This is a large machine, and this particular model has an additional side tank for water. You can buy it without the tank, but at this price point, you might as well buy the whole thing and enjoy the Opal’s full potential. Widely considered to be the gold standard among at-home nugget ice makers, the GE Profile Opal 2.0 can produce an impressive 24 pounds of ice per day. It also has wifi and voice control capabilities, which don’t necessarily seem like things you’d need in an ice maker — but as the old saying goes, go big or go home. To replicate how a home consumer would use a nugget ice maker in our Lab, we filled each model with the maximum amount of water that its water tank could hold and let it run all day. We monitored the time it took for the ice bucket to become full, how much ice was yielded and the overall quality of the ice, in taste and appearance. In our tests, this model produced jagged pieces of ice that were the same size and easy to crunch. They were not the same uniform nugget shape that other, more expensive models produce, but we didn't seem to notice the difference once the ice was added to a beverage. In fact, in the melting tests that we conducted, we found that this nugget ice maker's ice melted at a slower rate than the higher-priced models that we tested. While not crucial, if you’re the type of person who loves nugget ice enough to buy this model, it’d be nice to be able to start the ice maker from your phone. Clear-cube makers (like our pick) take longer to make a batch of ice—about 25 minutes or so. Some of these machines have ice-thickness controls with plus and minus buttons to add or take away freezing time, but we found them to be temperamental. Clear-ice makers produce solid blocks of ice that you often need to break up into individual cubes. They’re also bigger than typical bullet-ice machines and usually more expensive. Most nugget ice makers are designed for your countertop; they're powered by a standard electrical outlet and come with a water tank, so there's no need to get a plumber involved. The exterior not only gives the ice maker a sleek and modern appearance, with its stainless steel accent, but also provides durability and resistance to stains and fingerprints. This Frigidaire ice maker is designed to be portable, allowing you to move it around easily. It does not require a water hookup, as it has a built-in water reservoir that you can fill manually. This makes it convenient for use in various locations, such as kitchens, bars, offices or outdoor spaces. It is often preferred for drinks like cocktails, smoothies and sodas due to its ability to absorb flavors. The Humhold Nugget Ice Maker took forever to make ice, dropping just three to four nuggets at a time. It is also a much smaller machine than other nugget-ice machines we tested, so it requires much more frequent refills. It’s also just much more convenient to have a constant fresh stash of nugget ice all ready for my next drink. The Magic Chef ice maker has been around for a while, so we don’t expect many surprises. Reviews of it are slightly better than other ice machines, averaging around 4.4 stars on Home Depot’s website. We also like the Costway EP24228 bullet-ice maker, which has a matte finish that doesn’t show fingerprints as much as other machines’ surfaces did. After reading this, maybe you realize you don’t need an ice machine at all. Nearly all the ice makers we tested were fine and did the job. The Opal 2.0 is able to connect to Wi-Fi and can be programmed to respond to voice commands. It also has a UV light for sanitizing, but we haven’t tested its purported antimicrobial properties. The Magic Chef MCIM22/HNIM27 is a variant of the classic bullet-ice machine, but it has some functional details we appreciate and tends to be widely available and easier to return. The machine’s controls allow you to choose between two thicknesses of ice, which is useful if you are in a warmer room. It’s more expensive than our picks (the price was $250 at this writing), but if you happen to find it on sale, which it often is, it’s a good choice. The Luma Comfort ice maker usually took 20 to 25 minutes to complete each batch of ice at room temperature and more like 30 minutes in warmer environments. (Our bullet-ice-maker picks generate nine pieces in roughly eight minutes.) That said, it makes about three times as much ice per batch, so it works out to be roughly equivalent over time. If cloudy ice isn’t for you or if you want to keep fizzy drinks cold without them going flat, consider a clear-ice maker such as the Luma Comfort IM200. While we appreciate that the Frigidaire Gallery EFIC255 uses just two buttons—Ice and Clean—it also lacks a few features that we’ve come to expect. Our taste tests confirmed that the end product tastes very clean and neutral, which is a sign of good filtration. Wipe down the interior of the machine with a soft cloth, warm water, and some diluted dish soap. After a new round of testing, we continue to recommend the Magic Chef MCIM22/HNIM27, and we now also recommend the Igloo IGLICEBSC26. This article was written by Summer Rylander, a food and travel journalist who has written about food, beverage, and cooking products for Food & Wine, Allrecipes, Serious Eats, and The Kitchn. She made her selections based on our in-depth research during testing and conversations with experts. The Frigidaire FreeStanding Ice Maker, which is a clone of the other bullet-ice makers we tested, performed well. The Igloo IGLICEBSC26’s controls are intuitive, including buttons for two sizes of ice. And unlike our pick from Magic Chef, it has a self-cleaning mode—not a necessity, but nice to have. Standing at less than a foot tall and 8.5 inches deep, this Igloo ice maker takes up less counter space compared with others (including our other pick). Its user-friendly controls have easy-to-read notifications and a simple select button for choosing ice size. The Magic Chef ice maker makes nine bullet-shaped pieces of ice in about eight minutes using cold tap water.