Black & Decker 10-Speed Cyclone Blender Review

After my bad experience with the Mustang Mixer Deluxe, I purchased my Black & Decker Cyclone 10-Speed Blender on a desperate whim.  Basically, it was on sale and I needed a blender.  In hindsight, I wish that I would have done some research or dug a little deeper into my wallet because I am not very happy with this blender.

To be fair, I'll start with the pros:

* I like that the 48 ounce blending jar is made of glass and not cheap plastic like my previous blender.

* There are 10 speed controls and a pulse function, which I use on a daily basis.  Ice chopping is a breeze with this blender and the stainless steel blade shows no signs of wear and tear.

* This blender is sized just right and fits in my dishwasher for easy cleaning. I can also store the electrical cord under the base to make my kitchen look tidy in a jiffy.

I only have two cons but one of them is a biggie:

* The top cover of the blender is poorly designed in my opinion.  Black & Decker boasts about the built-in 2 ounce measuring cup, which is the clear plastic piece that is on top of the black cover.  The measuring cup looks like the top piece that is supposed to be used to lift up the cover.  However, if a person attempts to lift the cover by pulling up on the plastic measuring cup, the cup will come off but the black cover remains on the blending jar.  You can either pull up on the cover by putting your hand inside of the hole, or you have to dig your fingernails under the rim of the black cover to remove it.  I begrudgingly choose the latter, which has become a bone of contention with me.  This problem alone is why I don't recommend this.  I can't believe that this passed any kind of consumer testing.

* The other small con is that the chrome-type material on the base makes the function buttons hard to read due to the glare of my kitchen light.  I have to put my head down to the base level to read which function button I want to use.  Maybe I should just use my blender in the dark?

Obviously, I am not happy with the Black & Decker Cyclone 10-Speed Blender and do not recommend it.  While it has many positive attributes, the problem with removing the cover is a major one for me.  For a little more money, I wish that I would have purchased something more user-friendly.  You get what you pay for.