NutriBullet Pro 900 Blender vs Nutri Ninja BL480 Blender: NutriBullet or Nutri Ninja blenders, which one to choose? This question troubles many customers who decided to add a bullet-type blender to their kitchen countertop. No wonder, NutriBullet, and Nutri Ninja are currently the major competitors in the high-powered personal blender market category. They both represent relatively new brands that are broadly advertised with the same concept: To make quick smoothies or shakes and take them out in a ready-to-go cup.
Here, we are offering to take a closer look at the features and benefits of NutriBullet Pro 900 and Nutri Ninja Auto iQ blenders, and by the end of the article, you will have an answer as to which one of these two performs the best and may suit your needs better.
Are you interested in alternative options? Check here our article, the Best Affordable but Powerful Personal Blenders or Best Countertop Blender Under $100.
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Table of Contents
NutriBullet Pro 900 Blender
NutriBullet Pro 900 Hi-Speed blender comes with a 900-watt motor, which is very powerful for a personal type gadget. This model is available in 3 different packages — 9‑piece, 13-piece, and 15-piece. All three models have the same unit base and motor but differ in the selection of accessories, informational material, and recipe book included in the package. So the typical NutriBullet package includes:
- Unit base with the 900-watt motor (all models);
- Blade assembly (all models);
- and 32 oz. cups (one of each for 9‑piece, two 32 oz. for 13-piece, and one 24 oz. and two 32 oz. for 15-piece);
- Lids, flip to go or/and resealable, depending on the number of cups in the package;
- Lip rings with a handle or without, depending on the number of cups in the package;
- User manual, nutritional guide, and recipe book (all packages, but the 9‑piece comes without recipe book);
The NutriBullet Pro 900 comes with cups made from quite a low-quality polycarbonate, and these have a high chance of developing cracks within 1 year of regular use (as many customers report). The blade assembly also has quality issues. Though the 6‑pronged blade is made of stainless steel, the plastic assembly parts are not durable and are prone to crack, while the blade sealing gasket usually wears out within 1 year of use. NutriBullet must be aware of this problem because they sell replacement cups and blade assembly parts through numerous online and offline retailers.
The blender’s technical design is also quite basic, as it is equipped with just one speed, which is activated by turning the cup clockwise against the base. Blending with one speed does not allow the user very good control over the blending process; For example, the speed limit makes it difficult to prepare decent salsa or salad dressing. Yet, the NutriBullet 900 Pro is designed to perform the following functions:
- Make smoothies, but hard and fibrous ingredients are not pulverized completely, so green smoothies come out quite textured, and berry seeds and skins are also not blended properly;
- Processes ice and frozen ingredients ONLY with liquid added (also stated in the user manual);
- Able to grind flax seeds, herbs, or similar, but will not mill coffee beans properly;
- Not designed to handle hot ingredients, so it will not suit making bulletproof coffee.
This machine comes with a 1‑year limited warranty. Unfortunately, the Magic Bullet NutriBullet customer service is not very helpful and responsive. Overall, it is not a bad entry-level gadget, but it is overpriced and made from cheap material and is thus not durable.
Nutri Ninja Auto iQ BL480 Blender
The Nutri Ninja Auto iQ Blender comes with a very powerful 1000-watt motor and is available in 4 different models – BL480, BL482, BL487, and BL487T. All models are equipped with absolutely the same base unit but a different set of accessories and recipe books, which are:
- Base unit with 1000 watt motor (all models);
- Blade assembly (all models);
- Selection of 18 oz., 24 oz., and 32 oz. cups (18 oz. and 24 oz. — BL480, one of each — BL481 and BL482, and with one 18 oz., one 32 oz., and two 42 oz. — BL482Z);
- Sip and Seal Lids for Each Cup;
- Getting started guide with recipes and a separate recipe book (NL480 and BL481 do not include a recipe book).
The cups are made of thick polycarbonate material, and the BL482Z model includes an additional two 24 oz. stress-resistant premium quality Tritan polycarbonate cups. The gadget is also equipped with a 4‑pronged, sharp stainless steel blade and a plastic blade assembly. The plastic blade assembly parts are a common problem for all personal blenders because of early wear out, which shortens the machine’s lifespan.
Nutri Ninja Auto iQ is equipped with a 3‑speed control panel — one pulse mode and two pre-set programs with 45 sec. and 60 sec. cycles — that is an advanced feature for a single-serve gadget. The choice of 3 speeds expands the gadget’s versatility, giving the user more control for making recipes like salsa, dips, or mayonnaise. So this machine is able to perform the following functions:
- Makes good quality drinks, including green smoothies and drinks from tough and fibrous ingredients;
- Crushes ice to snow cone consistency even without any liquid added and makes decent frozen desserts from frozen fruits and berries;
- Makes salsa, dips, and salad dressing and performs other food prep functions;
- Able to puree and chop raw and cooked vegetables;
- Not designed to process hot food, so it is not suitable for making bulletproof coffee;
- It is able to grind herbs and chop nuts, but the quality of grinding is not very good.
The gadget comes with a 1‑year limited warranty and not very helpful customer service. There is, however, a tendency for improvement.
Overall, this is quite a good and versatile personal blender and the only single-serve machine in the price range that is designed to crush ice without liquid added. Still, this blender suffers from the typical problem that the majority of single-serve gadgets do, not having a very long life expectancy.
List of the NutriBullet Pro 900 and Nutri Ninja Auto IQ Differences
NutriBullet PRO 900 Blender | Nutri Ninja Auto iQ BL48 | |
Motor | 900 watts with the plastic motor to the blade connection; | 1000 watt with the plastic motor to the blade couplings; |
Blades | 6‑pronged stainless steel blade with plastic assembly parts; | 4‑pronged stainless steel blade with plastic assembly parts; |
Containers | 24 oz. 32 oz. not good quality polycarbonates cups; | 18 oz., 24 oz., and 32 oz. thick polycarbonate cups, premium quality 24 oz. Tritan polycarbonate containers for BL482Z model only; |
Control panel | One speed; | Pulse function, 2 pre-sets programs and on/off button; |
Warranty | 1‑year limited warranty. Bad reputation for Customer Service. | 1‑year Limited, not good customer service but with tendency getting better. |
Performance | Does not blend decent fruit and green smoothies, processes iced and frozen ingredients only with liquids added, will not handle hot liquids, and will grind herbs and seeds but not coffee beans;
|
Blends good quality drinks, including green smoothies, crushes ice, makes ice cream and frozen desserts, chops and minces for salad dressing and dips, does not grind herbs well nor chop nuts, and does not handle hot ingredients; |
Dimensions | The footprint is 5 ½ inches in diameter; the profile height is 15.6 inches tall with a colossal (32 oz.) cup on the top of the unit base. Weight is 3.6 pounds. | The footprint is 5.6 X 6.6 inches; the profile height is 15.5 inches. Weight is 4.7 pounds. |
How to Choose Between the NutriBullet Pro 900 and Nutri Ninja Auto IQ BL480
Taking into account that both blenders have a good selection of cups and comparable prices, it is obvious that the Nutri Ninja Auto IQ is a better choice for those who are looking for a blender that makes quick, decent-quality smoothies to take them out. It also blends better quality green smoothies, crushes ice to snow cone conditions, and is able to chop vegetables for salsa and dips, while the NutriBullet 900 Pro Hi-Speed blender is not designed for this purpose. But NutrBullet does a slightly better grinding job.
The bottom line, the Nutri Ninja Auto IQ is a superior performer when compared to NuntriBullet, and it is more versatile and has a longer life expectancy.
Summary
The NutriBullet Pro 900 and Nutri Ninja Auto IQ BL480 blenders are both widely advertised and popular with consumers, but there is a good selection of decent single-serve blenders on the market with considerably lower prices, and their performance is comparable to these market leaders. Our article on the Best Affordable but Powerful Personal Blenders revealed some brilliant, cheaper alternatives that may better satisfy the needs of consumers who are not ready to pay $100 and over for this kitchen gadget.
Something else worth noting with the Ninja Pro is that while it can very efficiently break up and blend ice into fluffy, snow like texture, if the pieces of ice initially placed in the blender are too large, you might end up with a few small chunks remaining at the end of blending.
Another thing worth noting is that with Nutri Ninja is that even though the article states it cannot handle hot drinks, I did not find this to be true. I have made hot drinks to create a latte effect and found that it worked nicely. It breaks up hard pieces like cacoa butter which does not melt in the hot liquid. If you do not like the feeling of seeds in the smoothie, I did not find that it breaks them down completely. However the other parts of my green smoothie were very smooth. I do not taste any parts of spinach or kale.
Hi Diane,
You are right, the blender can handle hot drinks but if you do it often the blender jar will break prematurely since it is not designed to handle hot drinks as some blender do. The user manual clearly states this fact.
How come no one is mentioning how loud the Nutri Ninja Auti IQ is? So loud I have tried numerous ways to cover the sound. Any suggestions other than the $200 covers?
Must be earplugs only.
I have had the original nutri bullet for 5 years is extremely effective and would only suggest taking suction ring out sparaticly to clean. I have decided to upgrade to the pro only because I am giving my original ninja to my son as he moved out. I highly recommend this blender. I am curious to how the ninja functions but will stick with the nutri bullit as it has never let me down !!!????????