So you have decided to invest in a Vitamix blender! This all round kitchen workhorse makes usually daunting tasks effortless and opens up a seemingly endless world of versatility. Investing in a Vitamix blender is one of the best decisions you will ever make for your kitchen! This buying guide will explore the Vitamix Ascent Series of blenders; Vitamix’s newest line, to help you make an informed purchasing decision. Launched in 2017, the Ascent Series of Vitamix blender is the latest line of blenders produced by Vitamix. This new series is designed to be the most versatile series that Vitamix has ever offered. It has the widest array of blender features and additional containers that allow you to personalize your Vitamix setup to meet your individual needs. To help simplify things, we will first look at the Vitamix Ascent Series as a whole before talking about the blenders. The Vitamix Ascent Ascent Series is currently comprised of 4 models; the A2300, A2500, A3300 and A3500, all of which are made in Cleveland, Ohio. The Ascent Series Blenders are all built on the same platform so the technical specifications of each blender will be the same regardless of the model. The difference comes from the machines offering more or less pre-programmed features from one blender model to the next. All Ascent Series blenders feature a peak 2.2 H.P. motor capable of completely pulverising anything that you put into it. This allows you to put fruits and vegetables in with skin, seeds and even stems, maximizing the amount of nutrients you will get in each dish. The Ascent series comes standard with their low profile 64 oz self-detect container. The total height of these blenders with the container on the base is 17” tall, designed specifically to fit underneath your kitchen cupboards. The Self-Detect container system is new to the Ascent series of blenders and it allows your Vitamix base to detect which size and style of container you have on your Vitamix and will automatically adjust its blend settings to the detected container. All Ascent Series blenders will also include a low-profile tamper and a Simply Blending cookbook. Vitamix offers several additional container options in the Ascent series, allowing you to personalize your blender container to best suit your needs. These additional containers are:

• 48 Oz / 1.4 L Wet Self Detect Container
• 48 Oz / 1.4 L Dry Gains Self Detect Container
• 48 Oz   /1.4 L Aer Disc Container - Great Bar Blending Container For Whipping, Emulsifying, Muddling and Foaming
• 20 Oz / 591 ml Blend & Travel Container - Great For Smoothies On The Go!
• 8 oz / 225 ml Blend & Store Container – Great For Parfaits, Dips and Baby Food!

One of our favorite things about the Ascent Series is the 10-year warranty providing comfort that your blender will last for years. Now let's take a look at the different models offered in the Ascent Series. Vitamix Blender A2300 The A2300 is the entry level blender in the Ascent series and is available in four colours; Black, Red, Slate and White. This base model features a 10 speed variable control dial putting the full control of the 2.2 H.P motor at your fingertips. The pulse feature is great for your chunkier blending needs like salsas. The digital timer will help you keep track of how long you have been blending which allows you to recreate the same recipe with good consistency time after time. What you don’t get on this model that you do get on the more expensive models are the pre-programmed settings that control the speed and time of your blend. Without these pre-programmed settings the user will have to use the variable speed dial to control the speed of the blender and when used in conjunction with the timer you will still be able to get fairly consistent results each time. We recommend this blender to people who aren’t afraid to do it themself and aren’t worried about having the exact same consistency time after time. You still have all the strength of the Vitamix motor but will have to learn to harness that strength manually. Vitamix Blender A2500 The A2500 is the first machine in the Ascent Series that offers their pre-programmed settings. There are three pre-programmed settings on this blender; one for Smoothies, Hot Soups and Frozen Desserts. These pre-programmed settings will control the speed of the blender and the amount of time that the blender is on for, allowing you to put your ingredients in, set the blender and walk away while still getting the same consistent result time after time. Like the 2300, this blender has a 10 speed variable control dial and also a pulse feature. The digital timer on this blender will give you a countdown when on one of the pre-programmed settings and can also be used to track your blending time when manually using the variable speed control dial. The two pre-programmed settings not on this blender that you will find on the more expensive A3500 are Dips & Spreads and Self Cleaning. Truth be told, cleaning these blenders is as easy as putting a little soap and water in the container and putting the blender back on for a few seconds. So though it may be nice to be able to just set the blender to the clean feature and walk away, the lack of this feature shouldn’t be the reason not to buy this blender. The A2500 is also available in four colours Black, Red Slate and White. The A2500 will nicely meet the needs of most people. The ability to set the blender to one of the three pre-programmed settings will allow you to focus your attention on other things in the kitchen, like getting everyone off to school and work in the morning or focusing on your other prep work to complete the perfect meal. The pre-programmed settings takes the guesswork out of using your blender. Vitamix Blender A3300 The A3300 features a sleek minimalist touchscreen interface and digital control screen which indicate the speed setting of the blender and also displays the timer of the blender. Vitamix has extensively tested the touchscreen so it will still recognize when you are trying to use it even when you have wet hands. The timer on the A3300 is programmable. Just set the speed that you want the blender to blend at and the time of your blend and the blender will automatically turn itself off. The A3300 has a 10 speed variable control dial that digitally reads on the control screen and also has pulse features. The A3300 does not have any pre-programmed settings other than the programmable timer. The A3300 is available in two colours Black Diamond and Pearl Grey. We recommend this blender to users who are creating their own unique recipes that want to be able to consistently recreate these recipes every single time. Vitamix Blender A3500 The A3500 is the most complete machine in the Ascent series; featuring 5 pre-programmed settings, programmable timer, touchscreen controls, digital interface, variable speed dial, pulse feature and it is the only machine in the Ascent Series available in Brushed Stainless. The five pre-programmed settings are for smoothies, hot soups, dips & spreads, frozen desserts and self-cleaning. The pre-programmed settings will control the speed of the blender and the time that the blender will blend for. These pre-programmed settings will allow you to put your ingredients into the blender, set it to the program, and walk away as the blender effortlessly takes care of the rest. The programmable timer works well with your own unique recipes by allowing you to set the speed and the duration of the blend. This blender is popular because of it’s brushed stainless base that matches the look and feel of a modern kitchen. We recommend this blender to people who want the full Vitamix experience as this blender has all the features of all the other blenders combined plus two additional pre programmed settings not offered on any other Ascent Series blender. Our favorite two machines in the Vitamix Ascent Series are the A2500 and the A3500. Both machines offer pre-programmed settings providing the greatest ease of use of any of the machines in the Ascent series. The sleek look of the touch screen, digital display and brushed stainless base make the A3500 a great looking machine that will blend perfectly into a modern kitchen. If look is not a big point of interest, the A2500 is a great machine that will more than meet the needs of it users. Vitamix blenders are capable of doing so much around the kitchen that anyone of these machines will quickly become your favorite kitchen tool. The ease of use of these machines will leave you looking for more and more reasons to use them and the natural flavors you can create in the Vitamix will have you eating healthier without even noticing. Go ahead and take a Vitamix for a spin. We guarantee that you will love it! If for whatever reason you don’t love it in the first 30 days, just pack it up and ship it back to us for a full refund! Thanks for checking out our Vitamix Blender Shopping Guide at our Kitchen Supply Store, remember we price match on Vitamix Blenders too.