Ninja Blender with Auto-IQ BN495UK review

One-minute review

Ninja is a brand that's become known for its personal blenders. These handy compact appliances, which are also called smoothie makers, burst onto the market in 20212 with the introduction of the Nutribullet, ensuring you can blitz small quantities of fresh produce into a refreshing drink and take it with you, without having to decant it first. 

The Ninja Blender with Auto-IQ BN495UK, which is known as the Nutri Ninja with Auto IQ BL480 in the US is part of the brand’s line-up of existing personal and multi-serve blenders, air fryers, and food processors, which includes the Ninja 3-in-1 Food Processor with Auto-IQ.  

This personal blender is designed for on-the-go, and in the UK comes with two 700ml / 24 fl oz single-serve cups, which are ideal for making – but not limited to – healthy smoothies. In the US, it's bundled with three to-go cups ranging in size from 530 ml / 18 fl oz to 950 ml / 32 fl oz - it’s certainly a contender for one of the best blenders we’ve tested.

With its compact base and easy-to-use one-touch buttons, it’s aimed at those who want to prepare smoothies fast. The package also includes secure spout lids that attach to the serving cups for easy transportation. It has been designed with a pro extractor blade and powerful 1,000W motor that can blend through tough ingredients including fruit, nuts, seeds, and ice.

Within the personal blender category, Ninja also offers the Nutri Ninja 700W Slim Blender & Smoothie Maker QB3001UKS, which is lower in price at £59.99 / $69.99. While this features Ninja’s powerful blade technology, at 700W it’s slightly less powerful than the BN495UK and doesn’t include Ninja’s useful and time-saving Auto-IQ technology.

Ninja Blender with Auto-IQ BN495UK price and availability

At the time of writing, the Ninja Blender with Auto-IQ BN495UK is currently on sale for £69.99, down from £89.99, and it's available in the UK.

Check below for the latest deals on great Ninja appliances.

Design and key features

Measuring H38.7 x D17 x W 15.9cm, the Ninja Blender with Auto-IQ BN495UK is a compact blender. Sporting a sophisticated black and dusky grey body, it comes with two BPA-free Tritan single-serve cups that are dishwasher-safe. Its size means this appliance could happily be stored to one side of the worktop, or inside a standard kitchen cupboard.

Inside the box, you’ll find two 700ml single-serve cups, two spout lids for storage and on-the-go, a motor base and a sharp pro extractor blade for powerful blending and pulsing. This blade is made from high-quality stainless steel and has been put through its paces by Ninja through 1,000 ice-crushing cycles. 

With its 1,000W motor and 21,000rpm, the Ninja Blender with Auto-IQ BN495UK is fast and efficient in use. But this also means it’s noisy, measuring in at 99dB when blitzing a berry smoothie. However, the sound is balanced and bearable, unlike some blenders we’ve tried.

Overall, we were delighted at how simple it was to set up and use the Ninja Blender with Auto-IQ BN495UK – you simply take it out of the box and plug in the base. Next, stack your single-serve cup with ingredients, place it on the base and press a button. You can either choose from manual start/stop settings and a pulse feature, or opt for Ninja’s Auto-IQ programs that limit the guesswork of preparing items. The latter includes ‘Blend’, which runs for 50 seconds and is good for drinks with fresh or frozen fruit, liquids and ice; and a 60-second Max Blend setting, for tough ingredients such as skins, seeds and stems. The control panel has one of the sleekest designs we’ve seen, with buttons evenly spaced and easy to comprehend when you’re in a hurry.

Performance

In the box with the Ninja Blender with Auto-IQ BN495UK, you’ll find a comprehensive instruction booklet, plus a Ninja recipe guide packed with ideas for smoothies and drinks, savoury dishes and frozen treats to get you started. To assess the ergonomics and versatility of the Ninja’s design, we put it to task with a range of ingredients. 

Taking inspiration from the recipe booklet, we used the Ninja Blender with Auto-IQ BN495UK to make two items: a smoothie and a pancake mix. The smoothie included berries and avocado, oat milk and chia seeds. The booklet recommends that you load the cup with fresh fruits first, followed by leafy veg, liquid, seeds and nut butters and fresh ingredient. And for best results any large items should be cut into 2.5cm chunks. 

In our smoothie, we used fresh blueberries and a mix of frozen strawberries and raspberries. Once the jug was loaded, we set the Ninja running on the Blend setting, which lasts 50 seconds. After this time, we discovered that not all the ingredients had been blended, with some chia seeds stuck to the sides. So we added a little more oat milk and tried again, on the Max Blend setting for 60 seconds. This whizzed up the remaining ingredients to create a drink that was super-smooth in consistency. 

We also used the Ninja Blender with Auto-IQ BN495UK to make pancake mix, incorporating two eggs, flour and milk. Using the 50-second Blend setting was more than sufficient to create a smooth batter, perfect for restaurant-quality pancakes. 

In terms of maintenance, the BN495UK blender features dishwasher-safe parts. Ensure you rinse the blade and jugs directly after use to avoid food drying and becoming stuck to the sides – which would make the unit more difficult to clean. And while the parts can be cleaned with warm soapy water, a brush to get to behind the blades or into the base of the jug would have been a welcome addition in the box.  

Should I buy the Ninja Blender with Auto-IQ BN495UK?

Buy it if…

You love drinking smoothies on the go: The Ninja Blender with Auto-IQ BN495UK offers an easy way to make delicious cold drinks with minimum fuss. The inclusion of no-spill lids means you can secure a cup after blending, pop it in your bag and consume whilst out and about. 

You’re keen to experiment with flavours: Pretty much anything goes when you’re making a smoothie in this design – from tough ingredients such as pineapple chunks and unwaxed lemon peel, to finer items such as spinach and seeds. 

You want to make dips and ice creams: The included recipe booklet contains plenty of ideas for making snacks aside from smoothies – from sweet ‘Vanilla Nut Frozen Treat’ ice cream to Tabouleh and hummus dips. 

Don’t buy it if…

You want to make large batches: While there are two 700ml single-serve cups included in the box, for a bigger household, a multi-use blender such as the Ninja 3-in-1 Food Processor with Auto-IQ BN800UK may be a better option since it comes with an extra 2.1-litre blending jug.  

You want to blend soups: The USP of the Ninja Blender with Auto-IQ BN495UK is its ability to make silky-smooth cold drinks. If you’re looking for a blender that can tackle both hot and cold items, then you’d be better served by a multi-serve blender with a large-capacity jug. 

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