You drop a handful of frozen strawberries and some ice into the blender, add a splash of milk, and hit the button. The motor groans. The blades spin in a little pocket of air while the fruit just sits on top.
So you stop it, poke everything down with a spoon, and try again. Then again.
By the time you get something drinkable, there are still icy chunks in it, and you're late. If that's how your smoothie mornings go, the problem probably isn't you. It's the blender. And it's exactly the problem the Ninja Professional Plus Blender (model BN701) is built to fix.
What the Ninja Professional Plus Blender does with ice and frozen fruit
The short version is power. The BN701 runs on a 1400 peak-watt motor, which Ninja says is a step up from its original Professional Blender (that one was 1000 watts). Inside the pitcher there's a stacked blade assembly, six blades going up the middle, that Ninja calls Total Crushing blades. The listing says they turn ice "into snow in seconds."
Buyers back that up. The thing people mention most is how quickly it handles frozen fruit and ice, and how smooth the result is. One owner wrote that it "crushes frozen whole strawberries to a slushy or a smoothie." Another said blueberries break down so finely that "I no longer have to strain them."
That stacked design matters. On many cheaper blenders, the blades sit only at the bottom, so whatever's on top never gets pulled down. With blades running up the center of the pitcher, the whole load gets hit at once.
A few reviewers describe the first time they turned it on with real surprise. One guy who'd been using a blender from the 1990s summed it up as "This thing is a beast," and he wasn't the only one to use that word.
A normal weekday morning with it
You load the 72-ounce pitcher with fruit, yogurt, ice, whatever you like. There's a 64-ounce max liquid line marked on the side, so you don't have to guess how much is too much. Then instead of choosing a speed, you can press one of the three Auto-iQ buttons: Smoothie, Frozen Drink or Ice Cream.
Each one runs a timed pattern of pulsing, blending and pausing, then stops on its own. That pause-and-pulse rhythm is what lets the ingredients fall back toward the blades, so you're not standing there with a spoon. Several buyers say the Auto-iQ programs are their favorite part because you just pick one and walk away for a minute. There are also manual buttons if you want control, and one reviewer noted there are 4 buttons, "which is all it needs."
The big pitcher is a real plus if you're making drinks for more than one person. Owners talk about making smoothies for the whole family in one go, or batching frozen margaritas when friends come over. One couple said it became something they use every day, "sometimes multiple times a day," since one of them needs smoothies regularly.
Small details come up too. People like the pouring spout for avoiding drips, and one buyer said the suction on the base holds it firmly in place on the counter.
Cleanup is the other thing buyers keep praising. The BPA-free pitcher and the blade assembly are both top-rack dishwasher safe, and the whole blade lifts out, so you're not scrubbing around a fixed blade at the bottom of a jar. One reviewer said the pitcher gives you access to "all nooks and crannies," which makes rinsing it quick.
You can check the current price on Amazon.
A few honest drawbacks
It's loud. That's the most common complaint, though reviews are honestly split on it. Some people say it wasn't nearly as noisy as they expected, while others describe it as pretty loud at high speed, and one compared the sound to a jet engine. Most blends are over in under a minute, though. If you make smoothies at 5 a.m. in a small apartment while someone's asleep in the next room, though, keep it in mind.
The blade needs care if you hand wash. Because the blades run up the middle, getting residue off them by hand takes some attention, and one owner warned others to "be very careful with your fingers." If you have a dishwasher, this mostly goes away. Just put the blade assembly on the top rack.
Durability gets mixed feedback too. Plenty of buyers say it feels sturdy and has held up to daily use, but some report the plastic pitcher cracking within a year. It's worth hanging on to your receipt and warranty info.
One practical note for readers outside the US: the listing says the motor runs on 120 volts and may need a converter elsewhere.
Is the Ninja Professional Plus Blender right for you?
It's a great fit if you make smoothies, protein shakes or frozen drinks often, use a lot of frozen fruit and ice, or regularly blend for more than one person. It's also a good step up if your current blender needs constant stopping and stirring.
It isn't the best pick if you mostly want single-serve drinks you can carry out the door, since this base version doesn't come with to-go cups. Ninja sells versions with those included (the Pro Plus DUO and the Kitchen System, which also adds food processing), so you can compare the options on Amazon.
It's currently listed as the #1 Best Seller in countertop blenders on Amazon, with close to twenty thousand ratings, so a lot of people have already made this switch.
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