Oster BPST02-B Professional Series Blender, Black
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Oster BPST02-B Professional Series Blender, Black
Customer Review: It's OK, not great, not sure what all the fuss is about
Summary: 4 Stars
Before I purchased this blender I had a fairly cheap model by Kitchen Tools which I believe is identical to an older model made by Black and Decker. I probably paid no more than $30 for it about 4 years ago. The rubber gasket failed and it began to leak and I figured I'd like a more powerful blender anyway.
I used the old blender primarily for crushed ice drinks. It actually worked fine as long as I allowed it to run long enough - maybe 45 seconds.
After reading all the reviews here I came to the conclusion that the Oster would be 1)really loud and 2)really powerful. IMO, both are wrong.
Yes, it's loud, but not that loud compared to other blenders I've used that had any power to them. I suspect that many users have been using really weak blenders which is why they were so quiet.
I didn't find this model to be that big a deal in terms of power. I can now do a margarita in 25 to 30 seconds instead of 45. Not that impressed quite frankly. When I first tried the blender I ran it for only about 10 seconds and I got a lot of small ice chunks. I was perplexed and annoyed. So the next time I ran it for longer and got the desired texture. I'm not sure if saving that extra 20 seconds was worth the extra expense.
This blender looks nice (but then so do others - and I personally prefer the silver Oster beehive more in terms of appearance) and it definitely looks like it's solidly built. The motor mechanism is metal unlike just about every cheaper model. It looks like it will last a long long time.
If you're looking for something that will last, that's durable, and you like the simple operation of a two mode blender (pulse and full speed) then this will do nicely. But honestly, I don't think it's that special in terms of power. You can still make that great margarita or smoothie with a less powerful model - and with one with more options and speeds. The choice is yours. Message is: Don't believe all the hype. This is not the best thing since slice bread, although it's still a good blender.
Customer Review: Overall great blender
Summary: 4 Stars
I purchased this blender after reading countless reviews on this and other blenders and this one came out on top consistently - and with good reason. I've had my blender for about 3 weeks and have been making frozen blended drinks and smoothies (everyday) with one or two batches of soup and salad dressing.
First, what works well are the blending blades, combined with high speed. I have no problem blending ice cubes so they are smooth. The instructions suggest adding liquid items first and then the ice, which I do and I haven't had a problem.
It's very easy to clean; as per the suggested instructions, after making smoothies I add warm water, a drop of dish detergent and blend it for a few seconds; rinse and you're finished. In between batches of different foods, i.e. smoothie/soup, I will wash the entire unit more thoroughly.
The 2 speeds (on/pulse) are perfect for everything the average person needs it for, personally I think any other blender that boasts 8-12 different speeds is simply an advertising gimick and completely unnecessary.
The unit is a great size and doesn't take much space on the counter. The base is narrow and comes in lots of great colors and finishes so you should find one that goes with the rest of your appliances.
For things that are left to be desired: the flimsy, plastic lid seems out of place on the rest of the well-manufactured unit. I don't like the middle plug on the lid. It's not very functional to add ingredients in mid-blend, nor would you want to. The unit blends at such high speeds I think it would be a mess if you attempted to open the plug.
And that brings me to my 2nd concern; it's great that it blends at such high speeds (without the high speed, it wouldn't do as great a job of crushing ice) but if the lid is not securely place and held on with your hand, it will spew the contents all over the place.
And the motor is loud but I can't fault the machine, it does such a good job of blending that it isn't on for very long.
Customer Review: Good while it lasted
Summary: 2 Stars
Purchased this 1 month ago and would make several smoothies a week. It worked well however I went to make a smoothie today and the drive shaft (made of plastic I come to find out) just snaps. So there is an obvious inconvenience while I go seek out how to go about getting this repaired. Since it's not as simple as getting a replacement part (i.e. a blade or the glass), I'll most likely have to send this off.
Quite disappointed in the quality of this product to say the least. Giving it two stars on the account that when it was working, it worked as expected however it should be more durable.
Update: Amazon is going above and beyond the call of duty by shipping a replacement overnight and this confirmed within an hour after completing their online form. I simply need to return the defective unit within 30 days using a pre-printed shipping label Amazon has provided.
UPDATE 08/19/2008: The shaft broke on the replacement unit as well and only after the 7th or 8th use. This will be going back for a refund. I'll be closing the book on this product and springing for a unit that can handle frozen strawberries better than this one does (I suspect the frozen strawberries are the culprit here.) I hasten to add that the blender I replaced this with, an old 10 speed Kitchen Aid model, did the job without fail (for years) but it went to Goodwill when I bought this one (which I mistakenly believed was an upgrade). So while I can't imagine what it is I'm doing wrong, it's simply not handling what I'm asking of it. And I thought I was being diligent in its use. The general rule of thumb I always used was to not load all the ingredients at once but rather "ease" the ingredients in while blending. Bad luck, bad user, maybe a bit of both. But in the end, the product isn't as advertised, namely, it does not have an all metal drive. That's simply an inaccurate description. The pictures I've added prove this.
Customer Review: Crushes ice, spins too fast creating air pockets, but it works
Summary: 3 Stars
I bought this blender based on all the glowing reviews here. I am happy with the blender. It can handle the smoothies I make every morning without burning out and without requiring 2 minutes to blend like my old dead blender did.
Here are the problems with it:
(1) It leaks from the bottom of the base. I tried to fix the problem by tightening up the bottom plastic base but ended up putting a radial crack in it. I can still use it and surprisingly it doesn't leak as much. I can't put it into the fridge with its contents because I will end up with puddle after an hour or two.
(2) I put the glass part (with the blade assembly) into the dishwasher every night. I would take it apart, but I found that I had difficulty getting it back together without leaking.
(3) The base will un-tighten itself if you don't ensure the glass catch is next to one of the two metal catches. It can be trick to get the two catches close enough so that the blender won't spin the base loose.
(4) My mother had an old beehive, metal blender with only one speed, it was great. Since I couldn't find that, I chose this one. This one's base is heavier than I recall hers being. The glass jar feels the same, but I believe it holds about a cup less than hers did.
(5) My kids complain that this is loud, but that's because the old fancy speed department store blenders were so weak.
(6) I find I have to add at least 3 cups of milk to my smoothie in order to avoid the problem of too much air being sucked into the bottom and the frozen fruit not being blended. Someone earlier said to pulse twice then blend, think I will try that.
Apart from the cracked base cap, which I am replacing, I still like this blender since it manages to do the job. Most of my other complaints are rather minor given the blenders I have dealt with in the past. If this one ever dies I will start a new search for closer to my mom's old blender.
Customer Review: Power with the Noise to go with it
Summary: 3 Stars
Pros:
Powerful
Well Made
Cons:
Loud (almost need hearing protection, no joke)
Watch ice/liquid ratio or it will create an air pocket like any blender
Who should buy this blender? Someone who doesn't mind a really loud blender, but wants something a lot better built than all the cheap ones out there. Don't expect miracles though, thaw your frozen fruit slightly in cold water before blending for best results.
At first I got this blender and really liked it. It is well made, and certainly powerful. But this power comes at the expense of being loud, and I mean leaf blower or shop vacuum loud. I make morning smoothies, and half the time I run it my son wakes up. This is unacceptable.
I am returning to my KitchenAid, which is actually better made, glass and metal are both twice as thick, but that is a bit overkill. This Oster is pretty well constructed compared to most blenders. The KitchenAid is several orders of magnitude quieter, you just have to deal with replacing a rubber coupler every so often.
Measuring with a sound meter, at about 1.5 ft was 102 dB on the Oster!!! That is as loud as a chain saw, no joke. The KitchenAid was only 90 dB (the Oster puts out 15 times the sound energy). The Oster will end up with a smoother puree though, the KitchenAid is more liable to leave chunks.
As with any blender, if making a smoothie with frozen strawberries or something, you really should thaw the strawberries first in cold water or you will end up with an air pocket underneath a frozen ice shelf you have to break up with a spoon handle. This is a problem in this blender because it is so narrow near the bottom.
It isn't a bad blender, certainly does the job, I just can't put up with what sounds like a power tool for making my morning smoothies.