Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender review: a Nutribullet dupe that packs big power

In T3’s Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender review, I put this new blender to the test to see if it’s as portable and powerful as it claims to be. While it’s still behind Nutribullet in the race for best blender, it definitely gives the brand a run for its money.

In 2023, Smeg launched its new personal blender, the Smeg PBF01. Designed for smoothies, juices, shakes and sauces on the go, the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender is compact, lightweight and does a pretty good job of churning fruit, vegetables and any other ingredients you chuck in it.

But does it beat the popular models from the likes of Nutribullet and KitchenAid? Keep reading to find my full review for the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender.

• Buy the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender at Smeg
• Buy the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender at Amazon

Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender review: Unboxing

The Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender comes in a big cardboard box with little to no excess plastic packaging involved. As the brand is making a move towards more eco-friendly materials (as I’ll get on to below), this definitely shows that they’re keeping to their word which gets them extra points.

I picked up the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender at an event and found it to be very lightweight, which I appreciated after having to carry it around London for most of the day! In the box, the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender comes with the blender body, the double blade and two Tritan Renew 600ml bottles and lids. The blender body is available in seven colours, including the classic black, white, red or cream colours and pink, green and blue pastel shades. For this review, I tried out the white version.

Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender review: Design

With an emphasis on portability, the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender measures 335mm high and 142mm wide. It’s incredibly condensed and compact, and it takes up very little space on kitchen countertops and in cupboards. The size means it can make 1-2 drinks at a time, making it ideal for people on the go.

The Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender is equipped with a 300W motor and has two speed levels which you can switch between by twisting the control knob on the side of the blender. This controls the double blade which screws into the bottle before slotting into the blender body to whizz up your smoothie or sauce.

To use the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender, you need to use the compatible bottles which are made from Tritan Renew materials in a move towards more sustainable production. Tritan Renew is made from 50% certified recycled content and is obtained using molecular recycling technology to break down and eliminate plastic waste to create new materials. The bottles, cup and spout lids have a 600ml capacity, a slightly curved design and are highly durable, dishwasher safe and free of BPA.

In keeping with Smeg’s other products, the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender has a curved 50’s retro-inspired design. The seven colours are very stylish and attractive and the body of the blender is finished off with silver detailing, including the Smeg logo and control knob. Overall, the entire blender looks and feels incredibly high quality.

Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender review: Performance

As mentioned above, I was extremely impressed by how lightweight the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender was. In my kitchen, I don’t have a lot of worktop space so I had to store the blender in my cupboard. Despite its many parts, the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender took up hardly any room and was easy to take out and put away when I needed it.

Setting up the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender took hardly anytime at all. Once the blender body is plugged in, all you need to do is fill your bottle with your ingredients of choice, screw on the blade and attach it to the blender body. This action is very easy and the bottle and body slots together similarly to how a Nutribullet does. Once it's popped in, you push the bottle down and the blade will start working. The Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender has two speeds to choose from by twisting the control knob at the front. The controls light up when in action which I thought was a nice touch.

The first thing I made with the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender was pesto. I was surprised by how much liquid the blender needed for it to work properly. The blades seemed to struggle with the basil and pine nuts and even after adding liberal amounts of olive oil, I had to keep shaking the bottle for the blade to work properly. I expected the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender to be more powerful than that so in the future, I’ll be using a pestle and mortar or the best hand blender to make pesto.

Not to be put off, I persevered with making smoothies, which is where the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender really comes into its own. Any disappointment I had with the pesto experiment went away as the blender chopped through frozen bananas and blended them smoothly and easily. After blending it for a few rounds to make sure there weren't any frozen chunks, I did find that the blade got very hot which made the bottle warm to the touch. I wouldn’t say this is a deal breaker but I was surprised at this, especially considering I wasn’t blending anything warm. But in general, the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender is pretty powerful at making smoothies… if you put enough liquid in.

The standout of the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender for me is its bottles. The bottle has a clever mechanism where you screw the drinking spout on and securely fasten the lid on top. The two slot together cleverly to prevent any spills and leaks, which I didn’t experience at all while using it for smoothies and shakes on the go.

Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender review: Price

The Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender is £109.95 and can be bought via Smeg or select retailers like Amazon, AO.com and Wayfair. Smeg offers a two-year warranty when you register your products on the Smeg website.

Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender review: Verdict

The Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender is a brilliant blender to have around the house, especially in small kitchens and for people in a rush or on the go. It blends frozen fruit incredibly easily and quickly and is best used for smoothies, shakes and juices. The main negative is that it can struggle if there’s not enough liquid involved. This can make your drinks and sauces too watery and oily but overall, the blades are very powerful and the entire blender is easy to use and beautifully designed.

Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender review: Alternatives to consider

If you’re a big fan of the Smeg brand, a great alternative is the full-sized blender option, the Smeg BLF01. Its 800W motor cuts through frozen food and ice admirably and its Tritan jug holds an impressive 1.5-litres. It also comes with a 600ml bottle for drinks on the move.

A similar portable option is the Nutribullet 600 Series. Both models are the best at making smoothies but the Nutribullet option is small, efficient and is about half the price of the Smeg PBF01 Personal Blender.