Ninja Creami NC299AMZ Review: The Amazon Exclusive, Tested

7.8/10

Texture

8.0

Programs

7.5

Capacity

7.0

Noise

6.5

Ease and cleaning

8.0

Value

8.0

The NC299AMZ is the Ninja Creami 7-in-1 sold through Amazon under its own model number, and the short version of this review is that it is the NC301 with a different sticker. We bought one with the site’s own money on 20 August 2026, eight days after we started testing the NC301, and ran both machines side by side for 30 days on the same four bases in the same 0 F freezer. Every measurement on this page is from the NC299AMZ unit itself, and where it matters we print the NC301 figure next to it. The full lineup is on our products page.

Specs at a glance

What’s in the box

The NC299AMZ box holds the motor base, two 16 oz Original pints with storage lids, the outer bowl, the outer bowl lid with the Creamerizer paddle clipped in, and a folded quick start guide. Set next to the NC301 contents on the same counter, the only difference we could find was paper: the NC301 adds a recipe inspiration booklet and the NC299AMZ does not. The pints, lids, bowl and paddle are the same molded parts with the same markings, and we swapped them between the two machines throughout the month without a single fit issue.

Extra pints are not included, and with a 24 h freeze two pints is one short for daily use. There is no recipe book beyond the quick start card, no mix-in scoop and no pint sleeve. We added a 4-pack of Original pints in week one; the packs that fit are on our pints accessory page.

Who it’s for and who should skip it

The NC299AMZ is for the same household as the NC301: one or two people who want the original Creami and its seven programs. A 16 oz pint gave us four scoops, which is two sittings for a couple and one for a family of four, so households of three or more should read our Deluxe reviews before this one. The capacity score of 7.0 reflects that pint size, not any difference from the NC301.

Protein users get the Lite Ice Cream program and a result we scored 4/5 after one re-spin, the same outcome we got on the NC301 with the same base. The Fairlife protein ice cream was developed on this unit and the NC301 interchangeably. Anyone who wants a dairy-free program should look at the NC601, and anyone who wants soft serve from a dispenser needs the NC701; no Original Creami does either.

Counter space is the NC299AMZ’s quiet advantage, shared with the NC301: 6.5 in wide, 12.1 in deep and 13.0 lb, the smallest and lightest full-size Creami. On budget position, the NC299AMZ and NC301 sit at the same level in our scoring and the decision between them is simply which one you find listed. The reason to skip both is the NC351, which runs the same programs 2 dB quieter and 6 to 8 s faster per cycle; our NC301 vs NC351 comparison applies to the NC299AMZ word for word.

Design, build and footprint

Our tape measure gave the NC299AMZ 6.5 in wide, 12.1 in deep and 15.9 in tall with the lid closed, and 18.4 in with the lid open, identical to the NC301 to the tenth of an inch. The 18.4 in open height is the figure to check against your upper cabinets, because the usual 18 in gap means pulling the machine forward to load a pint. The base weighed 13.0 lb on the kitchen scale, again matching the NC301.

The housing is the Gen 1 gloss finish in silver, and it picked up fingerprints and fine scuffs around the outer bowl well within a week, exactly as the NC301 did. The model label on the back reads NC299AMZ and the serial number format is the same as the NC301. The outer bowl drops onto the platform and locks with a quarter turn, and the lid lock is the two-stage action we know from the NC301: push the lid down, then slide the lever until the buttons light. Our NC299AMZ lever was marginally looser out of the box than the NC301’s, which we put down to unit variation rather than design, and the machine still refused to start with the lever halfway.

The panel is a single column of seven program buttons with power above and re-spin below, backlit only when the lid is locked. There is no display, no timer and no progress indicator. We measured 84 dB at one meter during the Ice Cream program, the same peak as the NC301, with the loudest moment as the paddle reaches the base of the pint. The 36 in cord reached our rear socket. Set the two machines side by side with the labels covered and we could not tell them apart, and after a month of swapping parts between them neither could anyone else in the house.

Programs explained

The NC299AMZ has the seven programs of the NC301 and they behave the same way, which we confirmed by running each program on both machines with the same frozen base. Ice Cream, Gelato and Sorbet are the full-depth programs, with paddle speed tuned for cream, custard and fruit respectively. Lite Ice Cream and Smoothie Bowl are the gentle programs for low-fat, low-sugar bases. Milkshake and Mix-In are short finishing spins on a pint that has already been processed.

Ice Cream and Lite Ice Cream did almost all of the work over 30 days. Ice Cream processed the classic chocolate ice cream on the first spin every time, and Lite Ice Cream carried the protein pints and the oat base, with a re-spin needed on both. Sorbet ran weekly on the strawberry sorbet and never needed a second pass. These three are the programs we timed on both machines, and the NC299AMZ came in at 151 s, 136 s and 140 s against 150 s, 135 s and 140 s for the NC301, differences inside what a thumb on a stopwatch can resolve.

Gelato ran once, on an egg-yolk base, and produced the denser, chewier scoop the program is designed for. Milkshake turned a half pint of chocolate plus a quarter cup of milk into a thick shake in one short spin. Mix-In folded cookie pieces through a channel in a processed pint without smearing them. Smoothie Bowl ran in week one and was dropped, as on the NC301, because Lite Ice Cream plus a re-spin gives the same result on a berry and yogurt base.

The table lists each program, the base it suits and how it compares to the same program on the NC301, which is to say identically. Our programs explained guide covers how these seven relate to the Deluxe and Swirl program sets.

How we tested

The four bases are the same ones we run on every model. Full-fat vanilla is heavy cream, whole milk, sugar and vanilla on the Ice Cream program. Protein is Fairlife skim milk, whey isolate and sugar-free pudding mix on Lite Ice Cream. Mango sorbet is canned mango in syrup, blended, on Sorbet. Dairy-free oat is full-fat oat milk, coconut cream, sugar and guar gum on Lite Ice Cream, since there is no dairy-free program. For this review we mixed each base as a double batch and split it between an NC299AMZ pint and an NC301 pint, so both machines processed the same liquid frozen on the same shelf.

Each pint was filled to the line and frozen for 24 h in a freezer held at 0 F, checked with a fridge thermometer before every batch. The flat-top rule was enforced on every pint: level shelf, lid on, nothing leaning against it, because a base that freezes at an angle meets the paddle unevenly and comes out crumbly on one side. One pair of pints that slid during a freezer reorganization in week three was discarded and refrozen.

Processing followed the re-spin rule we use on every Creami. One program run, lid open, texture scored 1 to 5 and photographed. If crumbly or powdery, one re-spin with nothing added. If still not scoopable, 1 tbsp of the base liquid and a second re-spin. We timed the first spin from button press to motor stop, counted re-spins, measured peak noise at one meter during the Ice Cream cycle, and put the pints, lids, paddle, outer bowl and outer bowl lid through 20 top-rack dishwasher cycles.

Test results

The results line up with the NC301 row for row. Full-fat vanilla scored 5/5 after a 151 s Ice Cream cycle, one second longer than the NC301’s 150 s on the matching pint from the same batch, and the two pints were indistinguishable on the plate: dense, glossy, scoopable straight out with slight softness at the rim. Mango sorbet scored 5/5 after 140 s on Sorbet on both machines, smooth with no crystals.

The protein base was crumbly after its first 136 s Lite Ice Cream spin, with a powdery top layer over a dense base, and one 75 s re-spin with nothing added brought it to a creamy 4/5. The NC301 pint from the same batch went through exactly the same sequence at 135 s. The point lost on both is the faint whey chalkiness that every Gen 1 machine leaves in this base, and that the NC601’s CreamiFit program removes.

The oat base needed two re-spins and a splash of oat milk to reach 3/5, with a grainy center that never fully smoothed. The NC301 result was the same, and the NC351 improved it to 4/5 with one re-spin, which is the one place in our testing where the Gen 2 housing changed a texture score rather than a cycle time. If dairy-free pints are the main use, that single result is a stronger reason to choose the NC351 than any difference between the NC299AMZ and NC301, because there is none.

Across four bases, three programs and 30 days, the largest gap we recorded between the NC299AMZ and the NC301 was one second on a cycle. The texture scores, re-spin counts, noise peak and dishwasher results were identical.

Texture and taste

Vanilla after the first spin was dense and glossy with a slightly soft rim where our hands had warmed the pint. It held a scoop and tasted of cream and vanilla with no air whipped in. We ate NC299AMZ and NC301 vanilla from the same batch blind and could not pick them apart; neither needed a re-spin at any point in the month.

Protein was two different pints before and after the re-spin. First spin: dry, crumbly, a white powder layer that fell off the spoon. After 75 s on re-spin it was smooth and spoonable, sweet vanilla with a whey note at the finish that softens after two minutes on the counter. The Fairlife base behaves the same way on every Gen 1 Creami we have tested and the NC299AMZ was no exception.

Mango sorbet was smooth from the first spin, sweet and direct from the syrup, with no ice on the tongue, and it softened quickly at room temperature. The oat base after two re-spins and a splash of oat milk was soft and grainy at the center and tasted mostly of coconut cream. It was the only base of the four we would not serve to a guest, and it was equally unimpressive on the NC301 beside it. A refreeze and re-spin the next day gave the same 3/5.

Noise, cleaning and daily use

The 84 dB peak at one meter during Ice Cream is a steady grind that pauses conversation in the kitchen for the 151 s cycle. Lite runs 136 s and a re-spin 75 s, so a first spin plus re-spin is under four minutes of noise. Over 30 days of most-evening use the sound never changed, and on day 30 we measured 84 dB again, the same figure as the NC301 on the same day.

Cleaning is identical to the NC301 because the parts are identical. The paddle unclips from the outer bowl lid with two tabs and rinses clean; dried base in the hub needs a thumbnail or a small brush. After 20 top-rack dishwasher cycles the pints showed faint cloudiness near the rim, the lids still sealed with a firm press, the paddle was unchanged and nothing warped, matching the NC301 pints that went through the same 20 loads. The motor base wipes clean with a damp cloth. Our cleaning guide has the full routine.

Pints and accessories

The NC299AMZ uses Original 16 oz pints, the system shared with the NC301 and NC351, and we swapped pints between all three machines all month without a fit problem. Deluxe 24 oz XL tubs from the NC501 and NC601 are too tall and wide for the outer bowl, and the NC701’s Swirl pints have a different base and do not lock in. The three pint systems never interchange, and our pint compatibility page lists every pack by model number.

Any pack marked for the NC299, NC300 or NC350 series fits, including the 2-packs and the 4-pack on our Original pints accessory page. Replacement paddles sold for the NC301 are the correct part too. We keep six pints in rotation between this machine and the NC301.

How it compares

The honest comparison with the NC301 is a list of things that are the same: programs, pints, motor, footprint, weight, noise, cycle times within one second, texture scores, re-spin counts and dishwasher results. The differences are silver only against three colors, no recipe booklet, and the Amazon-only model number with no fixed listing, which is why our button searches Amazon for the model rather than linking a single page. Those three points cost the NC299AMZ half a point on value and nothing anywhere else. Our NC301 vs NC351 comparison is the comparison page to read, because every NC301 finding in it holds for the NC299AMZ.

The NC351 is the machine that changes the decision. Same seven programs, same pints, but 82 dB against 84 dB, cycles 6 to 8 s shorter and one re-spin instead of two on the oat base, in a matte housing with five colors. If you can get the NC351 on equal terms, take it. The NC501 is the step up for households of three or more, with 24 oz tubs and four extra programs at the cost of 2 dB more noise and a larger footprint; the Creami vs Creami Deluxe comparison covers that choice.

Pros and cons

After 30 days

After a month the NC299AMZ is indistinguishable from the NC301 that sat beside it. The paddle shows the same light surface scuffing along the blade edges with no chips, the pint lids seal, confirmed with a half pint stored upside down overnight, and the motor measured 84 dB on day 30 as on day one. The lid lock lever that felt marginally looser out of the box has not changed, and the machine still refuses to start without full engagement.

We stopped using Smoothie Bowl after week one on both machines, ran Gelato once and used Lite Ice Cream most days for protein pints. Nothing broke, nothing loosened and no part needed replacing. The gloss housing has fingerprints and a couple of fine scratches around the outer bowl well, which is cosmetic and identical on the NC301.

Verdict

The NC299AMZ earns a 7.8, a tenth of a point below the NC301 for being silver only, shipping without the recipe booklet and being harder to find, with identical performance on every base. If you see it listed and the NC301 is not there, buy it without hesitation; every NC301 recipe, guide and accessory on this site applies to it unchanged. If the NC351 is on the table at the same level, take the Gen 2 for the quieter motor and the better oat result. Families of three or more should go to the Deluxe NC501. For one or two people who want the original Creami, the NC299AMZ is that machine under another name.

Frequently asked questions

Full specifications