I am on my second MX2050 in a little over a month. The first 1st one was defective ...it smelled like burning plastic and eventually blew a bearing in the blade assembly such that the blades were difficult to spin. Amazon replaced the unit very promptly. The second is fairing better with my daily regime of smoothies. There is a film of light oil beneath the blade assembly bearing(outside the jar- no contact with food) and the dial is a little stiff but so far so good.

This blender was rated # 1 by the major consumer product testing organization, but don't expect it to be as powerful and have as long a life as the Vita-Mix. Still, you could buy about ten of these for the price of a Vita -Mix. It is PLENTY powerful enough for most tasks, and it has a very nice glass jar.

Presently the MX2050 is manufactured in the Czech Republic which I feel is a plus since that economy can use the help. I think that it's good to spread the wealth instead of sending it all to China.

For the price I can definitely recommend this blender. Three out of five stars mainly for the problems with the first unit but also for the sticky dial and longevity concerns (time will tell).
I am on my second MX2050 in a little over a month. The first 1st one was defective... it smelled like burning plastic and eventually blew a bearing in the blade assembly such that the blades were difficult to spin. Amazon replaced the unit very promptly. The second is fairing better with my daily regime of smoothies. There is a film of light oil beneath the blade assembly bearing(outside the jar- no contact with food) and the dial is a little stiff but so far so good. This blender was rated # 1 by the major consumer product testing organization, but don't expect it to be as powerful and have as long a life as the Vita-Mix. Still, you could buy about ten of these for the price of a Vita -Mix. It is PLENTY powerful enough for most tasks, and it has a very nice glass jar. Presently the MX2050 is manufactured in the Czech Republic which I feel is a plus since that economy can use the help. I think that it's good to spread the wealth instead of sending it all to China. For the price I can definitely recommend this blender. Three out of five stars mainly for the problems with the first unit but also for the sticky dial and longevity concerns (time will tell).