Customer Reviews

WHT CLASSIC 3-SPD MIXER (Kitchenaid KHM3WH)

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

KitchenAid is one of those manufacturers who just can't make a bad product, regardless of price. Even this, their least expensive hand mixer, says "quality" from the moment you pick it up, and affirms it when you switch it on.

A professional chef will tell you that if you can't get the job done with 3 speeds on your hand mixer, you probably shouldn't be in the kitchen. That's why you'll find this particular mixer in the homes of so many chefs. It's a no-nonsense tool for serious cooking.

At the business end of the KitchenAid 3 Speed Classic Hand Mixer KHM3, one finds a pair of unusual beaters, which KitchenAid calls "Turbo-Beater Accessories". Made from pure stainless steel, the beaters have rounded mixing surfaces instead of the usual knife-edge beaters commonly found on hand mixers. The mirrored "pinwheel" pitch of the beaters creates a mixing action similar to a balloon whisk in the hand of a trained chef with very little splashing and less likelihood of overbeating ingredients like egg whites and whipping cream. Having no center shafts, the beaters are immune to clogging when plowing through heavy cookie doughs and clean up easily in the kitchen sink or the dishwasher.

Hold up your mixing hand and pretend you're gripping a hand mixer. Now relax a bit and notice how your wrist wants to maintain a slight angle instead of being parallel to the floor. KitchenAid's engineers have taken this into account in the form of a slightly angled, fully ambidextrous grip. The thumb comes to rest on the oversized 3-speed control switch, with the beater-eject button just a short reach away. The KHM3's heavier-duty motor means a tad more heft than whimpier mixers, so the angled grip balances the weight more effectively than a straight one.

In operation, the mixer produces a sound that's more like a power tool than a kitchen appliance, though it's not so loud that you won't hear the phone ringing. The 3 speeds are easily up to every mixing task, beating egg whites to stiff peaks in under a minute at the high speed, and gently stirring together cornbread batter on low.

The cooling vents for the motor's fan are fore and aft, so the cook isn't blasted with warm air, nor will dry ingredients be blown out of the mixing bowl. The outer case has a smooth, rounded fit and finish with no creases, seams or decorative ribbing where food soils can hide.

KitchenAid backs all of their countertop appliances with a 1-year full replacement warranty, something you won't get with a much cheaper mixer.

Ultimately, the choice is simple. You can keep on spending $15 to $20 for one cheap hand mixer after another, or spend more and get a mixer that'll become a true friend for life in the kitchen.

When we got married 7 years ago, we were given a hand mixer of another brand (Sunbeam, I think) that had seven (or was it nine?) speeds and lots of different attachments (dough hook, wisk, etc., none of wich worked well). I have a hard time remembering exact spefications because it died after 6 months, and I hadn't even mixed anything heavy with it! I always mixed most of my flour into things by hand to try to spare the motor (my mom had burnt through several mixers).

So we went to the store, and for $30 we could get another cheap brand with many speeds and fancy gadgets (several brands & models available), or we could get this Kitchenaid with one set of beaters and three speeds. I chose this simple Kitchaid and have never been sorry.

This little hand mixer takes it all--even stiff cookie dough like roll-out sugar cookies. And it mixes every last bit of the flour in. Beaters don't clog, dough mixes up smooth.

I plan on someday getting a bigger kitchenaid, but so far haven't needed it. If you are on a budget, and need to get the most power for your penny, this is the best purchase you could possibly make!

We bought one of these for my Grandma last year. She liked it so well, we bought another for my cousin's wedding present last December. We've been invited to another wedding next month and this is most likely what they will receive as well!
The speed range is perfect -- most mixers splatter when making pudding on the lowest setting -- not this one. It's strong enough to prepare cooking dough with overheating, too. We think it's the best hand mixer on the market.

I have had this mixer for several years, and it works really wonderfully for cookies and most other needs. Doesn't burn the motor out, or even heat up. Very easy to get the dough off the beaters.

But I can't get it to really whip egg whites or whipped cream. They will eventually start to look right, but stay a bit on the runny side. I think the thin blades on the beaters just don't get enough air into the mixture.

I'm thinking about just getting a cheap hand mixer with thicker blades just for cream and egg whites.

I wish this mixer came with a whisk attachment or something -- then it would be perfect.

KitchenAid is one of those manufacturers who just can't make a bad product, regardless of price. Even this, their least expensive hand mixer, says "quality" from the moment you pick it up, and affirms it when you switch it on.

A professional chef will tell you that if you can't get the job done with 3 speeds on your hand mixer, you probably shouldn't be in the kitchen. That's why you'll find this particular mixer in the homes of so many chefs. It's a no-nonsense tool for serious cooking.

At the business end of the KitchenAid 3 Speed Classic Hand Mixer KHM3, one finds a pair of unusual beaters, which KitchenAid calls "Turbo-Beater Accessories". Made from pure stainless steel, the beaters have rounded mixing surfaces instead of the usual knife-edge beaters commonly found on hand mixers. The mirrored "pinwheel" pitch of the beaters creates a mixing action similar to a balloon whisk in the hand of a trained chef with very little splashing and less likelihood of overbeating ingredients like egg whites and whipping cream. Having no center shafts, the beaters are immune to clogging when plowing through heavy cookie doughs and clean up easily in the kitchen sink or the dishwasher.

Hold up your mixing hand and pretend you're gripping a hand mixer. Now relax a bit and notice how your wrist wants to maintain a slight angle instead of being parallel to the floor. KitchenAid's engineers have taken this into account in the form of a slightly angled, fully ambidextrous grip. The thumb comes to rest on the oversized 3-speed control switch, with the beater-eject button just a short reach away. The KHM3's heavier-duty motor means a tad more heft than whimpier mixers, so the angled grip balances the weight more effectively than a straight one.

In operation, the mixer produces a sound that's more like a power tool than a kitchen appliance, though it's not so loud that you won't hear the phone ringing. The 3 speeds are easily up to every mixing task, beating egg whites to stiff peaks in under a minute at the high speed, and gently stirring together cornbread batter on low.

The cooling vents for the motor's fan are fore and aft, so the cook isn't blasted with warm air, nor will dry ingredients be blown out of the mixing bowl. The outer case has a smooth, rounded fit and finish with no creases, seams or decorative ribbing where food soils can hide.

KitchenAid backs all of their countertop appliances with a 1-year full replacement warranty, something you won't get with a much cheaper mixer.

Ultimately, the choice is simple. You can keep on spending $15 to $20 for one cheap hand mixer after another, or spend more and get a mixer that'll become a true friend for life in the kitchen.

I love this hand mixer! Don't go out any buy yourself the big kitchenaid mixer. This one does everything you need it to, doesn't take as much room, and doesn't require an army to lift. Happy baking!

Great mixer and well worth the money. I have had this for over two years and wouldn't think about buying anything else if the need arises.

Tired of throwing away these Chinese junk mixers on a yearly basis, I drove all the way to target to pick this up after seeing it on Target/Amazon as a Made in USA item. Sure enough, stamped right on the box is MADE IN CHINA. This may have beeen made in the US at one point but I promise you it no longer is. I picked it up and it felt like cheap junk ready to break in my hand.

You might as well by a $6.99 one than drop $40 for the same junk that probably comes out of the same factory in China tainted with who knows what kind of carcinogenic chemicals. Thumbs down to target for LYING on their website! Bottom line: DONT BUY THIS.

We got this mixer for our wedding almost five years ago, and never had a day's trouble with it. So why the low review? The thing just doesn't have the juice I think it should have. Whenever we had family members or friends happen to use the mixer, we're making cookies or whipping potatoes, every person commented on how slow this mixer is, even on the highest speed. I thought they were kidding until I was home this Christmas and used my mother's. I don't remember the brand, it was kind of forgettable like a sunbeam or oster, but man, did that thing churn on the high speeds! Every time I turn mine on now, even on the high speed, I am just frustrated because it doesn't perform like it should for the price kitchenaid wants. I give it two stars because it's always performed the tasks at hand, eventually, and we've never had any mechanical issues. But only two stars because when I start using other's mixers, at friends' and family's homes, I'm extremely disappointed in the strength this little machine doesn't have. It's not even a close competition, and I'm investigating other brands after hearing even the kitchenaid 9-speed mixer houses the same motor as this one.

We're great fans of KitchenAid appliances and also own a stand mixer and food processor from KitchenAid. We've owned this mixer for at least 5 years. The mixer is nicely designed, with a simple shape that is easy to clean and will not yellow with age. We use the mixer most often for beating egg whites and whipping cream. The mixer is very fast at these tasks because of the design of the beaters and the speed of the motor. It feels very solid in your hand, and does not rattle and shimmy like other mixers. It is a bit heavy, but that is probably part of the reason it feels so smooth when it operates. We have used this mixer for cake batters, but not for heavier jobs like cookie dough (we use the stand mixer for that). If you are looking for something that can replace a stand mixer, you should probably pay a little more and get the 9-speed model. Our mixer broke when we put it into a bowl that was too narrow at the bottom. The beaters got pushed together and the mechanism that keeps one of them in place broke. It is not obvious how to fix it and, at this price, a factory repair would probably cost more than a new mixer. That is the reason I am giving it 4 stars instead of 5. Never-the-less, we don't think we can do better than a KitchenAid, though we will probably step up to the 5-speed model to replace the one that broke.