SOME CONFUSION TO DEAL WITH:If you read a few of the comments here you might think that I improperly reviewed the wrong food processor. This is not true. When this review was written, it was written for the K-1000 Braun Food Processor then sold in the US and Canada. Epinions had made an error in the database with the name and inadvertently left a zero off the end. When I notified them of the typo, they went back in to the database and changed the listing title to the modern variant of the machine only available in Europe as a 220V machine, the K-3000.
But at the time this review was written it was for the K-1000. A couple of misinformed persons rolled in on my review and gave it not helpfuls because they thought I was reviewing the wrong model. I was not. Since all of this happened over 7 years ago, epinions has updated the pics and the description of the article while leaving my lonely review sitting here, twisting in the breezes of unreadedness.
Doesn't really matter. The machines are essentially the same. If you find a k-1000 or are lucky enough to run into a k-3000 in the states, the only difference is that they are designed to operate on different voltages. Which matters really very little with these machines as the motors operate on Direct Current. 


I am leaving the review up, even though epinions changed both the description and the picture on the database entry without letting me know. My argument: I was here first.


I want to pay a special thank-you to Computermom for doing her homework so superbly in her comment to this review, and with that I will close this update. My original review follows, proudly untouched and defiantly uncorrected!

Cheers! -- Scott 
PS, after about 10 years of ownership my Braun is still going strong. I have had to sharpen the slicing disk and the graters are starting to get a bit long in the tooth as are the bowls, but ALL the power is still there and I can still get through mounds of veggie prep quickly using my Braun. It is about the most versatile appliance in my kitchen and even though some of the dial and switch markings are beginning to rub off after years of use, it doesn't matter. I know every control on it by heart. I could run it blindfolded.

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I purchased my Multisystem (model 3210) as a refurb unit back in the salad days of surplusauction.com. I think I got it for around $60, a bargain of renown. Flat out, it has proven itself to be one of the most useful kitchen gadgets I have ever seen, much less owned. In fact, if it ever breaks, I will stress every mechanical and electrical wit I possess to to repair it. I do not want anything else. I would feel like I was cheating on my wife if I ever brought another food processor into the house. I am wistful at the thought of this thing and only write this as a help to those of you seeking one because I have some bad news for you and want to break it to you gently. You can't get a new one anymore in America. Braun quit selling the 110 volt model; it is only available in Europe in the 220 volt variety.

You may be able to find one used or refurbed, but they are pretty scarce, and for good reason. They work.

Here's the deal. I am lazy. I hate to do much of anything repetitive. Some people really take pride in slicing potatoes by hand, dicing onions, that sort of thing. Not me. I'll do one or two, but that's about it. If I am cooking for more than one person, something I do a lot, and need to prepare anything sliced, grated, chopped, blended, whipped, or just about anything short of shaping radishes into little hats, I whip out the Braun. My wife is a low-tech sort of gal, very sweet, but raised on the farm, and a firm believer in doing things the hard way. She mocked me with scant mercy when I bought the Multicenter, even at the crazy-low price I paid. I think I had it a year before she finally quit complaining every time I took it down to use it. Then, one fine day I came home and found her grudgingly shoving cabbage into the thing for coleslaw. Ah sweet victory, not a word said.

Meanwhile, I can punch out a pound of grated cheese in about 30 seconds, feed 8 people fresh hash browns without breaking a sweat, slice tomato halves transparently thin and uniform using the pulse feature, prepare great dough for pizza or biscuits using the dough-hook, fix Pina Coladas or crush ice to snowcone consistency in the blender, whip cream or merengue using the whisk, or just chop the snot out of anything I need to see smaller using the blade. The Braun is quiet, sturdy, and very durable. Not one thing has broken on the unit in 4 years of use except for the rim around the plastic food ram which was dropped by someone other than myself. Perhaps by someone who doesn't appreciate and care for the lovely Braun as much as your reviewer?

In any case, I wish I could help those of you who don't have a Multisystem and want one. I know they will occasionally turn up on ebay, and you might also check around elsewhere on the internet for a used model to go on sale. Just be sure you get all the attachments.

Looking at the models on the Braun website, I note that they have upgraded them to include a metal mixing bowl, definitely a plus for longevity's sake. I can tell you that aside from someone unknown to me breaking the rim of the ram, none of the plastic parts have failed me yet after four years of use. And every time I finish using any of the Braun's attachments, they go straight into the dishwasher. No problems.

Though there is little peril of it, I do not wish to come off here as some sort of food processor expert; I am not. I have some experience with my neighbor's Cuisinart. Compared to the Braun, it sucks. It is noisy and cheap, has nothing in the way of physical balance, and wet stuff flies out of it. The Braun is quiet and powerful and will keep you mostly dry unless you get real nuts. I have on occasion, in the preparation of New Mexico Red Chile, been gotten a bit wet by the blender, but I was drinking and cannot in good conscience blame the machine.

If you can find one in the appropriate voltage, buy it. I think you will find it a useful and elegant helper in your kitchen.

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): ~60