I have had a Braun for many years that has been okay, not great. It was a gift, so I didn't have the opportunity to look at different features/brands; this has a plastic bottom (which is cracked), you can't remove the blades to clean, and isn't good at keeping splashing to a minimum. But is does blend and has otherwise held up to frequent use.

Just yesterday (what a coincidence you brought this up now!), I ordered a new one by KitchenAid on amazon. It had good recommendations and has more features that appeal to me: metal base, removeable blades, etc. (Plus, I ordered it with a few other kitchen items that earned me the $25 discount on a $125 purchase from amazon).

Anyway, here's a link if you want to check it out. It comes in four different colors, and you can read reviews from other consumers...

Here is a link that might be useful: KitchenAid immersion blender

I ordered an immersion blend from Kitchen Aid about 6 months ago and have been very pleased with it.

Thanks folks that is the one I was thinking of getting so your vote of confidence is what I was looking for.

Bamix is a super-powerful emmersion blender. Purees in no time - love that I can puree soups in the pot on the stove - any temperature, makes great milkshakes WAY faster than a traditional blender - very easy to clean, too.

I make a smoothy often with mostly just frozen fruit, again in no time.

I got mine at a county fair, but I've seen them at PleasantHillGrain.com, too. They are pricy, but worth it!

Here is a link that might be useful: Pleasant Hill Grain Bamix page

I have the kitchenaid one. Someone on here said it was too big for them. "Like a barbershop pole", I believe they said. :lol:

I love mine.

Ditto the Bamix. I use mine every single day for something. It has three different blades that do everything from puree vegetables to foaming milk for cold coffee drinks. It's been years since I bought it but if memory serves it was kinda pricy.

Ken