We've had this Vitamix since 2016 and it's still in great shape. We use the Vitamix to make smoothies for a midmorning snack, to whip up sauces for dinner and make delicious blended cocktails to relax on a hot Summer day. The closest current version to our model is the Vitamix Legacy Series 5200 64oz. Our Series 200 is a 64oz model also, but Vitamix makes 48oz models like the E310 Explorian which is around $150 less than the 64oz models. We never completely fill the 64oz and the amount of money you'd save by getting the 48oz model is probably worth it.
The Vitamix is on the pricier side for a blender, but from our experience it's longer lasting and hasn't slowed down at all compared to other blenders we've each had in the past. Previously I've probably gone through 2 other blenders in the amount of time we've had the Vitamix and I wasn't using them nearly as much because I really hated cleaning them. One of them would start to run a bit warm by the time it had finally blended my smoothies.
Another nice thing about the Vitamix is you can put either cold or hot ingredients in it to blend. If you're making a salsa or sauce that includes ingredients that need to be sauteed or blackened first, you don't have to take time waiting for them to cool down. You can toss them right in to blend. One possible downside is that it is very loud. However most blenders are noisy, but you won't have to run it as long as most other blenders since it works so quickly.
Another thing to note is you need liquid for the Vitamix to work properly. For example, when making a smoothie, if you were to just put fruits and vegetables in with no liquid it won't work. The ingredients will get clogged and the machine will start to overheat and ultimately shut off. You need to add water, milk or other liquid to give the proper consistency for the blades to do their job.
By far the best thing about the Vitamix is how incredibly simple it is to clean regardless of what you've made in it. You just fill it about 1/3 of the way full with warm water and a bit of dish soap and turn it on full blast. Let it run for about 30 seconds and then pour it out. Just rinse the remaining soap suds out and you're done. It's ready for whatever you want to make in it next. We like appliances that make our lives easier and the Vitamix is a worthy tool in our lineup.
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