Margaritaville Frozen Concoction Maker (Open Box)

well, it goes like this. i got all high on life and figured a margarita machine would make for a great item to have around the house as we entertain guests and friends. somehow i built this up in my mind to the point where i justified paying a nutty amount of money for a 'margarita machine' and bought one here on amazon. the reality is different however... -it came broken. there was some broken plastic clasps inside the ice hopper atop the device. the packaging was fine, so i'm not sure what the dealio was there. i'm assuming it slipped through quality inspection as their was zero damage to the package. -i tried it out to see if it would work without the clasp as i held my hand atop the cover to keep it in place. it did. -it really didn't do any of the different kinds of ice the instructions infer. i mean really... there's a single blade to shave the ice. how can you get different grades/sized for daiquiris, margaritas, smoothies, or coladas? that's almost a 'shame on me' for buying that line of bunk... anybody with two brain cells to rub together knows after taking a quick peek at this thing that it shaves ice and dispenses. that's it. no more, no less. -it is made cheaply. nothing seems to fit really well. you can squeeze the plastic with your hand it is so thin and cheap. -also, thing is huge. good luck finding a place to store it in an average kitchen cupboard or cabinet. here's the problem with the application. the container for the blended product is neither insulated nor refrigerated. so as soon as you make this stuff on a warm day, it is being watered down extremely quickly. you can turn all those fancy plastic knobs any way you want, but since the recipe you made is getting watery by the second, unless you consume it instantly, it simply doesn't work well in application. the whole premise behind having a 'dispense' type machine is so the yum yum is ready to consume at the moment you push your glass against the machine and fill your glass. this thing is a joke. personally, i'm mad at myself for even buying it. if you as the consumer can get passed the fact this is a $30 blender marked up to $300+ then buy with confidence. if you can accept that somehow they occasionally ship a unit that is broken in the packaging, then even better. this blender is for you. if you'd rather spend your money wisely, but a top shelf blender for one third the price and be done with it. at least the thick glass of most blenders won't let the concoction melt instantly like this plastic thing...