I received this a few days ago, and I can already tell that this is a powerful improvement to my older model. I have an older KitchenAid 5 speed hand mixer, and I really appreciated the upgrade. I do not know if it is the "extra speed" or if it is merely the newer motor, but I can tell that this mixer will keep up with heavier tasks than what I used before. Additionally, I love the the Flex Edge beaters. They help scrape what you're mixing off of the sides of the bowl without scraping up whatever bowl you are using. It's a more pleasant experience than the ringing sound I would hear with the all metal beaters from before.