bit-tech Shopping: Black & Decker JE2050 Fruit and Vegetable Juice Extractor

Rating: 2

Time with product: 12

Strengths: Cheap

Weaknesses: Broke immediately

Summary: I needed a juicer while staying away from home for a month and, trusting the B&D name, I got this one. Yes, it's cheap, but I didn't expect for it to stop working altogether after 12 uses. It didn't burn out. Something about the cheaply made safety switches just didn't allow it to run. It started getting tricky after about 8 uses and then at 12, it gave out altogether. On emailing the contact on the warranty, I was informed that they were not Black and Decker at all but a third party. They weren't able to do anything but service it, which meant that I had to mail or transport it to their location. By this time, I was going back home and the only thing I could do was throw it in the trash. It's distressing that B&D does so little to back up their product, but if you know you've made a disposable product, I suppose that's how you handle it. Unless you only need a juicer for a week, buy something else. I use the Omega 1000 Juicer at home (the Omega 4000 has replaced it.) I just bought my parents the Lequip 110.5. Both of these are workhorses. The Omega will outlive me, and I'm not old. The Lequip is an auto-ejector that costs three times the Black and Decker, but it's worth 20 or 30 times more since it won't break on you immediately with no recourse to a customer service department.