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Black and Decker PowerPo 250 W Mixer
This particular model was purchased by me and my husband in the summer of 2009, at one of the major retailers in our local mall. This is the first time we have purchased a Black and Decker appliance and we really like this model. The manufacter's retail price is $20 dollars but we had a coupon to use in the store and only paid $10 dollars for our mixer. This is a very nice hand held model that is easy to use and to store away.
The mixer has several features that our older General Electric mixer did not have. First, instead of only two beaters there is also a whisk and a spatula attachment. This is great for getting along the sides of the bowl when mixing up cake batter, for example. The spatula really works well with mixing all types of baking recipes. The whisk attachment is wonderful for beating egg whites or whipping up fresh cream for a summer dish. The whisk seems to work a lot faster than just using the regular beaters. Also the use of the spatula attachment means you don't have to handle a separate spatula along with the mixer while holding onto the mixing bowl. Anyone who bakes a lot will tell you this is a real convenience to have.
Our model has a boost button that will give one a little extra burst of speed when mixing up things like mashed potatoes, or other tougher to mix items. The only thing I do not like about this model is that the lowest speed on the mixer sometimes appears to be too fast, causing ingredients to shoot out of the mixing bowl. However, I have just decided that when I am using lighter ingredients I will have to use a deeper mixing bowl.
The beater housing is very nice, as it holds the beaters and the other attachments very securely. Sometimes different mixers have a cheaper plastic housing that holds them in place, but they will usually wobble a little. Not with this model. The housing is heavy duty and once the beaters or other attachments are inserted they are staying put until one ejects the beater button to remove them.
Lastly, another convenience is the bowl rest feature, allowing one to be interrupted while mixing food and to be able to shut off the mixer and balance the unit on the rim of any bowl. This is nice if you also need to periodically scrape off the beaters when mixing tougher ingredients.