"I've never had a full size blender before, so I don't have much to compare this to. I've gotten by with my Kitchen Aid stand mixer and immersion blender (also Kitchen Aid) and my fabulous vintage Moulinex Food Processor... and of course various juicers (will get a Breville when my Juiceman finally dies). I got tired of splashing ingredients everywhere with the hand blender, and even though I don't have a lot of room in my small apartment, I thought I should look for a real blender. I love all gadgets and appliances. I have pretty high standards for appliances, and my best friend has a Vitamix so I'm used to seeing its amazing performance. I did not want to spend 500 dollars though! Plus, the Vitamix is LOUD and BIG. I saw a demo of this baby on HSN and decided that I liked the Hemisphere blade system. It just made sense to me. I also liked the finger loop in the plug and lid. I had looked at blenders at Wal-mart and Target, but was disappointed with their selection. I was running errands at the mall and decided to look at blenders. Went to Williams Sonoma first, and they had the model right above this one. 200 dollars was more than I wanted to spend. It had a few more watts and buttons, but the same basic features. When to Macys, and saw this baby for 149.99. I couldn't resist. It followed me to the register where I discovered they were doing a family and friends special and the cashier called me her friend even though I didn't know her. I got it for 143, at Macys and was very pleased to learn that Macys as a 6 MONTH return policy! I planned to fall in love with this blender (and I have!), but that was nice to know just in case. Stopped by the supermarket on the way home to get ingredients to make smoothies and hummus. I decided to wash the blender, I would just run soapy water in it instead of scrubbing it. I turned it on, and the force was so powerful that it blasted the lid right off and spewed suds all over my kitchen. I needed to clean the counter, microwave, stove, fridge, and floor anyway, I guess! Tried it again, this time holding the lid down as I ran it. I was immediately impressed by the apparent low noise level and power of the machine. I hate loud appliances, and blenders seem to be the loudest things out there, so the noise level of this machine is refreshing. After rinsing, I placed a banana, orange juice, coconut milk, half tray of ice, and a cup of frozen berries in the machine. Hit the smoothie button, and away it went. 20 seconds later, it was completely blended, velvety smooth with no lumps at all. Even when I order a pina colada at a nice restaurant, with their commercial blenders I get lumps of ice that clog the straw and it drives me crazy! I also tried it on a milkshake and it did a fine job. I can't wait to employ this little wonder to assist me with other things in my kitchen. I really like the auto pulse feature and the way the buttons light up and flash during operation. The control panel is easy to clean and intuitive. I can't wait to make powdered sugar in this thing! I love how easily the base fits on motor and how the handle can be placed on the right or left. The handle is comfortable, and balances the weight of the rather heavy pitcher well. This beauty has earned a permanent place on my counter top. I plan to use it often, and it looks too good to put away. It will look awesome beside my stainless steel convection microwave. The finger hole in the plug is a wonderful feature! I had seriously looked at the Oster Fusion, Kitchen Aid, and GE blenders before deciding on this one. I'm so glad this is the one I chose.

Only a few negatives heretofore. The first is that the finger loop on the lid that is off to one side splashes blended ingredients everywhere when removing it. I read another review that stated this after I had experienced it. Another thing that concerns me is all the reviews that talk about leaking. I didn't see them before buying it, which is good because I may not have had I seen them first. If it was just one or two people, that would be one thing, but there are HUNDREDS of people experiencing this issue... I hope not to become one of them. The good news is that most of the people who have this issue state that Beville has been responsive, sometimes even sending entire new blenders for free. Another thing that concerns me is that the jar is glass. I didn't want a plastic jar (which is why didn't get Kitchen Aid), but I drop and break glass FREQUENTLY.... I should order a 6 month supply so I always have on ready, because it's only a matter of time before I break the jar. The final thing is that I wish this blender had the ability to do a manual pulse in addition to the auto pulse. You can still do a manual pulse with the auto pulse button, but you have to press it twice to get one pulse. Providing I don't experience the leaking issues, I can live with the other things considering the amazing performance and aesthetics this blender delivers.

Now, I can't speak to longevity as I've only had this blender for 1 day, but time will tell. I'll update if my opinion changes, but I expect it will only continue to exceed my expectations.

Breville, you should make sewing machines and vacuum cleaners too :o) Well done!"

"I've never had a full size blender before, so I don't have much to compare this to. I've gotten by with my Kitchen Aid stand mixer and immersion blender (also Kitchen Aid) and my fabulous vintage Moulinex Food Processor... and of course various juicers (will get a Breville when my Juiceman finally dies). I got tired of splashing ingredients everywhere with the hand blender, and even though I don't have a lot of room in my small apartment, I thought I should look for a real blender. I love all gadgets and appliances. I have pretty high standards for appliances, and my best friend has a Vitamix so I'm used to seeing its amazing performance. I did not want to spend 500 dollars though! Plus, the Vitamix is LOUD and BIG. I saw a demo of this baby on HSN and decided that I liked the Hemisphere blade system. It just made sense to me. I also liked the finger loop in the plug and lid. I had looked at blenders at Wal-mart and Target, but was disappointed with their selection. I was running errands at the mall and decided to look at blenders. Went to Williams Sonoma first, and they had the model right above this one. 200 dollars was more than I wanted to spend. It had a few more watts and buttons, but the same basic features. When to Macys, and saw this baby for 149.99. I couldn't resist. It followed me to the register where I discovered they were doing a family and friends special and the cashier called me her friend even though I didn't know her. I got it for 143, at Macys and was very pleased to learn that Macys as a 6 MONTH return policy! I planned to fall in love with this blender (and I have!), but that was nice to know just in case. Stopped by the supermarket on the way home to get ingredients to make smoothies and hummus. I decided to wash the blender, I would just run soapy water in it instead of scrubbing it. I turned it on, and the force was so powerful that it blasted the lid right off and spewed suds all over my kitchen. I needed to clean the counter, microwave, stove, fridge, and floor anyway, I guess! Tried it again, this time holding the lid down as I ran it. I was immediately impressed by the apparent low noise level and power of the machine. I hate loud appliances, and blenders seem to be the loudest things out there, so the noise level of this machine is refreshing. After rinsing, I placed a banana, orange juice, coconut milk, half tray of ice, and a cup of frozen berries in the machine. Hit the smoothie button, and away it went. 20 seconds later, it was completely blended, velvety smooth with no lumps at all. Even when I order a pina colada at a nice restaurant, with their commercial blenders I get lumps of ice that clog the straw and it drives me crazy! I also tried it on a milkshake and it did a fine job. I can't wait to employ this little wonder to assist me with other things in my kitchen. I really like the auto pulse feature and the way the buttons light up and flash during operation. The control panel is easy to clean and intuitive. I can't wait to make powdered sugar in this thing! I love how easily the base fits on motor and how the handle can be placed on the right or left. The handle is comfortable, and balances the weight of the rather heavy pitcher well. This beauty has earned a permanent place on my counter top. I plan to use it often, and it looks too good to put away. It will look awesome beside my stainless steel convection microwave. The finger hole in the plug is a wonderful feature! I had seriously looked at the Oster Fusion, Kitchen Aid, and GE blenders before deciding on this one. I'm so glad this is the one I chose.

Only a few negatives heretofore. The first is that the finger loop on the lid that is off to one side splashes blended ingredients everywhere when removing it. I read another review that stated this after I had experienced it. Another thing that concerns me is all the reviews that talk about leaking. I didn't see them before buying it, which is good because I may not have had I seen them first. If it was just one or two people, that would be one thing, but there are HUNDREDS of people experiencing this issue... I hope not to become one of them. The good news is that most of the people who have this issue state that Beville has been responsive, sometimes even sending entire new blenders for free. Another thing that concerns me is that the jar is glass. I didn't want a plastic jar (which is why didn't get Kitchen Aid), but I drop and break glass FREQUENTLY.... I should order a 6 month supply so I always have on ready, because it's only a matter of time before I break the jar. The final thing is that I wish this blender had the ability to do a manual pulse in addition to the auto pulse. You can still do a manual pulse with the auto pulse button, but you have to press it twice to get one pulse. Providing I don't experience the leaking issues, I can live with the other things considering the amazing performance and aesthetics this blender delivers.

Now, I can't speak to longevity as I've only had this blender for 1 day, but time will tell. I'll update if my opinion changes, but I expect it will only continue to exceed my expectations.

Breville, you should make sewing machines and vacuum cleaners too :o) Well done!"

"I work out and like to have at least 3 protein shakes a day. This requires water, the protein powder and ice. I have never had a blender that made this shake so smooth, and so quickly and quietly. I can't speak for the other people that gave bad reviews, because I find it very easy to clean and it has not leaked once. I guess time will tell, but so far I LOVE it. "

"The blender is excellewnt, but we have problems every day with the gasket (like others above).
The gasket leaks. It seems that you can tighten it only two ways: TOO TIGHT or TOO LOOSE.
We didn't have this problem with $20 blenders from a junk stores

Also, one cannot seem to order a replacement gasket from the web site - at least I could not find the listing.
There were gaskets for other products at $8.00 - but that seems a little gouging. Heck, if you pay $200 for a high-end blender from a first class company, one might expect a free replacement for somwthing that shouldn't wear out in a month (or ever),"

"I just purchased the Ikon today at Macy's.. I bought to replace my old Hamilton beach model that I had shattered the pitcher on. I purchased this after doing research on various models and decided on this model. I used it as soon as I got it home It actually came on and i was actually able to crush ice...chop apples and carrotts...and no rubber got into my ice or chopped fruit...nothing leaked..i guess i got a good unit! I was impressed by the quietness and how quickly and efficiently it crushed the ice, i was never able to accomplish this with my old blender. The only down side of the unit is the weight of the glass...I can get used to it. "

"I just purchased my Breville Ikon today on sale at Macy's...after breaking the pitcher on my previous Hamilton Beach blender..I did some research on several prior to buying and decided on this one because it appears to be well made as is my Breville juicer I have owned for 2 yrs..I used it as soon as I got it home and crushed ice in seconds, something i was never able to accomplish with my old one, i also chopped apples and carrots and made a salad..wow! I am very happy with my purchase. I found it easy to clean, the glass is a little heavy for my arthritic hands but I can manage...I am not a whimp! "

"I love this blender. when I was looking for a new blender, I came across this one. It was expensive but i decided that it was worth it and I was correct. I do not understand how people have problems with it, it blends practically anything in a matter of seconds. people don't understand that you don't need to take the base of to clean it. just put some water in and blend, if you want to take the base off read the manual."

"I loved this blender at first, but not everytime we take it apart to wash it, when we put it back together it leaks, takes ten or times before it stops leaking, and this morning can't get it to stop at all, is there problem with the rubber gasket, never had a problem like this with even the cheapest blenders i have bought and this is really starting to annoy me....will see what help i get

Karen,
Please email us at askus@brevilleusa.com so that we can help."

"Opened this present, washed carefully, put in smoothie ingredients, plugged it in, and the unit wouldn't turn on. The power light didn't come on, no LCD display, nothing. Right out of the box. Bought at Bed Bath and Beyond at Deer Park Town Center, in Illinois. Posted 12-25-09 5:30pm. Used my real name so you will know this is not a fake post.

From Breville:
Please email us at askus@brevilleusa.com or call 1-866-Breville if there is anything we can help with. Sorry for your poor experience."

"I just purchased a re-furbished unit of this blender; and have had no problems at all. I had the chance to contact the customer service department at Breville. They are super nice and super helpful. And I found out that they are now offering a 1 year warranty on re-furbished products! That is fantastic! I know that there have been some issues w/ the blade assembly, but I heard they have addressed that problem w/ a new blade assembly...overall; kick-a** blender!!! Makes a great X-Mas gift! "