weeks the bottom of the small cup cracked. I thought it was because of the dishwasher and using the heat to dry my dishes. So under warranty got another one and did not use the heat dry on the dishwasher. After 6 weeks the bottom of the large cup is cracked and the center post rusting. The food does go up into the lid and makes the driver on the motor dirty and it is a bear to clean! If what you are blending incorporates air, even if you do not overfill it -it overflows. The gasket is going to be an issue, as it is already falling off. This is a once a day use for 6 weeks.This works well, but not for long. I have not contacted the Ninja people yet. My replacement warranty through Amazon has expired. Maybe the motor is too powerful for the design of the bases. Too much money for a 6 week item.

I bought this because Consumers Report rates this mixer high because of how it handles ice. It is a quality product, however, I have also owned a Nutribullet and for day-to-day use it is a much better product. I don't care for the Ninja because - it has a two part blade that must be inserted before adding food which caused me to spill the protein powder ever time I made a drink. I also had to cut up all the fruit etc. in order for it to fit past the blades. Cleanup is also more complicated because it has four parts to take apart and clean.I like the Nutribullet better because it has only two parts to rinse off and the container is wide open which allows you to drop in anything you want without having to get it past the blades. I bought another Nutribullet after getting the Ninja because I use it every day and preparation and cleanup is a snap. I save the Ninja for heavy duty jobs. Like I said, its a good product but more cumbersome to use.

Finally, a blender that is powered from above. Most blenders fit the bowl on top of a motor unit that have the blades screwed into the bottom of the bowl. The bottom screw on blenders usually find a way to leak - worse yet when the contents are boiling. This unit is a solid bowl (3 bowls actually) with a guide rod in the bottom that the blades (choice of 3 different sizes) simply slip down over. The power unit then connects from the top. It is a bit inconvenient to have to lift off the power unit to scrape down the bowl, but since the blades stay in the bowl. there is little mess.Seems to blend powerfully. Has covers for its bowls.March 2015 update. I have lowered my rating from 5 stars to 2 stars. There is no way to add ingredients to the bowl while the motor is running. The is a critical function, for example, when trying to make mayonnaise or gazpacho where the oil has to be added while the motor is running to be properly incorporated. Too bad. I had high hopes for this blender.Recommended.

This is my first ever review which is an indication of how disappointed I was with this item. I have made a lot of smoothies with my 40+ year old Oster blender, then I dropped and broke the glass jar. Looked at and read the reviews of the Chinese made replacement jars, same with the Chinese made Ninja QB1004 which I had heard positively of for the last couple of years. Decided to upgrade, join this century. Made my first fruit smoothie just a couple of hours ago. Put in some ice and frozen strawberries in the smaller pitcher and pulsed first, then added half a banana, 3 ounces yogurt, half cup water, 1/4 cup OJ and one of my hen's eggs, just like I always did with my oldie. Pitcher was filled to the less than the half way mark, 2 cups. Somewhat awkward holding and pulsing, figured that was learning curve stuff, no problem. Smoothie was delicious, smoother than my oldies'. Went to clean it, way more pieces with difficult crevices and the smoothie had wicked it's way up the nipple on the blade assembly into the powerhead nipple receiver. No way would "just wipe with a damp cloth" clean that out! The crevices on the lid were nothing compared to those crevices. Q tip required. No way!!! The gap twixt the nipple and the receiving end was too much, NOT a learning curve issue. It's packed up and a replacement glass jar has been ordered, hopefully it will work. If not, I'll be lookin' for suggestions: makes a good smoothie/frozen drinks, KISS, easy to clean, not a lot of stuff to store. The seller delivered as promised and Prime is great. Thank you Amazon.

its OK, messy, the blades do NOT stay put in the grooves, they spin out and all you get is the bottom blade doing the work. therefore, its not efficient, you have to keep stopping the motor and 'fix' it, again and again. the motor is slippery when you handle the device.NOT A GOOD PURCHASE.3/7/17 - I added more about this POS - if i could give ZERO stars, I would

I purchased this product because of the great reviews but I have no idea why people like this thing... It has some pretty serious design flaws. Here are a few:1. The blades are removable. Sounds good, right? WRONG. The blades are dangerous to remove and put back on because they are sharp blades! I would much rather have a standard blender where the blades are protected and the user is unlikely to have to ever touch them. In the case of the "Ninja" product, I cut myself trying to put the blades on and bled for HOURS (not kidding). The cut wasn't deep enough to warrant going to the hospital but it was just deep enough to be annoying and really dampen my mood.2. You have to put them blades in first before you put any of your smoothie ingredients in. Doesn't sound like a problem, right? WRONG AGAIN. If you add peanut butter to anything you plan to blend (like a smoothie), it will be a nightmare to get it to go in around the blades. If you get peanut butter on the top of the blade (the shaft that the Ninja uses to spin the blades), you're in bad shape.. The peanut butter will get on the electrical part and it's a nightmare to clean because you can't put that part in the dishwasher (this is the part that is hooked into the wall).3. It has too many pieces and it's hard to keep up with. Piece one: the electrical part (pretty big and has to stay plugged in). Piece two: the big jug you put your ingredients into. Piece three: one part of the blade. Piece four: the other part of the blade. Piece five: the lid to the jug.FIVE pieces to keep up with? Really...?4. Everything has to be situated just right for this to work. (a) one part of the blade has to be on the other part just right so they lock into place (b) the lid has to be on the jug just right or you'll get splashed with your smoothie (c) the top part (electrical part that makes it all spin) has to be on it just right or it won't start.In my opinion, this is a classic example of an over-designed product trying to replace a product that doesn't need innovating (the blender). I really regret spending my money on this product and hope no one cuts themselves worse than I did...

This is the worst blender you can buy! I have always bought the standard oster or kitchenaid blenders to make smoothies, margaritas, etc and it always blended perfectly. I make fruit smoothies on a daily basis so being able to blend frozen fruits was important to me and by the reviews it seemed I shouldn't have problems but I was wrong! This blender does not chop up frozen strawberries very well or even peanut butter. The blender leaves big chunks of strawberries and if I add peanut butter, it leaves chunks of that as well. I even tried to blend oats and it left HUGE chunks. Except from function, the form and everyday use is even worse because if you get something stuck on the tip of the blades where you place the motor, it is very difficult to clean. Overall this blender is a piece of junk and this time Amazon reviews let me down!

For seven years, I had the cheapest blender money could buy that we bought right after we got married. It did everything I needed it to do, but we finally decided we needed something nicer because we wanted to start using it more often. The FIFTH (5th!!!!) time I used the Ninja Master Prep, I was crushing Oreos for a recipe, something I did many, many times in my cheap blender. After about 60 seconds of blending, the motor smoked and the machine died! I had even pre-smashed the cookies so there was very little left for the ninja to do! If it can't smash an already smashed cookie, I can't imagine it could handle ice or anything else! I'm super upset, I was looking forward to using it! I did like how it was set up with the blades though out the machine and how the motor was on top, that was a plus, if only I could have gotten descent use out of it! :(

I've had this just under a year. It's been used less than 15 times. We had smoothies that had some frozen ingredients and ice, so I didn't realize I was ingesting part of the pitcher with my drink until I washed it.See photos.

I loved this product until today. I used it to dice carrots and somehow the blade became welded to the lid and I was picking pieces of plastic out of the carrots. Photo's attached. Ironically, I just recommended this product to someone yesterday.I called the folks at Ninja and their only solution was to sell me a new lid and blade for 34.00. I can get the whole thing brand new for about $50. I understand the warranty is only good for a year through Amazon, but they show lifetime warranty on their site. Catch is you have to buy it directly from Ninja or they won't honor it. This will be my first and last Ninja product.