Customer Reviews

Black & Decker GM200 Gizmo Mixer

5 star:		(60)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(19)

 

 

I was very excited by the notion of a handmixer that I could use without plugging it into the wall, and for some kitchen jobs the Gizmo does just fine. However, for others it is an utter failure. So, if you buy one, don't plan on throwing out your old mixer - this will have to supplement rather than replace what you've already got.

Pros: It's very small and easy to grip. The handle shifts easily from a long "stick" configuration (good for blending soups right in the pots, or blending icey drinks) to an L-shaped traditional mixer configuration. The three attachments include a whip for eggwhites or cream, which worked very well, particularly if you leave your eggwhites in a small measuring cup.

Cons: There's only one beater. I didn't think that would matter until I tried to cream some butter for a cake and found myself chasing the stick of butter around the bowl with the one lonely beater, unsuccessfully - like trying to catch your kid's hamster when it gets loose. Two beaters trap the material and pulverize it, but one beater only chases it! The battery makes it seem underpowered (it doesn't seem to spin with the same vigor as my regular mixer). The mixer will NOT operate when attached to a wall outlet - so if your battery dies (which it will, because it does not last long), you can't solve the problem by plugging it in to the adaptor and starting up again (it will have to fully recharge). Finally, although the mixer comes with a handy unit that holds all three attachments, which they mean for you to attach to the wall, if your backsplash is tiled (as mine is), you won't be able to store it easily.

I'm not sorry I have it - it was quite good at whipping cream or egg whites - but I had hoped for a more generally useful appliance.

PS - No hamsters were harmed in the writing of this review.

Works fine, once you can get it pulled out of its holding case and remember to plug it back in when you put it back. Basic operation is a wall mounted holding unit, which the hand-held mixer fits into until you pull it out to use it, with slots below that to hold the attachments that you push into the mixer to do whatever it is you want to stir or mix or whisk. This is essentially a replacement from B&D of a unit they built 15-20 years ago, which had 4 inserts (this only has three, lacking the doodad that was shaped like a large rectangle on the shaft, which was excellent for mixing stuff). The earler unit (not this one) pulled right off the wall mount when you grabbed it, this one you can't easily pull it out until you learn to slip it out be pulling on the recharging cord. And, the earlier unit automatically recharged when you snapped it back in because it had copper connections in the wall-mounted base unit that made contact with copper connections in the mixer unit when you placed it back in the wall mount. In a step backwards, the new unit that I'm reviewing has a plug-in cord that you have to pull out of the mixer unit (it won't run with it in) when you pull it out of the wall mount to use it, and you have to plug the recharger back in, if you remember, when you place the mixer back in the wall mount. It works well when you get it out and get it running, but the design slipped from user-friendly to user-challenging.

I don't think deproved is a word, too bad.
The Gizmo is a replacement for B&D's Handy Mixer. Our Handy mixer died about two weeks ago, not bad after 10 years so I ordered a Gizmo. Old mixer had charging contacts in holder, new one was downgraded so you have to plug in the charger. New charging contact really cheapens the product. I found a wall wart that would charge the old one so it's going back on the wall. If I didn't have to destroy the plastic packaging to remove the unit, the Gizmo would be on the way back to Amazon right now.
We were always happy with the way the Handy Mixer handles what we used it for and I wouldn't expect the Gizmo to be less useful, just not as convenient.

I have Parkinson's Disease, and can't stir or whisk properly any more. The Gizmo allows me to "scramble" my eggs before pouring them into the skillet. I also use it for cornbread--mix the oil, egg, and milk before adding the cornmeal. Adding the cornmeal slows it down a little, but it does the job. I also use it to whisk sauces in the pan. I love that it's cordless so I can be comfortable using it at the stove, and it's easy to take it to the sink to clean the beater or whisk by running the mixer with the attachment in soapy water. No, it's not powerful, I'd never use it to "mash" potatoes; but it's been a huge help for me!

This is an update to the below review. It has been right at nine months of limited use (weekly) on light liquids. It died mixing chocolate milk. It is a waste on money and in the trash now.

I had the B&D cordless hand mixer years ago and loved it, thought this would be good, it isn't. The Gizmo is under powered, torqued or whatever and the plug in charger is a pain. It slowed when mixing up plain cornbread and pancake batter. I guess if all you're mixing is chocolate milk, eggs and drinks with no ice you could be fine. B&D needs to go back to the drawing board on this one.

Hey Black and Decker use an engineer that knows how to cook.

Loved the mixer. It is neat, compact, and worked well on small to medium tasks. However, in less than one year, it would no longer hold a charge. Zip, no buzz, no purr, nothing. It could not even be charged to work for 1 second. Sorry, B&W, but you need to work on better quality rechargeable batteries for this baby.

My wife was looking for something small and relatively inexpensive to mix a daily power supplement that she (and nowI) take. She has an aversion to the gritty last dregs but that never bothered me all that much. Anyhow, she got ME this for Christmas for HER drinks. It actually works pretty good and I have expanded its' use to additional kitchen mixer functions. I use it to mix the pancake and french toast batter and I have found it to work well in that capacity. It's light-weight and the charge holds for quite a while. To be honest, I charged it overnight the first time I opened it up for use. That was right after Christmas. I probably hooked it up at night a time or two right after that but I haven't hooked it up all of January and it is working just fine. It has an adjustable head that can be used to turn the head straight or at a 90 degree angle. This is not a substitute for a cuisinart or any powerful appliance. On the other hand, we take it with us whenever we're out of town and it comes in handy.

This thing is very hard to find.... I looked around for it for months locally.... Perfect amount of power for a variety of jobs...eggs, batter mixes, drinks.....I had one that lasted about 10 years and finally died on me!!

It's not all that powerful, but I use it to mix my diet drinks--only one thing, the beater, to wash; and it travels extremely well; it also doesn't put too much air in the diet drink--a problem w/stronger blender. I also use it to beat an egg for an omelet or scrambled eggs.

I really like it. I've bought an extra one for work, and given one to a friend who went on the same diet.

I had the original of this product and it was great. Yes, I did have to break the egg yolk with the one beater first, before mixing or beating them so as not to chase the egg yolks around the bowl, but honestly, I do this with a regular mixer. The original had four attachments but the three with this will do most jobs I use if for. I never used my first one for heavy jobs, just quick mixing of eggs, light batters, etc. The real draw back to this newer product is that the case to the original was wired and that is what you plugged in, the mixer just popped into the case and was charged. Having to plug the cord into the bottom of the new mixer is a pain.