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iCucina Portable Bullet vs. Magic Bullet 250W Side-by-Side Comparison




Our Verdict
- Performance (60%)4.7/10
- Design (25%)7.7/10
- Usability (15%)9.3/10
- Performance (60%)2.8/10
- Design (25%)7.5/10
- Usability (15%)6.9/10
iCucina Portable Bullet and Magic Bullet 250W are both mid-range personal blenders designed for simple recipes. They share similarities, such as hands-free operation mode, compact size, and affordable price. But when it comes to performance and capabilities, we notice some significant differences worth mentioning.
In our testing, we found that the iCucina had no difficulty grinding oats. However, the resulting drink lacked a robust flavor profile as some solid pieces of almonds and berries remained. Additionally, while the blender was able to break down all the frozen fruits in less than two minutes, the resulting smoothie lacked the desired thick, snow-like consistency.
On the other hand, the Magic Bullet performed slightly better in blending leafy vegetables and fibers, but struggled to blend through frozen fruits and nuts. As a result, the resulting drinks contained large chunks of unprocessed food, rendering them mostly undrinkable.
Additionally, both blenders experienced difficulty blending 6 ounces of ice cubes, which can be attributed to their relatively weak motor. However, after taking into consideration the overall performance, we would recommend the iCucina over the Magic Bullet.
iCucina Portable Bullet Performance
- Protein Shake (40%)6.0/10
- Frozen Fruit Smoothie (30%)5.0/10
- Fibrous Greens (20%)4.0/10
- Crushed Ice Cubes (10%)0/10
- Protein Shake (40%)3.9/10
- Frozen Fruit Smoothie (30%)0/10
- Fibrous Greens (20%)6.0/10
- Crushed Ice Cubes (10%)0/10
Protein Shake
- Blending Time: 1 mins 50 seconds
- Result: Very Coarse
The iCucina may be a good choice for you to prepare any protein shakes that use fresh plant-based food, but if you want to level up your workout drinks with raw nuts and dried fruits, we recommend going with other models, such as the Ninja Fit, Nutri BN401, or the NutriBullet. This blender is inefficient enough to liquify and combine such ingredients fully.
For this test, our protein shake is designed to include oatmeal, almonds, protein powder, and dried blueberries. Throughout the blending process, we noticed that this blender didn’t have much hard time grinding the ingredients; it worked quite smoothly, indeed. All the oatmeal was turned into liquid form in approximately two minutes, which seemed not to be so fast yet acceptable enough. The final drink, unfortunately, couldn’t get the most flavor out of almonds and berries, since about a third of the fruits were still solid.
- Blending Time: 2 mins 10 seconds
- Result: Very Coarse
In this test, the two minutes and ten seconds we spent with the Magic Bullet produced an undrinkable result. While all the oatmeal was broken down pretty well, most of the blueberries and almonds came out completely intact. As a result, the drink was too chunky to sip on. It also lacked the fruity flavor that our recipe prides itself on. If you want to use this blender for a protein shake, we recommend just using soft ingredients.
Frozen Fruit Smoothie
- Blending Time: 1 min 50 seconds
- Result: Smooth
- Suction:
Berries are the favorite superfoods of many people but their skins and seeds are typically a little bit hard to be liquified entirely. That’s why our recipe for this test calls for four berry varieties; we want it to be a practical way to test for the smoothie-making capacity of our personal blenders, including this iCucina, and fortunately, it does.
Preparing frozen fruit smoothies with the iCucina asked us to compromise on texture. This was because while this blender could break down all the fruits in one minute and fifty seconds, after such a duration, the smoothie it delivered did lose its thick, icy consistency we prefer.
Simply put, for an ice-cold treat to come out perfectly, your blender should blend as fast as possible so the frozen ingredients don’t have time to thaw and therefore dilute the overall consistency. But as we learned from our tests, this blender isn’t capable enough in this regard. We recommend using crushed ice instead of freezing your ingredients in advance if you prefer a smoother icy blend.
- Blending Time: 2 minutes
- Result: Chunky
- Suction:
By our 2-minute cutoff point, the Magic Bullet hadn't fully processed all the ingredients so we considered it to have failed the test and awarded it no points. To be fair, though, the final result was not too bad. While this blender still left behind strawberry chunks, it blended through other ingredients pretty evenly. The smoothie came out smooth; our straw didn't get clogged with hard bits after we removed the two partially blended chunks. It was just quite thin since the blending process was so long that the frozen fruit had time to thaw thus diluting the overall consistency.
Fibrous Greens
- Blending Time: 20 seconds
- Result: Very Coarse
We blended kale, spinach, and celery in the time benchmark of 20 seconds to see how well this iCucina would incorporate fibers to your meals. Eventually, we found this blender underperformed significantly against top competitors, again. There was a ton of fibrous pulp left behind when we strained the mixture through a mesh strainer. This suggested that our final drink didn’t get the greatest nutritional value.
Perhaps, you might think it isn’t necessary to blend that quickly, blending a little bit longer is concede as long as your desired consistency can be achieved. For the most part, we agreed this is entirely possible with the iCucina.
- Blending Time: 20 seconds
- Result: Coarse
If you’re looking for a personal blender that can handle leafy vegetables along with other fiber-filled foods, the Magic Bullet is up to the challenge but will not wow you.
In this test, its mission was to break down kale, spinach, and celery in 20 seconds. Perhaps, you will get a better result if you blend for longer than we did, but this time frame is adequate for us to evaluate this blender’s efficiency. To check the result, we drained the completed drink through a mesh strainer. As such, we noticed a vast number of leafy chunks remained unblended. The pulp also looked coarse and non-uniform. Still, this outcome is more impressive than those produced by its counterparts, namely the Hamilton Beach and the KOIOS Pro.
Crushed Ice Cubes
- Ice Fineness: Coarse
- Unblended Ice: 73.5% of 6 oz
Typically, personal blenders aren’t designed with a focus on ice-crushing capability, and the iCucina is not an exception. The lack of strength prevented it from powering through the ice. We noticed that the blade couldn't even spin so most of the ice came out virtually untouched. Sometimes we undocked the cup and shook it on purpose to even out the blend, but this still couldn’t help much. If you particularly have a need for this sort of blend, you’d be better served by something that is packed with a higher-powered motor, such as the Ninja Nutri Pro.
- Ice Fineness: Chunky
- Unblended Ice: 83% of 6 oz
Our Magic Bullet couldn’t blend through 6 oz ice cubes thoroughly not only because of its weak motor power but also because its blending cup is too small to handle such an amount of ice. For the most part, the ice got stuck in the blade and prevented it from turning. Even when we undocked the cup and shook it, this still couldn’t help much. If you want something that can be up to this sort of blend, consider the NutriBullet, Ninja Fit, and Ninja Nutri Pro.
iCucina Bullet Blender Design
- Blades (20%)6.0/10
- Build Quality (60%)7.5/10
- Blending Cup (20%)10/10
- Blades (20%)6.5/10
- Build Quality (60%)7.0/10
- Blending Cup (20%)10/10
In the Box of the iCucina Portable Blender
- Motor Base
- Blade assembly
- Two blending Cup
- Two to-go lids
- User guide
- Motor base
- Extractor blade
- Two blending cups
- One to-go lid
- One party mug
- Two lip rings
- Two resealable lids
- Recipe guide
Dimensions
- Height:13.6" (34.5 cm)
- Width:5.0" (12.7 cm)
- Weight:2.5 oz (71 g)
- Shaft Length:
The iCucina is about one-third smaller than a standard full-sized blender, like the Vitamix 5200 or the Ninja with Auto-iQ technology, so we suppose it’ll fit easily into any cabinet.
- Height:12.0" (30.5 cm)
- Width:4.5" (11.4 cm)
- Weight:2.0 oz (57 g)
- Shaft Length:
The Magic Bullet is half the size of traditional countertop blenders so it should fit easily into your cabinet. This compact structure also avoids overwhelming your counter space. That being said, the plastic construction means the blender itself is so lightweight that it wobbles while blending.
Build Quality
The whole construction of the motor base is plastic except for a thin layer on the outer that is made of stainless steel. It’s supposed that the lack of sleekness of this layer somehow causes the blender to feel cheaper. That’s why although our iCucina is rather solidly put together, next to the Ninja Fit or the KOIOS, it just looks less of a bargain.
All the parts are mostly made of plastic, making the blender look flimsy both inside and outside. Apart from lacking the sturdiness we’re after, the Magic Bullet also has a low resistance to wear and tear. It feels like it could be easily scratched or even broken if accidentally dropped. The blade made of standard stainless steel may well grab your attention but unfortunately, it’s less solid than its competitors at the same price point—the KOIOS, to name but one. So again, the low cost shouldn’t be an excuse for this blender’s shortcomings.
Blades
- Material:Stainless Steel
- Type:Sharp and Dull Blades
- Guard Material:
- Blade Count:4
- Removable:No
- Dishwasher Safe:Yes
The blade has four prongs: two are sharps and the others are dull. In comparison with the rivals, it is less refined due to its small-scale and the lack of sharpness. Lackluster performances mainly result from this, we believe.
- Material:Stainless Steel
- Type:Sharp Blade
- Guard Material:
- Blade Count:4
- Removable:No
- Dishwasher Safe:Yes
The stainless steel blade has 4 prongs. It comes relatively sharp but looks a bit fragile so we would suggest that you shouldn’t use it for blending hard ingredients without liquid. Otherwise, it may dull or even get permanently damaged.
Motor Base
- Rated Voltage:120 V
- Rated Power:300 Watts
- Working Time:≤ 1 minute
- Protection:No
- Weight:2.0 lbs (0.9 kg)
- Cord Length:NaN" (NaN cm)
- Extra Feature:Silicon feet, a cooling fan
The base stands steadily on our counter thanks to the four silicone feet on its bottom. Like those of other personal blenders, the motor cannot run for longer than 1 minute to avoid damage caused by overheating, though there is an internal cooling fan designed to ensure proper ventilation and air circulation.
- Rated Voltage:120
- Rated Power:250
- Working Time:≤ 1 minute
- Protection:Yes
- Weight:1.6 oz (45 g)
- Cord Length:2.2" (5.6 cm)
- Extra Feature:Silicon feet
The motor peaks around 250 watts. It is too weak to be used for ice crushing or dry blending. To make icy drinks, we recommend only using chilled ingredients. Like other personal blenders, it cannot run for longer than 1 minute to avoid damage caused by overheating, though there is an internal thermal breaker that shuts off the unit when it overheats.
The base has four silicone feet to help keep the whole blender in place while operating. However, we don’t think such add-ons are really helpful; our machine walked around on the counter in every test anyway.
Blending Cup
- Material:Plastic
- Capacity:28.0 fl oz (828.1 ml)
- Weight:0.4 oz (11 g)
- Dishwasher Safe:Yes
- Measurement:Yes
- Suitable For:Small and Medium batches
- Accessories:To-go lids
The set consists of two blending cups. They can work interchangeably with the blade assembly and two spout-flip lids that are extra included.
- Material:Plastic
- Capacity:12-,16-, and 22-oz
- Weight:0.18-, 0.33-, and 0.25-pound
- Dishwasher Safe:Yes
- Measurement:No
- Suitable For:Small and medium batches
- Accessories:2 lid rings, 3 lids
The set consists of three blending cups. They work interchangeably with the extractor blade and two different types of lids. There are also two removable lip rings included so you may find it easier to sip your drink straight from the cup.
The drawback is that the lids do not seal tightly to the cup. In the smoothie test, we paused several times to give the cup a shake and eventually ended up with a mess.
Speed and Controls
- Control Type:Button
- Min Speed:N/A
- Max Speed:N/A
- Presets:No
- Noise Level:97 dB
- Digital Display:No
- Pulse Mode:No
The iCucina is a single-speed personal blender with one-touch operation. This means there is a pressing button in the front center that you’ll use to control the motor. More to the point, the button is very clicky so you don’t need much force to press.
- Control Type:Push
- Min Speed:
- Max Speed:
- Presets:No
- Noise Level:97 dB
- Digital Display:No
- Pulse Mode:No
The Magic Bullet is a single-speed blender working without any physical buttons. To use, you simply place the blending cup and press it down onto the motor base. You can also simulate pulse mode by pressing and releasing the cup in short intervals.
iCucina Bullet Personal Blender Usability Review
- Hand-Free Operation (60%)10/10
- Assembly (20%)8.0/10
- Cleanability (20%)8.5/10
- Hands-Free Operation (60%)5.8/10
- Assembly (20%)10/10
- Cleanability (20%)7.2/10
Hand-Free Operation
We like the smooth and non-intrusive operation of this blender. In particular, your iCucina will blend much more like a full-sized model since it doesn’t require you to press and hold the power button or the blending cup throughout the whole process like many rivals. Most impressively, food doesn’t too often get lodged under the blade and demands your intervention to resolve. Those suggest that you can possibly take your eyes off your blender to do other things while it is operating.
The Magic Bullet will blend for as long as you press the cup down onto the power base. To stop blending, simply release pressure on the cup, but with the Lock On Mode, your machine can also offer hands-free blending. However, we recommend not letting it out of your sight: Sometimes, solid ingredients like hard nuts and root veggies can stop the blade from turning so you will need to detect this obstruction and intervene as soon as possible. In the smoothie test, we had to shake to unblock the cross blade up to 6 times.
Assembly
It is very easy to seal the cup with the blade assembly. Just align the grooves on the blade assembly with the appropriate grooves on the cup and then turn one of the two pieces clockwise until you feel they attach firmly together. Attaching the cup assembly to the motor base, on the other hand, takes quite some time to figure out how things work.
There's a very shallow learning curve to getting accustomed to the assembly process. To blend, you simply line up the tabs on the sealed cup with the tabs on the power base, then press it down until the desired consistency is achieved.
You can also press down and turn the cup clockwise until the tabs lock under the lip of the power base for hands-free operation. To turn it off, just twist the cup back counter-clockwise and release the cup.
Cleanability
Except for the motor base, you can put everything in the dishwasher. The blending cup has a wide opening so you won’t have any difficulty reaching inside if cleaning by hand. Regarding the blade assembly, you have to remove the silicone gasket first. because this part is attached extremely tight, we found it is quite frustrating to get the job done, however. On the bright side, there isn’t much difficulty in wiping the blades’s backsides, especially when you have a bottle brush.
Cleaning all the pieces is a snap, especially when the cups and lids are top-rack dishwasher safe, but that didn’t save us much cleanup time. Because of leakage, the motor base got dirty after nearly every blend, though we could easily wipe away the gunk with a damp cloth. Not only that, but the blade’s backsides also gave us a hard time for a thorough hand cleaning so we recommend using a straw-cleaning brush.