Fun for parties. Unique ice chipper really does mix well.

I bought this for my wife a year ago for our anniversary. I was considering one of the slushy machines like at 7-11, but they were too expensive.

I was told about this and thought I'd give it a try, since I found a $50 off coupon. She didn't know what to think when she opened it, but after a little trial and error, she loves it and uses it for more than margies now.

We've had it at several parties and people think it is great. It is worth it for that alone. Several of our friends have purchased this unit after seeing this in action.The unit is basically an ice chipper with an automatic blender under it. You are supposed to fill the top with ice, pour the margarita mix in the pitcher, select the number of drinks and hit start. It does work that way, but my wife has some other things that she does to make the drink that she likes.

There is a learning curve with this machine, since my wife feels that the instructions and automatic settings create a poor drink. The only problems we have had with it is that the blender will hold water where the pitcher goes, instead of draining out, making it a little difficult to clean there, and the ice chipper has jammed twice, but was easy to correct once I knew what the problem was.

It is a little spendy, but every other blender we have had makes lumpy drinks, so it was worth it. I wanted something that would make good drinks for the people at parties. This is it.

6-08 update: I just saw this at Costco for $180.