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

I initially bought the previous version of this GE ice maker and had to return it three times due to faulty component issues, only to find out it had a known, unfixable problem. Frustrated, I upgraded to this newer model, hoping GE had addressed the issues—but unfortunately, it suffers from the exact same problems. Despite following all care instructions, including cleaning it twice a month and using filtered water, the compressor began making loud, unsettling noises within the first month. For a $600 appliance, this is unacceptable. I expected reliability and quality from GE, but instead, I'm dealing with the same recurring issues. I’ll be returning this and opting for a different brand.

As we our homes want to continue to up our culinary game, one of the fun areas is ice making. And the new GE Profile Opal 2.0 Ultra Nugget Ice Maker is as fun as it comes and super easy to use! SETUP: - Unboxing and setup really is quite easy! There are a few parts you have to clean like the ice tray and the water tank, and you need to need to run it through a cleaning cycle to start off but that's about it! Once I was doing my cleaning cycle I was ready to start making ice. - The machine is really quite quick in making ice which is nice. It will run a lot at the beginning since you have an empty bin but once its caught up you are good to go! PROS: - I really like the look of this ice machine. It's sleek, modern, and just blends into where ever you place it, either on your kitchen counter or at a mini bar! - The ice itself is simply fantastic! It's the "good" ice that are small pellets that you would get from your favorite soda shop. It's nice and cold and holds up well in your glass, just perfect ice all in all. - I really do like how it does not need to be connected to a water line and you can have it wherever you want. The side water tank is super convenient and helps make the ice machine last for a long time in-between having to fill it up. - I also think the light is a nice feature, adds a certain elegance to it. You can either have it on full brightness, about half, or off completely. - The Opal 2.0 can also connect to an app via wifi. This might seem a little weird but it's actually pretty useful and you can tell it when you want it to make ice vs when it should not. If you do not set that up, it will just automatically make more when it can sense you have used some ice which is a nice feature but if you want it to be quiet and automated the WiFi is nice. CONS: - The only downside in my mind is the "cleaning" process. Obviously, you want to clean these things frequently as you want to make sure your water lines are nice and clean. However, cleaning involves using a 5 cups water to 1 teaspoon bleach solution and then draining the entire machine and then running it again with clean water. The appeal of this ice machine is that you can use it anywhere aka not next to a sink or water connection, but when you clean it it is much easier to do so when you are right next to a sink & faucet. BOTTOM LINE: - As these dedicated Ice Machines comes more popular, the clear favorite as the best you can get is the GE Profile Opal 2.0. It looks like a nice high end machine, works fast, makes perfect nuggets sized ice, and the side tank makes it so you can use it wherever you want and it lasts a long time. Just like any appliance that uses water, there is some maintenance you need to do to keep it in great shape, but that's really not that big of a deal. This is the best ice maker you can get and is a lot of fun having around the house for drinks like soda, coffee, cocktails, or whatever you like best!

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.

GE Profile Opal 2.0 Ultra Nugget Ice Maker with Side Tank in Stone White is a great addition to my countertop and family usage!! This came boxed really well and protected. The Ice Maker is quite heavy and took 2 of us to get it out of the box and onto the countertop. It is a very well-made GE product, sturdy and solid and took up a big part of the countertop where I placed it. After unboxing and going thru the pieces and reading all the instructions, I was ready to get busy making ice! The instructions were easy enough to read thru and there is a quick set up guide to help. You can also download and refer to the app on your phone for videos and setting up as well if you choose to use it. The 1st part to tackle was sanitizing and cleaning the components and main ice maker. The most time-consuming part was the water and bleach cleansing of the unit and then rinsing it 4 times to make sure all the bleach was cleaned out, note: I did this near the sink and then moved it back to complete the setup. After the machine was cleaned and rinsed, I set it in its new home, inserted the filter, added cold filtered water in the tank and waited for the ice to appear! To fill the water tank you need to do it upside down and then re-sit the container on the stand. It would have been better if you could fill it from the top instead of having to turn upside down and sit in the holder... but it works. The water reservoir and stand have a bottom clip and magnetic area to attach to either side of the ice maker. The metal scoop also has a magnetic holder to attach to the other side. There is a small drip tray that you place in the front of the machine to catch the drips from scooping out the ice - I feel this could be bigger and possibly made of a rubber material instead of plastic in my opinion. After about 15 minutes of running, the ice started producing and then a few hours passed to get a full bin of ice. The nuggets it produces are a great size and they are similar to a chicken restaurant we like to go to. They are soft enough to chew and keep the beverages cold too! Love the size and consistency! The melted ice is recycled back into the machine to continue making ice so you will always have a full bin. I like the bin opening towards you and the scoop fits nicely to enable getting ice into any size glass/cup/mug. If you load the app, you can manage when you want the ice and turn it on and off as well as lights and a few other options. If there were "negatives" I would say it is a little loud, but not a deal breaker - we are used to it as our refrigerators ice maker made noise too. Also, the cost of filters may be concerning to some as they average $20 but depending on your usage you may be able to go 8-12 months without replacing. Would definitely recommend this ice maker!!

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's Opal Nugget ice maker is easy to setup and use. I was up and running with it within minutes of taking it out of the box. The version I have came with the side tank which I'm happy to have and recommend to others to get it with the side tank. It's simple and straight forward to fill and attach the side tank. It does add a little to the footprint of the ice maker, but I found it wasn't a problem for me. The benefit of the side tank is work using a few more inches of width on my counter top. The SmartHQ app helps you to setup the Wi-Fi connection so you can monitor the ice maker, turn it on/off, turn the LED light on/off, set schedules, and monitor the status of the water filter. The app is also where you can get firmware updates for it. The ice maker has 3 buttons on the front. A Power On/Off button, an LED light button, and a clean button. I found that the LED light was something that I used often when I wanted to see how much ice was in the bin. The bin slides out and tilts down making it easy to access the bin. It also came with a scoop which is stored in a magnetic holder that can be placed on the side if the ice maker. The ice maker makes a sound from the fan, but I don't find it to be loud and the sound was never a problem for me. I set a schedule for the machine to turn on at 7am and turn off at 4:30pm Monday through Friday. When I woke, it was turning on. It also would fill up the bin after I took ice from it. I was able to keep a cup with ice and soda in it throughout the day. When I removed ice to put in a cup and slide the bin back in, it would go through a process of running water through it. This clears out any ice from being in the way when it begins to fill the bin again. The bin has a drain in it that will allow that water as well as any from melted ice to drain back into the internal water reservoir. That helps to re-use water and avoids any being wasted. I do notice that the drip tray which needs to be placed in front of the machine has water on it after each time I pull the bin out enough to get ice. The drip tray was included, so I'm happy about that since that is definitely needed. A water filter comes with it and it was very easy to install. I already had a screen filter in it, but I prefer to use the included water filter and will be buying more when I need to replace the original one. If you don't want to use a water filter, you can just use the included basic screen filter. I haven't had to go through a thorough cleaning yet, but according to the instructions, it doesn't see too bad. It would be nice if the top of the water tank accessory was where you could add water to it. It's design is such that the cap is on the bottom of the tank so when you remove it you have to turn it upside down, remove the cap, fill it up, put the cap back on, turn it right side up, then insert it into the tank holder. It would be much easier if you could fill it up without having to remove the tank. Maybe GE will add a cap to the top so you can refill the tank without having to remove it. So far, that it the only thing I could say that I wish would change. Everything else about it, so far, has been great. I like the size of the nuggets of ice. They are similar to what I have seen with hotel ice machines. They aren't large cubes, but reasonable small sized pieces of ice which I prefer over standard cubed ice. It also makes about a pound of ice per hour. The initial pieces of ice come out in a short period of time when the machine is turned on. I'm liking the GE Opal Nugget ice maker so far. I was looking for an ice maker since my refrigerator ice maker is a basic one that doesn't work well. This is a really good alternative for me. It does what it is supposed to and is easy to operate and maintain.

For anyone who doesn't have an ice maker built into their fridge, this product is worth it's weight in gold. Personally, I was a bit skeptical about how well this product would work. I wasn't sure if the smart functions were necessary, I was worried about if it would be too noisy for the kitchen, and above all, I really wanted the ice to taste fresh. I recently got a water softener installed in my house, so it was the perfect time to get an ice maker - otherwise, the amount of mineral buildup would've been too intense for me to keep up with! For starters, let's focus on the performance of this ice maker. In GE's Smart HQ app, the Opal 2.0 Ice Maker is slated to make about 1lb of ice per hour. This is an accurate estimate, and when I first started using this product, I was wondering why it was making ice so slowly. I'd like to say that after testing a family member's ice maker and comparing the performance, the Opal 2.0 makes ice just as fast as the competition. And in the end, what really matters is whether or not the machine makes high quality ice - and it certainly does. The ice nuggets this machine creates are delightful! The ice is chewable, each nugget is just the right size, and the large ice bin allows for large batches of ice to be made at any given time. GE includes a water filter in this unit, and I must say, the water filter is worth your time and use! Yes, no one wants to have recurring costs with an appliance they just bought, but having double filtered and softened water creates super enjoyable ice, so I have to recommend that anyone who buys this unit becomes accustom to buying GE's filter every 3ish months or so. Let's talk about the accessories - the side tank reservoir and the ice scooper. Both accessories are high quality and they look great on the unit! Nothing about the accessories are low quality, nor do they distract from the form and finish of the Opal 2.0. Everything looks great - so you'll be happy to have this appliance in your kitchen! It blends in perfectly with my other stainless-steel appliances. A word to the wise - and you'll find this in the instruction manual - please make sure that the water line that connects the water reservoir to the ice maker is never lifted up or raised up in any way. Make sure the tube is flat so that water can easily flow to the unit. When I first set up the Opal 2.0, I was confused about why water wasn't flowing into the unit, and it was definitely my own fault. Do I have anything negative to say about the product? Honestly, no. I enjoy using the Smart HQ app (which connects with Google Home and Amazon Alexa), the unit is not too noisy for my rather small kitchen, the ice nuggets are truly "gas station bagged ice" quality in the best way possible, and the aesthetics of the product will make your kitchen (or perhaps the bar in your garage/basement?) look professional and tied together. I highly recommend the GE Profile Opal 2.0 ice maker, and I truly say that as someone who wasn't sure if this product would be a good fit for me. It's a worthy investment and a great luxury!

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!

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!