Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I'm an experienced cook/baker who uses mixers often. I had a beautiful little Cuisinart hand mixer that lasted 2 years. That mixer was a 220 watt. Then, the motor burned up (complete with smoke issuing forth from the vents) during the mixing of stiff cookie dough. I decided to look for a more powerful mixer. I don't want a big mixer to sit on the counter taking up room. So I bought this Hamilton Beach because it has 290 watts, fairly powerful for a hand mixer. I've used it for only a short while. So far it's worked very well on stiff doughs and comes with two sets of beaters; the thicker "old-fashioned" ones and the thin ones. Both work beautifully. It also has the container to keep the beaters in. It's easy to use and stable standing up. It has vents on the front and the back. It does not have a digital readout for speeds; the speed indicator is manual, but I don't really miss the digital all that much. They didn't offer white, but the stainless and black combo clean up easily. So far, it's a great mixer; slightly larger than the previous mixer I owned, but not too big and not too heavy in the least. Comfortable to handle. I hope it lasts for a long time. If not, I'll put more info on here. Certainly, I'd recommend it. It's a solid mixer at a very good price. 2 YEARS LATER Well, the gear on the left that holds the beater just died. I guess the reviewers who say the plastic gears don't last are right. Even so, this is a really good mixer, far superior to others, except that it might not last as long as you want it to. If you don't mind that, you'll have a great mixer until it dies. In my case, too soon. Now I have to decide whether to get another of these, or just buy a totally different one. I really do love the extra power of this little mixer, though.