I have the Blendtec Total Blender, and all can say is it is great. I deliberated on getting a vita-mix, and other blenders that were cheaper. This blender does everything great, ice is simply not an issue, whole juice is not an issue, noise for me is not an issue since you are not blending for more than 45 seconds. PROS: - Blends anything perfectly - No fear about it seizing up or overheating - 64 OZ container so it can blend a lot at once - Fits under cabinets - It is not too heavy or bulky - Containers are easy to get into and clean up very easily CONS: - Doesn't blend small amounts (4oz. or less) very well - Can splash if lid is not on properly, so be careful

Herring, how is the Breville? Any other Breville owners? I would prefer not to have the VM counter space concern. Breville with a 20% BBB coupon seems to be a possible solution. Are there things the VM or BT can do that the Breville cannot. Such as make soup? Do I need a blender that can make soup? Thoughts? Loved reading through this thread. My trusty Oster of 10 plus buttons and 10 + years did not make it through the second can of garbanzo beans for hummus the other night and gave up in a blaze of glory (or at least a spark!) It worked so well and I keep wondering if I had just let it rest a little...My children keep telling me I should not blame myself but honestly who else? It feels like the end of an era but I amazed it has made it this far given what I put it through, weekly sometimes daily smoothies with any and every vegetable I could find. I tried a juicer but I the juice without the fiber made me too hungry. I still have the juicer which my kids actually like using for apple juice when they are in season. Supposedly I can make nut butters with it but I have never tried. So now I seek an Oster replacement. When I first started emulsifying fruits and vegetables (I make a beet shake that I swear by during cold season) in summer 2011, I went to a Blendtec demo at a Costco an hour away. I really thought I would buy it. I went just for the demo. However, the one issue I had with the Oster was raspberry seeds. I was surprised that in theBlendtec sample they made, you could still feel the seeds. They lost me after that, plus I did not want the expense or counter space clutter. Especially when my $25 Oster seemed to do the job. My smoothies until two nights ago, were smooth!I have been expecting the Oster to give up eventually and I am surprised it took this long. If I had not done the garbanzos I think it would have been fine. I originally thought of just getting a new Oster but I thought why not get something more. However, I am still not entirely sure what more I am getting. I mostly blend whole frozen fruit like mango, leafy vegetables (yes the ubiquitous kale), and garbanzo beans for hummus. I was also blending sweet potato type soups however I will no longer need that I hope. To tide me over I have already bought a Breville immersion wand and chopper bowl (one limitation is it only has one blade so seems to chop everything one way!) Which I used to puree soup and make a smoothie yesterday. So far ok although the smoothie took longer than I would like. One thing I am curious about since I have been making a lot of mung and azuki bean soups lately (feel free to put this in the kale category, I had never heard of either before a year ago!) I did try the Blendtec 3 ingredient soup at the demo. For those who own either machine, how often do you use it to make the type of soup they hype at the demos? Not to blend ingredients before or after but to actually cook the soup in a short amount of time?I would not imagine the Breville can do that or can it? Do I even need that feature? Thank you for any thoughts and opinions

"I do worry about the high calorie count of smoothies, though, which is part of why we only buy them infrequently." The major advantage to making your own is you control the ingredients. Start with a non fat greek yogurt, add half a frozen banana and frozen strawberries for a great, low fat, healthy smoothie. I regret I didn't have my blentec when my girls were eating purees, but now that they are older (school age), I find the smoothies even more important because it ensures they eat wholesome, healthy foods. If you look at the Sneaky Chef or Seinfeld cookbooks, you can get alot of ideas for adding purees to food. Your Au Gratin sounds divine. If it will peel the spuds, I will go buy the cuisinart food processor today. LOL!

Belndtec: $205 to $844 Quoting prices without context is really pointless. Yes, there is a super expensive model. But that's not what most of us are talking about. That's the model that comes closest to the commercial models, it has a sound-dampening enclosure, and it comes with an impressive 10 year warranty. If that's what you want, you presumably know it, and why are you even bothering with this conversation :-) The model that everybody is talking about in this thread is more likely something like the Blendtec Total Blender Classic (I own an earlier version of this model and I really like it). According to camelcamelcamel.com, it sometimes goes on sale for as low as $180. Or if you need a few more features, then maybe the Blendtec Designer 625 for about $340. That's a bit more pricey, and I am not sure I personally see the value proposition. You do get a second jar (that's nice), but other than that you mostly pay for a nicer user interface. IMHO, probably not necessary, but some people obviously like it. There also are a few other models in the price range between these two. That's probably more where I'd start looking, if I was in the market for a replacement. So, in other words, we are talking about anything between $180 and around $340. That's obviously a lot more than a $30 Osterizer. But the only people who should even consider buying a fancy blender are probably using their blender several times a week. And then, $180 is really not all that outrageous. Within the first year, it costs about $1 per use -- and of course a good blender is expected to live much longer than a year. If the smoother blending and the larger variety of ingredients that you can blend are important to you, then go for one of these models. If you use your blender sparingly and not for anything challenging, then don't. It's as easy as that.