GE Profile - Opal 2.0 Ultra Nugget Ice Maker with Side Tank and Scale Inhibiting Filter - Carbon Black

This is my second ice maker. The GE Profile Opal 2.0 Ultra is replacing a more basic one that I got to dip my toe into homemade perfect crunchable ice game. Before that it was a trip to that fast food place that sells it by the bag. What a pain to drive to the fast food place…. But for summer parties or just that perfect cocktail or soda….you got to have the right ice. The first ice machine…just really wasn’t the one-and-done I was hoping for BUT it did show me just how cool perfect homemade ice can be and I knew there had to be a solution…THEN CAME THE OPAL 2.0 Ultra! The first thing I noticed about the Opal 2.0 was the quality of the parts. Solid, well-built with premium material. It looks amazing…and since I plan to keep it out and running all year round, that’s important. The real clincher for me is it is a one and done perfect ice making machine! I load it with water and there is ice literally when ever I want it. It melts and recycles into fresh new ice! Got it out and read the instruction…I hate reading instructions, but you do need to run it through the cleaning cycle. It was easier than I thought but keep in mind, this is an appliance that will take some maintenance…it needs to be cleaned and maintained. It has a water filter and it has an air filter and a tank that will need to be cleaned from time to time and be sure to clean it. If your ok with that…you will have fresh perfect ice all the time! The perfect Ice is so worth it. I plan to only use filtered water going into the unit as well as the descaling filter that comes with it (but you will need to order replacements). Got it out of the box (it’s heavy… fyi) and prepped it. It was time! The basket pulls out and that’s where the main water reservoir is kept. The basket is solid and thick and opens up nicely to allow for easy scooping. I poured the water in and filled the side tank. The side tank adds some space to it but if you make a lot of ice it’s really nice as you do not have to add water continually. Without the extra tank, I got about 5 days of moderate use. It’s just me and my spouse so if you have more than that…the side tank is a must! The set up of the tank is easy and they put a sticker on the hose that goes to it…fool proof. I wish they had wheels on the bottom of the Opal so I could roll it out from the floor or cabinet to drain for cleaning. Time to make the ice. It does make noise. The noise is two factors: 1. The ice dropping into the basket 2. The sound of the pump moving the water into the cooling unit. BUT wayyyy less noise than my cheaper unit. Part of that is the solid heavy plastic of the basket that keeps the “tick” sound down when the ice is being made….but understand that it is not “silent”. It is noticeable but once the ice has been made… it is absolutely silent. A couple of scoops and it starts making ice and you’ll have the sound again until it makes the ice. In my book…the slight noise is worth the trade-off for the ice. I also like the light inside that gives the ice a tempting glow that says, “come scoop me.” You can turn the light off or dim it as well. The scoop is magnetic as well and can go on either side…same with the tank. The basket holds a good amount of ice. When I throw a party I will have to stockpile ice in a freezer for a group of 10 or more. For a group of 4-8… the tank will be sufficient to keep the ice going but I will have the noise around when that is happening. I was so excited about the set up and Ice…I forgot about the app. I forgot about it because it really is not needed. It does have some features that are ok. It can tell you about the water filter and has an “order” button for a new filter. It has a “make fresh ice” button…but the Opal is so self-sufficient that it just goes….I don’t need to babysit it or tell it to make ice. Ect…It does it. Which is way better than having to force it to make ice ect…the ice is there and ready without my input…I like that way better! Other than that, the app has cleaning and care videos and the owners manual (which you get paper as well). It also has the light dim and off buttons in the app. Overall not a bad app…just redundant. In summary… the closest thing I have seen to the perfect Ice-making unit out there! Soooo much better than my entry unit was. The ice is absolutely phenomenal and once I turned the Opal on, I haven’t done anything to it except open the ice drawer and scoop out the best ice out there ( 5 days before adding water)…the ice is even better than the fast food place… and for an “ice-o-phile” that’s saying something! Also cleaned it twice so far. Really not to bad. I will probably clean 1 a month and de-scale every 6 months.

Yep, that’s what I always called it growing up. Not “crunchy ice” or “nugget ice” or “chewable ice.” We called it what it looked like – rabbit pellets! And I absolutely love it and now I can have it 24/7 in my own home thanks to the GE Opal 2.0 Ultra Ice Maker! PROS: - Nice Soft Ice always at the Ready - Fairly Easy to Setup - Makes ice Fairly Quickly - Plenty of Ice with Side Tank - Connects to WiFi for easy control in App or via Alexa - Perfect Size (Plenty of Ice without being too big) - Premium Looks - Great Magnetic Side Scooper CONS: - Side Tank should just be built in, not separate - Side Tank refilling could be easier - Must use Distilled/Calcium Free Water OR do complex de-calcification process FREQUENTLY I absolutely LOVE this machine! And I didn’t really get it for myself – it was my spouse who’s wanted one for years. We’ve had several other ice makers that made the round ice with the hole in the center as well as one that come pretty close to making pellet ice like this one – but those machines were just not designed in such a way that you’d want to leave them on your counter permanently and/or didn’t make ice that was so great it was worth always using them, so we’d use them occasionally, but leave them in the garage stored most of the time. That won’t happen with this GE Profile Opal 2.0 Ultra Ice Maker! This thing is like magic for anyone who loves the soft crunchy pellet ice like you get at some of your favorite restaurants. The ice is perfect – soft enough to eat without breaking your teeth, but hard enough that it doesn’t melt the second you pour your beverage over it. I’m super impressed by how they have it at just the right temperature to achieve that. And this thing looks good on the counter and doesn’t take up too much space considering how large the ice bin is. It fits nicely under cabinets, doesn’t come too close to the edge of the counter and is fairly sleek width-wise. And it looks great – like it belongs on your counter rather than like you just left it there. Getting this machine running does take a little time initially, but not too bad. You need to clean it thoroughly before use and the included guide steps you through the process. Once done, you attach the side tank, turn it on, and let it get to work. I do wish the side tank was just built-in to the machine or that the machine wider to hold more water without needing the separate side-tank. The thing is you can’t just pour water into the side tank. You have to remove it from it’s stand because it’s basically like a jug with a valved lid you turn upside down to put into it’s base. Anyway, it’s not horrible and you can put the side tank on either side which is good I guess though I can’t honestly see how that would make much difference unless you were putting the machine really close to a corner wall. I still think it would be better to have that extra water reservoir space just built into the machine and have an easy way to pour water in from the top, but I’m not an engineer and maybe there’s a really good reason they didn’t do that. And the good thing is the side tank works great once set up. The machine makes ice fairly quickly. We used it when we had some guests over and even with lots of people using it, we never ran out of ice. It helps that the bin is quite large and we started with the bin full of ice. And it’s simple to pull the drawer out, scoop out some ice, and push it back into place. And you can have this running 24/7 as we do. As the ice melts (and yes, it does melt because in order to be crunchy ice, it can’t be hard frozen) it just drains back into the bin and the water gets recycled into new ice. It’s really a quite ingenious machine that does a great job at keeping you stocked up with the best kind of ice. There is also a scooper included that really is the perfect size scoop for this ice and they included a magnetic holder for it that can stick to the side of the machine for easy access – that’s a small touch that says a lot about how much thought they put into the design. This particular model also has WiFi and connects to the GE Smart app so you can turn it on/off as well as turn the light inside on/off in the app. You can also connect that app to Alexa so that you can turn it on/off using your voice if you so desire. The machine has been given the GE Profile designation which so far as I know is reserved for the higher quality premium designed appliances and it certainly deserves it. It looks great sitting on our counter. While most of our major appliances are stainless steel, our smaller appliances that sit on the counter are all black, so we got the black Opal and it looks super stylish on the counter. Makes us feel bougie! One important thing to note is that calcium found in tap water is the enemy of this machine! If you use tap water, you’re going to have to descale the machine and that is a lot of work. Depending on how high the calcium level is where you’re at, GE would recommend you do this anywhere from bi-weekly to every 4 weeks. And it’s a cumbersome process. This Ultra model does include a scale inhibiting filter which is supposed to help remove a lot of the calcium and other stuff, but it’s not fool-proof and even with it, GE still recommends the frequent descaling process. We’ve chosen to just buy distilled water and use that for this machine. After all, if you invest in a machine like this you want to keep it working well. And we definitely didn’t want to have to descale it every two weeks to keep it running. Anyway, just something you should know before pulling the trigger on buying this. But well worth it for us. GE really did a great job with the Opal 2.0 machine. It produces true rabbit pellet soft crunch ice. It makes a lot of it and makes it pretty quickly. It looks great and isn’t too difficult to set up. Once you get it running, so long as you use distilled water, the maintenance is minimal and the result is that you get that wonderful drive-in style chewable ice you’ve always dreamed of in your own kitchen!

I've used countertop ice makers for about 10 years and in that time, I've gone through perhaps five. They never worked great from the get-go, the ice production decreased over time, eventually leaked, or the compressor went. I like having ice on-demand. I don't have to worry about squeezing trays into the freezer and about the trays picking up smells. I'm excited to have the GE Profile Opal Nugget Ice Maker; in the week that I've had it, I've come to feel very confident about its longevity. And it just works...very beautifully. PROS, Opal: ***Loads of crystal clear ice, 38 pounds to be exact. I've never run into a situation where I ran out of ice. ***A great feature about the Opal is that ice production starts up immediately when the ice bin is closed, not when some sensor 'eye' detects a low ice level, as was the case for all other ice makers I've owned. It means your ice bin is at maximum capacity, or ice maker is working to get it there. It makes a huge difference. ***The Opal comes with a metal ice scoop and holder that is held to the side of the ice maker magnetically; the magnet is strong and does not move. ***There is the normal water reservoir below the ice bin, but also the extra tank on the side; it's extremely convenient to have this feature so you don't have to keep filling the reservoir during times of increased ice usage, like if you have company over ***The Opal has a light as many other ice makers have, but the one on the Opal has a setting to make the light dim. ***The Opal comes with a drip tray, to catch water when the ice bin is open. The one on the Opal is smaller in footprint, but the edges are a bit higher to contain the water. ***Amazon Alexa connectivity works very well. I've only tried the 'make ice' and 'dim light' commends, but they work as expected ***The manual was well-writen and depictions / pictures were accurate, with nothing really to infer. ***There is a built-in function that reminds you to perform a Sanitization every 25 hours of active ice making. Every 50 hours, you need to Descale the ice maker PROS, SmartHQ app Whenever I placed the Opal on Wifi and associated it with the SmartHQ app, I rolled my eyes; it has many benefits however. ***Placing the Opal on WiFi was very easy ***Once you create a SmartHQ account (quick process), the app found the Opal very quickly, did a quick firmware update, registered it, and checked the status. ***It gives the status of the unit itself, but also the status of things like the filter, and even lets you order a new one from inside the app. ***The other reason I appreciate the app is to check on the staus, especially after a power outage CONS: ***When the unit is making ice and the side tank is installed, there is a whine sound that can be annoying at times ***The frequency of Sanitization can be annoying, especially when you use a lot of ice. This outperforms any ice maker I've owned. Aesthetically, it looks great as well.

I got this ice machine and it is an excellent addition to my coffee bar area I love it so much it is amazing

GE OPAL 2.O ULTRA NUGGET ICE MAKER WITH SIDE TANK is the kitchen appliance that I didn't know that I needed. This nugget ice is comparable with what I have found in resturants, hotels, and our local hospital. It's the kind you can crunch. The GE Opal 2.0 Ultra arrived in a very large box. I thought there is no way this thing can sit on my countertop. The box contained everything that I needed to setup this ice machine. It comes with a manual, Quick set-up guide, side tank and base, side tank clip, ice bin, ice scoop holder, ice scoop, drip tray, water filter, screened intake cap, and the ice maker. Before using the icemaker, you should wash all accessories and wipe out the ice machine. I ran the cleaning cycle using a water and bleach. This water was drained and I then ran the rinse cycle 3 times. The Opal Ice Machine was now ready to make ice. I removed the screen intake cap and replaced it with the water filter. I attached the clip to the left side and filled the tank with tap water. The Opal 2.0 has built in WiFi to sync with your GE Profile. Just download the app and you can control your icemaker with your phone. After 7 days I received a notification that it was time to sanitize the ice machine. I repeated the steps that I did when setting up, fill the reservoir with water and 1teaspoon of bleach, then run the rinse cycle 3 times. Highly Recommend.

I love this ice maker I already had the opal ice maker but this ultra is everything and more. With the filter and magnetic scoop holder was an absolute bonus GE did their Big one with the ultra with the added sanitize and clean features are a nice bonus as well.

GE's Opal 2.0 Ultra Nugget Ice Maker with Side Tank is a great addition to nearly any kitchen. The box includes the ice machine, side tank, water filter, scoop, scoop holder, plastic ice catcher, side tank latch, and quick user guide/paperwork. The ice machine comes with a manufacturer's 1-year warranty. PROS: ----------- * Looks nice. The stainless-steel look blends in well with our other kitchen appliances. The blue light within the ice machine also offers a nice glow, although the light can also be turned off if preferred. * Easy to assemble. The machine came with very few parts and easy to follow instructions, making it easy to assemble * Easy to use. There are few very buttons (power, clean, and light), making it simple to use. To make ice, you simply fill the water reservoir and side tank, and then hit the power button. * Quick ice production. Once the machine was cleaned, fully connected, and filled with water, it took about 10 minutes for the first ice to start producing. There was plenty of ice after about 45 minutes to have a full glass or two, and the entire ice bin was filled to capacity with ice in about 2 hours and 15 minutes. The bin holds enough ice for several large glasses of ice. * Excellent ice quality. The pellet ice is the perfect size and texture for chewing - it's soft ice, yet it stays frozen in your drink for quite a while * Large water reservoirs. Having both a large water reservoir at the bottom of the machine, as well as a large side tank of water, makes it convenient in terms of not needing to fill up the water very often, depending on usage. Having the large tank is the biggest plus so the user doesn't have to fill up the smaller interior bin as often (which is also more difficult to access). The large tank can also be placed on either side of the main unit depending on your kitchen setup. * App for phone. You can download the Smart HQ app which allows you to control the machine from your phone. You can program daily on and off times, control the light function (off, dim, on) and it will notify you when a new filter is needed, when it's time to add more water, or when to clean and descale the machine. The app was easy to connect to via bluetooth and your home's WiFi network. * Ice Lasts a Long Time. I turned off the machine at 8:00 pm with a full bin of ice. The machine did not turn on again until 7:00 am the next morning, as scheduled in the app. The bin was still half-full with ice the next morning. I was expecting it to have completely melted, but it did not. * Solid & well-built. It's a very heavy machine, and the build has the feel of a high-quality product. It doesn't feel rickety or cheaply made. CONS: ----------- * Initial Cleaning: this was the only time-consuming part of the setup process. You are basically running about 6 full water reservoirs through the cycle in order to clean the machine. The first batch of water also includes 1 tsp of bleach mixed in with the water to help sanitize the machine and water tubes. Then you are running several more cycles through to fully wash out the bleach and sanitize the machine. The whole cleaning process took about 45 minutes. Once cleaned, then you insert the water filter, fill up your water reservoir and side tank, and you are ready to make ice. Having said all this, you want clean ice, so be prepared to clean the machine first which will take a while. * It does have a pretty loud motor humming sound when it's running. But it does auto shut off when the ice bin is full. OTHER OBSERVATIONS: ----------- * Large & Bulky. This is a large appliance and was somewhat heavy to lift out of the box and on to the counter. It also takes up quite a bit of space on the counter top, so you just need to measure to make sure it will fit. It's about 16.5 inches tall, and we had about 17.5 inches of clearance between our counter top and the bottom of the cabinets, so it fit just fine. * Full setup of the machine probably took a little over an hour, given the time to read instructions, run the clean cycles, handwash the ice bin and side tank, and then set it up for usage. CONCLUSION: ===================== Overall, I've been very pleased with the machine, and it's a great addition to our kitchen especially when you have visitors. If there was a way to muffle/mute the motor noise a bit more, that would be a huge plus. The motor has to vent, so I'm not sure what more can happen there. In the end, nearly everyone loves this type of ice! Now you can serve it to your guests. I'd definitely recommend as the ice is great, and it looks pretty cool when lit up.

The GE Profile Opal 2.0 Ultra is the latest iteration of the Opal line of nugget ice makers featuring a new scale inhibiting water filter, air filter for the coils, magnetic scoop storage, and improved display with detailed operation. I opted for the carbon black finish, which is a nice satin charcoal black color that blends in with modern aesthetics. Setup was a breeze, with the unit being fully assembled and well packaged. After unboxing you will run your first sanitize cycle, which includes multiple rinse cycles which took maybe 30 minutes total. During this cleaning you will need to have the unit near a sink or have large container to holder 5+ cups of water. For a nugget ice maker, the Opal is relatively compact at roughly 16” tall, 17’ deep, and 14” wide. The included water tank adds a couple inches of width and is optional to reduce refilling frequency. For my dated kitchen, the Opal was too tall to fit under our cabinets so it was relegated to a console in the dining room. This turned to be ideal placement as I have found the ice maker to be noisier than anticipated. While the compressor hum and fan are fairly quiet, the water pump can be heard in an adjacent room. Though it is a minor annoyance and not a major concern, you may want to consider placement in proximity to areas of your home you congregate. It is nice that the unit is standalone and does not need to be connected to a water supply line. Within 10 minutes the Opal had produced the first nuggets of ice, though the first useable amount of ice wasn’t ready until 30+ minutes and it took approximately an hour to fill the bin. Though you can control the operation of the Opal in the app and even schedule it to run during certain times, I found little benefit due to the rate of ice production. Though I feel it makes ice with adequate speed, I am not sure how often I will know I will need ice in advance and it is more convenient to have it make ice continuously as the bin level lowers. However, one downside to continuous operation is that the unit should be sanitized every 25 hours of ice production so we received that notification after using the Opal just a week. I only used RO filtered water so probably a premature alert but depending on your water quality you may have frequent maintenance. The bin holds approximately 2-3 pounds of ice and can quickly replenish ice supply thanks to the recirculation of the ice melt from the bin. One other downside I have encountered is the bin tends to have condensation on the bottom and water then collects along the front lip of the ice maker. When pulling out the ice bin, about a tablespoon of this water drips onto the counter (or floor depending on placement) nearly every time. Maybe the 3.0 could have an angled lip and bin bottom to encourage water to drip back into basin. Despite my minor issues, the Opal ice maker is great! Our family loves the chewable nugget ice it produces and has quickly become a routinely used device. If you have the space and are looking for nugget ice machine, the Opal 2.0 Ultra is the one to get!

The icemaker was great - very easy to set up. It’s very quiet and the ice it produces is amazing. I definitely recommend this product.