If you usually start your day with a smoothie or protein drink and you want to continue the habit when you’re away from home – camping, staying in a holiday house or in the office – a portable blender could be the answer.
Compact enough to fit in your bag or backpack, these battery-powered blenders let you whizz up a shake or smoothie even when you’re away from your trusty benchtop blender.
The Ninja Blast is a portable blender, delivering the high speed power you may be used to from other Ninja blenders but with a compact, cordless and hand-held design. It retails for $80 and makes big promises with its stainless steel BlastBlade which is designed to effortlessly power through ingredients with speed and precision.
The Ninja Blast portable blender comes with a convenient carry handle.
Portable blenders aren’t to be confused with personal blenders. While a personal blender can still be compact and offer single serve blending, they require mains power to operate, while a portable blender just needs to be charged before use.
A key advantage that portable blenders have over mains-powered personal blenders is that you can take them with you and blitz up a smoothie when you’re ready to drink it, rather than drinking a beverage that was blended hours ago and may have separated or oxidised. Our experts have put the Ninja Blast to the test alongside other portable options from Kmart, Breville, Tefal, Big W and more. We’ve even tested its larger companion the Ninja Blast Max. To see how these blenders stack up against each other take a look at our blenders review.
For a portable device, the Ninja Blast packs a punch. It features:
Rechargeable, water resistant base powered by a lithium-ion battery (which can be charged via a USB-C cable. The wall outlet for charging is not included)
A BPA-free container with a sippy lid
Components that are dishwasher-safe
A blending cup that can hold up to 470mL of liquid ingredients. The larger Ninja Blast Max can hold 650mL of liquid
Settings for smoothies, protein shakes and frozen drinks
Separate on/off power switch and blend buttons.
Light weight of 790g and compact dimensions of 26cm x 8cm x 8cm (HxWxD)
Six colour options (Denim Blue, Black, Forest Green, White, Passion Fruit and Cranberry)
The Ninja Blast in action on Pru’s family road trip.
How well does the Ninja Blast blend?
Our experts have put blenders of all shapes and sizes to the test in the CHOICE kitchen lab ranging from small portable blenders to high-powered super blenders.
CHOICE home economist, Fiona Mair says “we test each type of blender based on their capabilities, so the results in our review aren’t comparable between types”.
For portable blenders, we test how well they can blend a soft food, crush ice and make a green smoothie filled with cucumber, celery, kiwifruit, pear, spinach and mint leaves. When it comes to blending tough leafy greens like kale, portable blenders struggle. While other blenders can easily tackle this task, we don’t rate portable types well for blending kale.
Overall though, the Ninja Blast performed impressively in our lab tests. It was excellent for crushing ice and got a ‘very good’ result for blending a soft liquid and green smoothie.
CHOICE editor, Pru Engel also had a good experience when she took the Ninja Blast on a family holiday for her smoothie-loving kids.
She says, “the Ninja Blast made light work of smooth ingredients like berries and fruit, and just two or three 30-second blitzes made for smooth fruit blends the kids loved (no need for shaking or stirring of ingredients).”
I was impressed with the performance of such a compact unit
“I was impressed with the performance of such a compact unit, and it wasn’t anywhere near as noisy as our full-size blender at home. It also easily coped with chunks of frozen mango – a win all round.”
However, as our lab testing indicated, Pru found the Ninja Blast struggled with blending kale. “When I attempted to blend roughly chopped kale with banana, coconut water and ice, the blades became stuck, even though I added the liquid ingredients first, and I had to shake it multiple times to dislodge the blockage.”
“Loose spinach leaves might be a better option if you want to pack some greens into your smoothie and retain a smooth texture.”
Portable blenders are not complicated appliances, and the Ninja Blast is no exception. You just charge, add ingredients and push a button to blend.
It has two controls that light up. The power switch tells you when the battery is charged, when it’s ready to blend, if the blades are blocked or when it’s running out of power. The blend button allows you to pulse or run a 30-second blend cycle which you can repeat to achieve your desired results.
Fiona found the Ninja Blast easy to assemble and disassemble and noted that the cup has grading in 100mL increments, which is convenient if you want to measure out specific ingredients. It also comes with fairly comprehensive instructions along with some recipes for inspiration.
Fiona says it’s important to use the blender safely and follow the instructions for use. “It’s not possible to detach the cup from the blade assembly for drinking, so you’ll need to make sure you don’t accidentally hit the power button while you’re drinking.”
You can’t separate the rechargeable base from the container, so you’ll need to take the whole unit with you
Pru says, “it took about two hours to fully charge, and lasted for 10–12 rounds of 30-second blends – which was much more than I’d expected of such a small appliance”.
The USB-C charging cable provided with this blender is quite short (about 40cm) and you’ll need your own USB wall socket or charger. You could of course use a longer USB-C cable to charge, or plug the base into a laptop or other charging device.
The blender container’s sippy-style spout with a non-spill lid makes it easy to drink from, and makes for mess-free pouring if you’re distributing smoothies between cups.
It also has a carry handle for when you’re out and about, and it’s easy to clean (the lid can be a bit fiddly but the base rinses easily and you can pop the cup into the dishwasher).
As mentioned above, you can’t separate the rechargeable base from the container, so you’ll need to take the whole unit with you. “I think it’s slightly too heavy to pop in your backpack if you have to carry it over a long distance, but it does fit in the cup holder of my car so it’s useful if you want to whip up a fresh smoothie on a car trip,” says Pru.
The blender is designed so you can drink straight from the cup after blitzing (rather than detaching the drinking vessel).
What else can you use a portable blender for?
As well as smoothies, frappes, shakes and protein drinks, the small size of portable blenders makes them suitable for whipping up smaller quantities of things such as salad dressings, sauces or dips. (The Ninja Blast is not suitable for blending hot ingredients, though.)
Pru says, “I don’t own a mini blender, so I could see myself using the Ninja Blast at home as well as while travelling”.
How does the Ninja Blast compare to other portable blenders?
We put the Ninja Blast to the test against other portable blenders from brands like Breville, Kmart Anko, Tefal and more. They range in price from $15 for the Kmart Anko model to $130 for the Ninja Blast Max. To see how they stack up against each other take a look at our blenders review.
Text-only accessible version
Kmart vs Ninja Portable Blenders: Price vs Performance
Kmart Anko Portable USB Mini Blender
Price: $15
Green smoothie score: 80%
Capacity: 270mL
Dishwasher safe parts: No
Warranty (years): 1
Origin: China
Ninja Blast Portable Blender BC100
Price: $80
Green smoothie score: 80%
Capacity: 470mL
Dishwasher safe parts: Yes
Warranty (years): 2
Origin: China
Ninja Blast Max Portable Blender BC251
Price: $130
Green smoothie score: 80%
Capacity: 650mL
Dishwasher safe parts: Yes
Warranty (years): 2
Origin: China
Is the Ninja Blast portable blender worth buying?
Compact, easy to use and transport, and suitable for blending a variety of ingredients (but less effective at blending fibrous greens such as kale), the Ninja Blast blender is worth considering if you’re looking for a portable blending option.
Pru says, “it earned its stripes on our family holiday, and made preparing nutritious smoothies for the family while on the go or staying in accommodation easy with consistent results”.
If you’re wondering if it’s worth spending $80 for the Ninja Blast, that depends on how often you’ll use it and what features you’re looking for. We’ve tested cheaper options with similar performance results. Take a look at our blenders review for the full results. There you’ll also find we’ve tested single-serve personal blenders that are mains powered, as well as standard and high performance blenders.
Pru Engel is the Audience and Engagement editor at CHOICE. Her job is to ensure as many Australians as possible know about the great work we do at CHOICE.
She works closely with our testers and experts to find the gems of information in our data and research that will resonate with Australian consumers and help them make the best decisions, whether they're purchasing an air fryer, looking for a new mattress or trying to find the cheapest car insurance. She also helps to drive meaningful change for consumers by collaborating with our Campaigns team on content covering issues such as grocery pricing, product safety and scams.
Prior to CHOICE, Pru worked as an editor at many of Australia's leading food and lifestyle titles.
Pru has a Bachelor of Arts in Communication (Journalism) from the University of Technology, Sydney.
Find Pru on LinkedIn.
Pru Engel is the Audience and Engagement editor at CHOICE. Her job is to ensure as many Australians as possible know about the great work we do at CHOICE.
She works closely with our testers and experts to find the gems of information in our data and research that will resonate with Australian consumers and help them make the best decisions, whether they're purchasing an air fryer, looking for a new mattress or trying to find the cheapest car insurance. She also helps to drive meaningful change for consumers by collaborating with our Campaigns team on content covering issues such as grocery pricing, product safety and scams.
Prior to CHOICE, Pru worked as an editor at many of Australia's leading food and lifestyle titles.
Pru has a Bachelor of Arts in Communication (Journalism) from the University of Technology, Sydney.
Find Pru on LinkedIn.
Rebecca Ciaramidaro is a Content producer in the Household team at CHOICE. Rebecca writes about a wide range of children's and household products, ranging from cots and strollers to ovens, BBQs, espresso machines and electric blankets. And also grocery items such as nappies, sanitary pads and laundry detergents.
Previously at CHOICE, Rebecca worked as a Test officer in the kitchen lab.
Rebecca has a Bachelor of Science (Nutrition and Food) from the University of Western Sydney.
Find Rebecca on LinkedIn.
Rebecca Ciaramidaro is a Content producer in the Household team at CHOICE. Rebecca writes about a wide range of children's and household products, ranging from cots and strollers to ovens, BBQs, espresso machines and electric blankets. And also grocery items such as nappies, sanitary pads and laundry detergents.
Previously at CHOICE, Rebecca worked as a Test officer in the kitchen lab.
Rebecca has a Bachelor of Science (Nutrition and Food) from the University of Western Sydney.
Find Rebecca on LinkedIn.
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