Before I write my review I wanted to add that this is literally the FIFTH blender we have tried in the last 45 days in our search for something decent.
To date we have throughly tested the following and found them all lacking in one way or another:
Oster 4093 Classic Beehive Blender, Chrome
Waring PBB25 Professional Bar Blender, Black and Stainless Steel
Vita-Mix 1700 Turbo Blend 4500 Countertop Blender with 2+ HP Motor
Oster BPST02-B Professional Series Blender, Black
Now our CBT-700 REVIEW:
The Cuisinart CBT-700 is the latest blender model to be released by the company. It combines the wide glass jar design of earlier models with a new SMART electronics system that provides preprogrammed functions for common uses such as making smoothies and crushing ice.
So far our results have been good, but we have noticed that the jar design does not funnel ingredients down into the blades as well as the Oster Beehive blender we tried. However, since as many other reviewers have mentioned on those product pages, Oster blenders suffer from a serious design flaw in which the drive system snaps in half, it really can't be compared to something that will actually last more than a few weeks. The fact that Oster claims in their product ads that they use an ALL METAL DRIVE, yet the main component of the drive is RUBBER left us feeling deceived. Especially when the machines we tried repeatedly broke down within weeks of receiving them. STAY AWAY FROM OSTER!
Back to the CBT-700...
If the blades used on the CBT-700 were larger and filled more of the jar area, I have no doubt that nothing would work better, but since that is not the case, you may have situations where an air pocket prevents thick contents from reaching the blades. I am still wondering why this design uses such a wide jar, yet incorporates a blade system that is the same size or smaller than many models with narrow jars. ??
The Smoothie feature seems to work relatively well, and we are still trying to determine the optimum mix of ingredients in order to get a smoothie that blends well, yet also ends up with the consistency we want. You may want to use a lower spped after the smoothie cycle is done to get the thickness to what you like.
In that regard, this unit's drive system uses the time tested clutch design common on many other blender brands. The gear material appears to be a synthetic rubber, which we are hoping will result in a long life and no broken or stripped teeth over time. It has a bit more "give" than the hard plastic found in most blenders with this type of clutch drive, and should be immune from the degradation that rubber clutches fall victim to over time.
Based on the unit's overall performance, design and appearance, I am able to recommend this highly blender as a good choice in this price range. Although we preferred the results we saw with the Oster Beehive better than anything else we have tried, the fact that the CBT-700 has already surpassed the number of smoothies made before the Oster broke, means that we have to go with something that will also last us more than a couple of months. On that note, this model comes with a 3 year warranty which is better than anything in this price range!
So... At present time we are planning to keep this one, which is saying something based on how many other brands we were forced to return!
I am giving this product a 4 star rating because I feel that no product is perfect, thus I see no value in rating anything with a PERFECT SCORE. Too bad I am in the minority around here, since it seems most people on this site give everything they like a 5 star rating. Throwing out perfect scores like confetti is hardly helpful for other potential buyers.
If anything changes in terms of reliability issues, I will update this review accordingly.
I hope that you found my comments helpful in your decision making process. :o)
We tried several other blender brands and models before settling on the CBT-700. Previous purchases were wrought with poor performance, cheap materials, or flat out failure of vital components.
The Cuisinart CBT-700 is the latest blender model to be released from the company, having first hit the market in March of 2009. The blender features the wide glass jar of the CBT-500 with a newly designed 6 bladed blade design. The new blade is supposed to be better at creating the vortex action needed to pull the food into the blades for proper blending. It also features a new SMART electronics system that provides preprogrammed cycles for Smoothies and Ice Crushing.
After having been disappointed with the blending action the Waring Classic, we were very pleased with the results we are getting from the CBT-700. I have found that although the Smoothie function works very well, I still feel the need to use the PUREE speed for a few more seconds afterwards to get the smoothie to the consistency I like. Running the smoothie cycle twice would be too much, and this one short extra step is no problem for me.
The blender is relatively quiet considering the 700 watt motor. It is easily the quietest blender we have tried so far and I have no issues with the motor noise. I think those who have complained about this model's motor noise have NO IDEA how much louder competing blenders can be! ;o)
After suffering through the early failure of the Oster Beehive Classic due to a sheared off rubber drive coupler, I was pleased to see that the CBT-700 uses the traditional star shaped "clutch" design used on many other brands. In this case, the clutch is made out of a vinyl plastic that has some give to it similar to rubber clutches, yet immune from the degradation rubber clutches fall victim to after a year or two. Contrary to some of the other reviews, the clutch of the CBT-700 is NOT plastic in the true sense of the word. Plastic is less forgiving and can easily break under stress. Because of this difference, I am optimistic that this clutch material will hold up.
While we are very pleased with the performance of this blender, it does not create a vortex as well as the Oster Beehive Classic model we tried, but since that blender had a serious problem with their rubber drive coupling shearing off easily, we feel that the Cuisinart is the best performer of anything in this price range that WORKS! On that note, the CBT-700 also features a 3 year warranty, which is the best warranty of anything in this price range. The blender is easy to clean and the blade and jar are easy to take apart for cleaning. The lid is also very well designed and we have had no issues with leaking.
Estetically, the CBT-700 is hands down the best looking blender we have tried.
Taking all things into consideration I feel that the CBT-700 deserves a 5 star rating. We have owned this blender for 4 months. - Kitchen Appliances - Cuisinart - Kitchen Appliance - Small Appliances - Smoothies - Vitamix'
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