KitchenAid Artisan KSB52BOB Blender Black

The jug connects to the motorised base via a hard rubber coupling. If only it didn't.
Google kitchenaid spares and you'll find lots of these couplings for sale. Why? Because they break. I put a small amount of stale bread in mine to make breadcrumbs (something my old Kenwood could do without breaking stride) and after a few seconds the motor noise changed. When I checked, the blade wasn't turning but the motor still was. The reason? That rubber coupling had crumbled under the strain of making a handful of breadcrumbs.
This is such a basic design flaw that they should either make the coupling out of something more durable ('let's use rubber; that'll really last') or recall the product.
It gets two stars for looking good, but if you want a reliable, durable machine look elsewhere. Avoid.

I bought this after reading all the great reviews. The first thing I did on unpacking it was to give it a quick wash according to the manufacturers advice. I filled it about 1/3 full with water and a little washing up liquid, put the lid on and switched it on. After I had cleaned up the water and suds from all over the kitchen, I tried again with just water. No matter what I did, I could not get the thing to operate without the contents coming out of the top. Admittedly its not normal to blend water, but this is the recommended method of cleaning. The lid leaks really badly. Perhaps it is faulty, but for this much money I don't expect to have to spend time fiddling with the thing to make it work (and cleaning up the mess it makes)

Very Disappointing, I didn't buy from Amazon, so it will be going straight back to the shop this afternoon.

This is a real heavy-duty blender! Have owned it for a few weeks now, and am very impressed. Carrying it home on the bus wasn't too easy as in the box it weighs a ton! But compared to my last blender (£9.99 from a catalogue store) I was taking this as a good sign.

Taking it out of the box was quite exciting. Every part of it is heavy and feels solid as a rock. The jug is made from thick glass, and I don't expect it to get scratched and dullen like my cheap plastic one did. Setting it up couldn't be easier, the jug just slots on top of the base at one of many angles (good for left-handeds!) without any annoying lining up of jug and base and twisting into place.

The controls are very easy: Power on / off. Then 5 different speed settings which operate continuously when pressed once, or in pulse mode, as long as the button is held down.

The performance has been great. I've used it for soups and cocktails so far, and it's been great with everything. I tried crushing big chunks of ice, which didn't work too well at first, but after adding a bit of water, was no problem. Favourite thing made in it so far: frozen margarita. Just chuck in 2 parts tequila, 1 part triple-sec, 1 part fresh lemon juice, a cup of ice and blend for about 8 - 10 seconds. Wow, best cocktail ever. Lovely tiny pieces of ice.

Some reviewers have mentioned that the blades aren't very sharp. This is true, but the blender still works great. I think, because of the power in the motor, the blades don't need to be so sharp. This is safer when it comes to cleaning too, which is v easy by the way.

Oh, and last of all, it looks stunning. A great addition to a designer kitchen!