Some smart home gadgets may be considered essential. Smart thermostats can save you money, and smart door locks can prevent you from being locked out. But unlike those gadgets, it’s hard to argue need Smart GE Profile Opal Ultra 2.0 Nugget Ice Maker ($579, or $629 with side tank). However, you can think This little gadget – because it produces The Good Ice.
Nugget Ice is a mountain that many people will die on – including my family
Yes, $630 is a lot of money As is the case with any countertop gadget, let alone one that simply freezes water. Spending so much money on a connected device whose intelligence is largely limited to scheduling and asking Alexa to make more ice feels like a bigger stretch. But gold nugget ice is like a hill, and many people will die on it─including my family. They cried, which just made the drink taste better. Anything that encourages kids to stay hydrated is a huge win in my book.
If you’re not familiar with nugget ice (also known as chewy ice, sonic ice, pellet ice, or as my family calls it, “good ice”), it’s small pieces of ice made from flake ice frozen together. It’s truly addictive and goes well with a variety of beverages including a tall glass of water, iced tea, and lemonade. This is actually required if you’re making Tiki cocktails.
Cube ice turns room temperature drinks into cold drinks in seconds and doesn’t melt as quickly as crushed ice. It’s also fun to chew. My daughter likes to have a glass of ice and then eat.
Unfortunately, none of the refrigerators can make true block ice. Samsung makes a product that produces “ice cubes,” or small ice cubes, but they’re clearly not the same thing. So, either go to the counter or go to the drive-in.
:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25517289/8A0A1461.jpeg)
:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25517289/8A0A1461.jpeg)
$629
Ultra is an updated version of the already excellent GE Profile Opal 2.0. It claims to make cleaning less difficult by adding new features, such as a filter to deal with mineral buildup.
In the week that I’ve had the Opal sitting on my kitchen counter, it has become my family’s favorite kitchen gadget. They love spooning their chunky goodness into a tall glass of lemonade or filling a Tevez glass before braving the summer heat.
The Opal is super easy to set up, easy to use, and makes ice super fast—up to 38 pounds of ice per day. It requires no plumbing, just power, but if you want a constant flow of ice, you’ll need the optional water tank. We only had to refill on average every other day and there was enough ice for the four of us.
Opal is my family’s favorite kitchen gadget
The biggest drawback by far is that the Opal Ultra is noisy. The pipes will make a high-pitched whine as the water filters, and the ice making will make a slight clunking sound. But that’s where these smart features really come in handy—you can schedule ice time in the Smart HQ app to avoid interfering with movie time—or just tell Alexa or Google to turn it off.
First launched in 2015, Opal Ultra is the fourth version of GE Profile’s popular block ice machine. It has some behind-the-scenes improvements that make cleaning the device easier. These include new anti-scale water filters, reusable air filters, and alerts (in devices and apps) to let you know when you need to disinfect or descale.
In theory, all these enhancements add up to extending the time between cleaning/descaling and keeping your ice tasting better for longer. (The good news for current Opal users is that the new water filters are compatible with existing models).
The cleaning/descaling process is lengthy. It requires a special solution (or vinegar, if you prefer) and up to a day of downtime to work. If you want it to keep producing fresh ice, you need to keep up with it. In the short time I was testing the unit, I had no descaling alarm, but the sanitizing alarm did, and this happened after 25 hours of ice making.
The disinfection process is essentially painless and takes approximately 30 minutes. However, coupled with descaling (which you’ll need to do every 2 weeks to 4 months, depending on the hardness of the water), this gadget requires a lot of maintenance. (GE Profile states that if you use distilled water in your opal, you may not need to descale, but you will still need to disinfect and clean.)
Ultra comes in new colors, comes with magnetic spoon holder and stainless steel spoon
Other updates to the current Opal 2.0 model of the Ultra include new colors (white or black in addition to stainless steel) and an upgraded touch display for turning power on/off, connecting to Wi-Fi and checking status. Plus, there’s now a magnetic spoon holder and stainless steel spoons, which makes it easier to store spoons on the side of the device and should help with cleaning.
If you can find Opal 2.0 on sale, that might be your best choice. Overall, the Ultra’s upgrades feel like aesthetic and quality-of-life tweaks. You will still need to manually clean the machine, even though it may be less frequent. Alternatively, you can buy a new water filter and a new scoop with stand separately from August and use them with the Opal 2.0, although this will likely wipe out much of your savings.
The Opal 2.0 Ultra is very expensive, requires a lot of work to maintain, and takes up a sizeable chunk of my kitchen counter. But it does an excellent job of producing fresh, chewable, crumbly ice that makes any drink taste better. It’s also one of the few smart gadgets I’ve brought into my home that everyone in the family loves – and that’s saying a lot.
If you, too, crave delicious ice cubes and know the struggles you have to endure to keep getting it, you’ll be more than happy with this gadget.
Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy/The Verge
