Antarctic Star Nugget Ice Makers Countertop, Pebble Ice Machine with Chewable Pellet Ice, 34Lbs/24H, Self-Cleaning, Sonic Ice, One-Click Operation, for Kitchen,Office Stainless Steel Black

This is the first ice making machine I’ve ever owned, the ice maker on our refrigerater went out and I got tired of making ice, I run it usually every other day, I did try making two rounds of ice in one day and it made a squealing sound, I think it may have gotten too hot, the next time I used it there was no sound. It’s fairly quiet, not any louder than a microwave. Ice tastes good, I do use filtered water from both the faucet and then a filtered water pitcher. We have fairly hard water so I do descale it more frequently to extend the life of it. I would recommend it if you don’t need a lot of ice, for one or two people max. I’ve not tried running it more than once to know whether or not it made that noise again. I generally stick to every other day, summer coming it might end up every day. For my needs it’s been a good machine.

Whenever I make a purchase I always check the reviews. This machine had some mixed reviews but most were good. I have bought several other nugget ice makers in the past and they did not last. From the time I bought them they made noise or just stopped working within a few months. This little ice maker is the best one so far. It's very compact on my counter and so easy to use. It doesn't keep the ice frozen but as the ice melts it will make more. Sometimes the ice gathers in the middle where it comes out and it triggers the ice full sensor. The ice is soft, easy to chew. Some of the reviews said that it had trouble making ice or it took a long time. I have found it to be the exact opposite. I think it makes ice quickly. If your on the fence about this machine I definitely recommend going for it.

This is a great ice machine in most ways. It makes beautiful crushed ice, is compact, and is easy to clean. The price isn't bad either. The biggest problem is the tiny reservoir. It's a pain to refill and needs near-constant topping off. Still, for 1-2 people it's a great machine.

The Antarctica exceeded expectations! Sturdy, quiet and efficient! Here are the two tests that is passed with flying colors! Tests were done inside house at 80F. There was a fleece blanket over the top of the unit, and the blanket did get moist from condensation due to high relative humidity but dried quickly.Trial 1 - Maintain constant freezing temperature overnight and recharge in morning.Filled with 6 packages each of frozen peas and broccoli which fit neatly.Set at 28 FPowered with Jackery 500The unit maintained the 28 F freezing temp with DC power from Jackery overnight for 12 hours which dropped the power level on Jackery to 60%.Began recharging the Jackery after 12 hours while simultaneously running the unit, and the Jackery was able to recharge at a rate of 85 watts in 4 hours to 99%Total energy used to power the Antarctica overnight for 12 hours and recharge was 400 watt hours or 0.40 kilowatt hours according to Kill A Watt meter.Trial 2 - Maintain freezing temperature for 12 hours and turn off overnight allowing temp to rise.Using a gallon jug of ice for test placed inside unit at 30F.Power usage in 12 hours was 0.14 kwh or 140 watt hours with AC power supplyPower off at night.The temperature increased overnight inside unit to 49 F which is very adequate and equivalent to a refrigerator like setting.The Anarctica temp was then lowered again to 30F at end of 24 hour period bringing total energy use to 0.17 kwh.This test maintained a temp inside unit at refrigerator levels for a crisper like environment down to freezing for 24 hours and included 12 hours of no power starting with 8 lbs of solid ice. For foods that do not need to be kept below freezing and in situations like a car where it may not be desirable to run the unit overnight this test could indicate that for half the energy of test 1 the items in the unit if started at near freezing would be preserved and cold during a 24 hour window although this probably would limit itself to certain foods and situations.The combination of the Antarctica and the Jackery 500 or similar is ideal especially for camping in my Prius where I would easily charge Jackery for the needed 2 to 4 hours from the 12 v port in the car during the day while driving or in ready mode while using the car inverter for cooking or AC etc.The price after the $30 coupon can't be beat, and this compares very favorably to an expensive cooler which would require ice and would take up a little more room too.

Not a bad product. Just not what was expecting.Pros - Easy to use. Set up is simple. Ice is the nice nugget size. It’s relatively quick considering the size of the unit. It is small and compact and fits easily on a countertop. Seems solidly built.Cons - Does not hold a lot of ice. In fact there might be a design flaw in how the ice comes out. It has a sensor for when the ice bucket is full, but the ice chute that the ice travels to enter the storage bucket is where the sensor is. So you get a pyramid affect that looks like a traffic jam of ice. Causing the ice sensor to think it’s full of ice, when in reality it’s not even 25% full. If you want the full capacity of the ice available, you have to routinely scoop away the ice from the chute so it doesn’t think it’s full. Additionally, the capacity of ice it holds is not that much either. For one person, or a college dorm it might be ok (assuming said dorm isn’t hosting a party). But for using in a home setting, definitely not the right fit. For the price point this had versus similar products, I was expecting more.

I love the pebble ice maker. I actually bought 2 of them. I keep one on my deck in the summertime and I have one in my kitchen. The pebble ice in my opinion is so much better than the large chunky ice cubes that come from ice cube trays. I like not having ice cube trays taking up space in my freezer. I recommend using the gallon of drinking water you get at the grocery store, to fill. I have well water and used that a couple of times and the minerals and rust particles clogged it up. A good cleaning with vinegar took care of the problem. I contacted customer service and sent them a video of the sound it was making they responded immediately and advised to clean in vinegar. Worked like a charm. It’s does make a sound when running, but it is not too loud. The machine will automatically shut off if the ice begins to back up. As the ice melts it will remake on its own. I also fill a few freezer bags with extra ice to keep in the freezer. I highly recommend this product.

Great ice machine for the price.