Side by Side Comparison of: RCA vs Ivation

I have a fridge that has NO ICE MAKER. And for me, ICE is a must. I chew it. A lot. I was a bit worried about this, as they are not cheap. But, truly, it works VERY NICELY. Now, it is LARGER than you think. I purchased a small table to put this on, because; I didn't want it sitting on the table or the counter. And the little table does nice. It was only $20. And it works perfectly for this.https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01BXX8RPM/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1I added photo of my setup, to explain the little table, and ice maker combined. Realize, you add water to it. I found a cup that fills the resevoir in one shot, and simply add water that way. One filling makes a little more than 2-full loads of ice. And it makes those really fast.I make the ice, and put it into an ICE BIN in my freezer, then turn this thing off. That way, it should LAST me a lot longer than it would if you expected it to keep the ice for you.;O)I recommend POWER OFF when you are not making ICE. It powers up FAST. And makes ice FAST. I like it a lot!2016-DEC-27 Update.Never understood the propensity of modern appliances to NEVER FULLY SHUT OFF... This one, for instance, has a green light that BLINKS non-stop as long as it is "OFF". To me, that's a waste. So, I purchased a block, grounded, ON/OFF switch, that the cord plugs into, then that plugs into the wall. That way, I can FULLY turn it off when I'm NOT making Ice. The way I use it, I make 3-full loads of ice, then shut it off until I am running LOW on Ice again. So, this thing is OFF most of the time, and ON only about 1-hour 3-times a week. In my view, it should therefore, last for YEARS using this approach.2017-SEP-19 Update:I've had this now, for almost a year. Still works VERY WELL. HOWEVER, a few things I have done to keep it alive... (1). I not only turn it OFF, but; I have an inline SWITCH installed, that cuts the power to it all together, when it is not being used. I truly believe this may have had a positive impact on it's long life. (2). I have very HARD water where I live, so; I use the VENDING water ONLY in this thing. The kind you see at Walmart or other stores, where you can buy a 3-gallon at a time jug. I am sure it has another positive impact on longevity. (3) I always check the water level BEFORE turning it back on. So, as long as you treat it nicely, and don't use it more than 2-or-3-days a week, as do I, then; it will last you a very long time!

Haven't stopped using this Ice Maker since I got it... I'm loving every second it is in my home... so really needed... can't wait until summer comes so I can have nice ice tea ... oh wait... I can have all year long...yay!really really nice...Update on this icemaker....My icemaker stopped on me and I went to the reviews to see if others were having issues too... and some are...This is only a helping hand and I'm no technician...Unplugged the icemaker... carried it to the sink and sprayed with lukewarm water the underside where the tray moves up and down that pushes the ice to the basket....let is settle for a few minutes and did it again...it's working like brand new....like any machine.... they have glitches...

I bought this over a year ago when I was pregnant as I had a crazy need to chew ice ALL the time. (And for those wondering, my iron was great!) This made ice that was the PERFECT texture to chew, not too hard, no too soft. (Almost as good as hospital ice) It has two different sizes small and large, I always use large as they're really not that big, probably about an inch diameter? The machine itself is great, the loudest noise it makes is the ice dropping into the tray. It does have a hum but it's no more noticeable than a refrigerator hum.For the record, to clean it you should just run a little vinegar-water through it.

Bought this for my son in law who just moved here from So. Africa ( he had one over there, had to leave it behind...not the right current) he LOVES it! Makes ice cubes super fast but he prefers the large size cubes, just the right size for his drinks. Overall, I'm pleased with my purchase!

Makes ice very fast. size cubes are great, large isnt too large, just right. My kids and husband love this. It isn't very loud either, loudest part is when it drops the ice (no louder then a normal icemaker). Great price and product, we are very happy with it.

I owned a similar compact ice maker years ago. It was a magic chef brand. The quality on this one is much better. This one is smaller but makes makes more ice, and at a faster rate.

We love this ice maker. It's perfect for what we need it for. We have company a lot, so with this, we never run out of ice. We make it, and each basket goes into the ice box, in the freezer. Yes, it sticks, some, but we easier break it up, when needed. You can leave it in the basket, but it automatically stops, when full, so remember that. It does melt, and then, falls into the reservoir. When I empty it, I dry it out with a clean cloth, which keeps it running well. No mildew that way. It's fast working, too. The only noise it makes is when the ice drops. Otherwise, it's pretty quiet. Highly recommend it.

Good purchase. A couple helpful tips... Pour in cold water into reservoir for faster making ice cubes. I just used tap water and when pouring it out of the ice amker I noticed it had been chilled by the machine in the reservoir itself. Also if the reservoir is filled to "max" then the ice cubes get plunged into a water bath which, of course, melts them faster. This ice maker makes a lot of cubes with a small amount of water. Next time I'll fill it just a little less. It was bigger out of the box than what I expected after doing lots of research, but others do come bigger. All in all it's a great looking item and a good size for our motorhome. Hope this was helpful for others.

I am giving this 5 stars for now because it works great and is just the right size (small) that I was looking for to put in my small RV. I will revise it if I have the longevity issues other have noted.

First let me say that it arrived very well packed from Amazon. Box in a box in a box. The instructions are limited so be sure to remove the tape holding the cube tray and scoop in AND the one piece of tape on the rear "flap" that dumps the cubes.

I filled it with a couple of small bottles of bottled water, selected large cubes and started it. It takes about 10 minutes if you select large cubes. Also the first batch will not be as large as the subsequent ones since the refrigerant tubes will be colder after the first batch.

I measured the power draw, and it was 1.4 amps and 107 watts when making ice. So it does not use a lot of energy.

Overall, I am very happy with this unit and it's simplicity.

Like other portable ice makers it does make a bit of noise, especially when dumping the ice, but I fully expected that and it's a non issue. I would not want to leave it running while trying to sleep in the same room. But for me, I wanted an "on demand" system to just make ice when I needed it for a soda or glass of tea. That is why I picked this smaller model.

As others noted there is a drain on the bottom. Mine was already plugged, but I can see where someone may accidentally pull it out when unpacking it.

This ice machine performs flawlessly! I've only had it for 24 hours. Am impressed that it draws just 100 watts of electricity. It goes into stand-by when the basket is full, if ice isn't removed and melting occurs, the water returns to the reservoir. It will begin making ice again when the level in the basket is reduced, as long as there is sufficient water. This machine is a keeper!
I've never had a refrigerator with an ice maker, thinking of the maintenance involved, I only make what I need and keep the rest in a bag in the freezer.
The ice this machine makes is not real hard frozen, that's the job of the freezer, but what the machine makes IS munchable without needing to be crushed. Had it for 5 months now, not used everyday, still happy with it.

I ordered this icemaker from Amazon so I could make iced tea at work and save money. It came at about 11:00 today, and started making ice in about 15 minutes. Three hours later, 3 of us have been using the ice, have more than enough ice left for the afternoon, and haven't even used all the water yet. I anticipate more users tomorrow--this thing can pump out a lot of ice. I probably should wait to see the longevity of the product, but if it fails, I will amend my review. In the meantime, I love it from the get go!!!!

Also, I am an iced tea fanatic, and this machine will save me a ton of money on iced tea from the deli downstairs. The machine cost approx. $158. If I use free teabags at work, I save $9.00 a day (4 glasses x $2.25), and it will pay for itself in 17 1/2 days! If I use bottled tea from Costco at $3 a day, and save $6, it will pay for itself in about 26 days. Either way, I'll be pocketing a lot of savings on tea starting in less than a month!

Works as described. Works better if cold water from the fridge is used. I put some ice in the water tub to cool the water as much as possible as this helps make larger ice. Ice melts kind of fast if left in the tray for a while. My ice bin in the freezer is always full now. Happy with the purchase, hope it keeps working for a long time. It's kind of noisy but worth it for the amount of ice it makes. Best to put the ice in the freezer as soon as it drops to the tray.

I have had this ice maker for about 6 months, and I use it maybe 2 times a month. It makes ice fast and it really cool to watch. The only issue I have with it is that sometimes the sensors don't work and the ice will keep making after the basket is full and sometimes tries to keep sucking water after the reservoir is empty. It still makes ice just fine, I just have to keep watching it.

The ice basket is a bit small. Good fast machine. I had a newair previously, and the ice basket was larger, but the ice production slower 9 minutes for 9 sm cubes vs 6 minutes for 9 sm cubes from this machine. This countertop footprint is smaller than the other I had, but not by much. This one doesn't have the side drain either for automatic water filling. But the machine is fast, and registers full fast. Great product.

I am giving this 4 stars because I think the ice maker is great, have had it less than a week and have used it several times already. I bought this because my ice maker in my freezer died, and this was alot cheaper than a repair man. Just not has fast as described. Really can't seeing it making up to 26 lbs. of ice in a day, and so far has not made 1 drop of ice (10 cubes) in as little as 6 minutes. Had it going for 2 hours and made only 2 baskets full of ice, not even close to a pound. I think it will be good for making ice as need for drinks for parties and get togethers and will keep it for that. Was hoping to use it to fill the ice storage in my freezer and I don't think it will be good for that unless I make ice all day long.

This is a sharp looking unit. And it works!That being said, the unit I got has a long wide scratch across the clear see-thru lid pane. I am really bummed about that.Also, although it is still churning out ice like a champ, it appears to be getting louder. I hope that is not a trend that continues.Keep in mind, the first set of ice cubes are always pathetic. After that, all the ice cubes are great!

I received this a couple days ago. We purchased so we could make our own ice at our seasonal campsite. I think we'll be happy with it. Depending on the temperature of the day..........the water reservoir is below the ice tray. THUS not completely cooling the ice storage section. I'll have to wait and see. I am happy with the production of ice. No lie every 10 or so minutes you get 8 cubes, even faster when you have the small cube feature selected. You get what you pay for and myself and my wife are happy......we have unlimited cocktail ice this summer :-) Rock on!

My wife bought this on a lightening deal last year, and I just got around to setting it up. The manual is actually written in very good English, not the horrible random characters that frequently accompany Chinese products. It took about thirty minutes to read the manual, unpack, clean, set up, fill with water and start using.

The product is almost all plastic inside, though it appears to be decent quality plastic. Here's how it works: The ice maker fillis the top compartment with water. The "large" cubes are made by filling the compartment higher, and a lower level produces the "small" cubes. There are nine or ten metal rods that protrude down into the water. The rods cool, and the water freezes around the rods. After a few minutes, the tank drains, a rake retracts and the rods heat up, dropping the ice that has frozen around them.

Here's what I don't like:
--The inside is not cooled, so on a warm day the ice melts (but not as quickly as I'd expect).
--The ice cubes are partially hollow, shaped like those erasers that fit over the top of a pencil. This creates ice with a surface area nearly double than that of a cylinder. The ice will cool a liquid faster than a straight cylinder. If you're drinking water, this is acceptable, but not if you're drinking anything else.
--The water tank is on the bottom, and the finished ice is in a tray on top. Heat rises, so the air inside circulates backward--warm air rising toward your ice and cooler air down onto the water. The design should have a tank on the side, in my opinion, though there is one benefit---the melting ice drips through slots in the ice tray into the water storage, so there isn't drainage.

After the first few cycles, ice has much thicker walls, presumably because the water it uses is getting. It appears to me that the best thing to do is to run it for a while (maybe an hour?) then empty tthe tray into a container put it tnto the freezer.

I noticed that some reviewers are complaining that mold (mildew?) develops inside. According to the manual, you should empty the tank after 24 hours. I think I'm going to empty it nightly, wipe it down and leave the cover open.

At first glance, this appears to be worth the money we paid for it. I'll try to remember to update this review after using the icemaker for a while.

Update 1:: 9/3/17. After I had it on for about two hours, I went to check it and found that the "Tray Full" light was on and, indeed, the tray was full. I removed the ice and poured it into a container. The cubes on the bottom were half-melted, as I thought they would be. I left the machine off for fifteen minutes (the manual says to wait three minutes before turning it back on to allow the coolest to settle), then turned it on to make some more. Fortunately, I watched it instead of walking away. The machine began pumping water into the ice maker, but didn't stop when it was full. Instead, the water started overflowing and dropping back into the reservoir, never turning off. I turned the machine off and checked the date we purchased it (December, 2015) to see if it was still under warranty (nope). I opened the door to let it dry, in the hope that it might start working again. I looked inside to see if I could clean or clear the water-full sensor, but I couldn't find the sensor. I'll contact Amazon to see if I have any hope of a refund, but I have little hope. I'm going to take a picture of the ice cubes it made and my wife and I will each have a $50 glass of ice water.

i read the reviews of several ice makers. many posted they stopped working after 3 or four uses. that has happened to me, but i always was able to restart it. usually the diagnostic says empty, and it won't move from that. it was frustrating, but after 20 minutes unplugged it worked fine for a hour or two then the samethng happened. i would then unplug it for a10 to 20 minutes, shake it and it would work. this leads me to conclude for my model/machine,the water intake line freezes and blocks water intake. so i run the machine for about an hour unplug it to warm up the water line, the restart it. it has not failed since. it is good except for the water line issue.

2-21-2017

supplemental.

there is a problem with the intake valve. i discovered that rocking it front and back side to side will unstick the intake valve. sometimes if it is stubborn, i have to pull the plug at the bottom to drain the reservoir, then rock the machine. refill start the machine. the valve usually un sticks and it works for a long time until the valve sticks again.

So far, great. Nice cube output. Seems a bit quieter than our last ice maker (Avalon Bay), purchased just over a year ago, also through Amazon. To compare them - Ivation and Avalon Bay are the same size (I wonder if they are basically the same machine with slightly different styling and different logos), same options (small vs large cubes is about it), similar amount of ice output. The Ivation directions are much less thorough (no cleaning instructions at all, but I'm doing the same thing I did with the Avalon Bay, which is used only filtered water and run lemon juice through it about every 10 usages). There is also no phone number to contact in the event of questions or problems. I took off a star for that. However, I learned the limits of the warranty and nice, helpful customer service with the Avalon Bay machine: it stopped working after 8 months, they sent me a "new" one but it was obviously refurbished and died about a month after the one-year warranty expired. So the real test is how long the machine lasts (and we're heavy ice users) and what happens if we do need to replace it within the one year. I'll post a follow up review down the road.

I purchased this portable ice maker to have in our upstairs bar. We don't have a huge need for ice but when guests come over, it is nice to keep some on hand and not have to run downstairs for it. This little ice maker does the trick.

So why not 5 stars? Here's why:

Pros
2 sizes of ice and the style of ice is pretty cool. They have little holes in them almost like small cups. I like smaller ice if I'm making a mixed drink and larger if I have ice tea. Both sizes are appropriate.

Will generate quite a bit of ice if you kick it into gear an hour or two before guests arrive. If you simply need it for a drink or two, it'll have enough ice in 20-30 minutes. It says it makes ice in 8-9 min but that provides you with 9 small cubes.

Neat design and decent size ice tray. Certainly has a novelty feel that guests will ask about.

Simple operation. Pour water below the ice tray/bucket, turn on, walk away.

Quite quiet. The only sound you hear is the ice dropping in the ice bucket/tray.

Cons
If the tray fills to the top before you need ice, I find it takes quite a long time to cycle through making another round of ice. I suggest emptying or removing ice from the tray before it fills up. The unit will cycle down when full so when you remove ice it will automatically start up again, just slowly.

The ice in the tray/bucket becomes a little watery if left in the tray. This is fine if you're using it right away. If you plan to fill a bag and put in your freezer, the ice will harden in clumps.

A really cool device and novelty, something I'm glad I purchased. Not sure I'd use it as an everyday ice maker as I doubt it can handle the volume.

We hooked the icemaker up about a week ago and are enjoying it so far. It's interesting and fun to watch the process of making ice and dropping it into the basket through the front window. This is a unique feature of this icemaker. At first, after seeing the unit, we were concerned that it might not make enough ice for our family but so far, it has been adequate. One disappointment is that it didn't come with a more detailed manual and some tips for using. We even went on line to find the manual, before we realized the little two-page leaflet IS the manual. This is our first portable icemaker (the one in our refrigerator/freezer cannot be fixed) so there are still some things we need to figure out in order to enjoy it to the fullest. It is a relatively quiet icemaker, which is important to us since we have an open house plan. We would recommend this icemaker.

Not much to say about these ice makers. There must be a factory in China that spits these things out as a contract manufacturer as you see the exact same model under a dozen labels. The ice tray isn't that big and the rate of product is fine for a small family during the summer. It can't keep up for use at a party, think of it as an automated ice tray. I have had a few, they last 3 or 4 years. Cheap enough to replace but not a model of design or durability.

You have to be careful when replacing the ice tray or it will cover the "Ice Full sensor"andOK, It makes Ice... Good. But, this is the NOISEST icemaker I think I have been around.

The ice maker worked fine when it worked. Looks good too. Ice making was quick, and the device is easy to use. However, it broke after 8 months...longevity is an issue. I won't be buying this again.

Has to be reset fairly often. So far it has reset but I see from other reviews it may not last much longer. Product is exactly what we needed for a small business office to have ice throughout the day but it's a bit sporadic on producing ice.

Works good but just 1 day after recieveing the ice maker noticed the outer skin of the machine is peeling off. Can't believe that would happen with a new machine.

Works well but has very small capacity to hold both ice and water. I usually use it's entire production to fill up one large 28oz. cup.It does start production immediately when emptied and will be full again in less than an hour so it's production is adequate for a single user, or possibly two users willing to share its small capacity but not much more than that. Care must be taken to top up the water reservoir frequently or risk running out of ice for lack of water. If you only use small amounts of ice you will probably be happy with this unit.

Works good.//// WORKED good for a while then the red fault light kept coming on. I took the thing apart and found the shaft on the motor that rotates basket corroded. Took motor apart and cleaned, P.S. Good luck trying to find replacement parts.

I bought this machine a year and a half ago. It has made ice like a champ, ever six minutes, spitting out perfectly sized cube, in my choice of sizes. Today I noticed it had stopped working. Water level were fine, motor runs, just won't fill and won't freeze. The biggest problem seems to be that there is a large amount of calcium build up. I have a lot minerals in my water so this isn't unusual. Even though I always use filtered water, it's hard to remove it all, and after 14 1/2 months, it's done.

This was a great machine. I think it might have lasted me longer had I turned it off now and then, and maybe checked it more often for the mineral buildup. But it's a great machine and I cannot complain about how well it has worked. I wish it had lasted longer but I take at least a good part of the blame.

Because there is no way to find out how to do maintenance on this machine and there is no manufacturer website that offers even a manual, I have dropped my rating to 3 stars. The was a good machine while it lasted but there is no way to clean the filter that I can see, there are no manuals available online that I can find.

I purchased this in Dec 2014 along with a 2 Year insurance warranty. The machine stopped working the first week of July. I called Assurion for the warranty and was told although the insurance is for 2 years, where the machine was less than a year old I would need to contact the maker for the manufacturer warranty. I was not able to get contact information from Assurion but was able to contact the maker via Amazon. It took a week for them to respond, but they finally did and told me to return the maker. I did have to return it at my own expense and they did finally send a new replacement. It took almost 7 weeks. My complaint here is that I purchased 2 year insurance that technically is only good for 1 year. Not sure if I would do that again. Although it did take awhile to get the replacement I did get it and it is working fine.

Update: 7/2015. Let me start off by saying I loved this ice machine the first 7 weeks. Then it was downhill from there. It first started making a strange sound, so I start trouble shooting and no luck after two days ( letting it settle for a full day ) then emailed the company asking if there was any trick I was missing, no response. After another three days, I contact Amazon and the representative left them an e mail and copied me. He said they are an amazon " something" company and should be contacting me the next business day and gives me Ivation's telephone number. I have called three times and always get a voice mail and no return call after another week.
It's now past the date for a return from Amazon and I am fed up with no call or no email back! Terrible customer service! With nothing to loose, I end up getting my handy friend to look at it. He has it running, but it makes a loud terrible noise.

I just received this as a Christmas gift from my husband to use in my new Margaritta machine. The info for the machine states that it provides up to 26 pounds of ice in a 24 hour period however there is no way this one even come close to half of that amount. It seems quiet enough and it does work but it just is a very slow ice producing machine. We need to use it also for ice for our refrigerator as it doesn't have an ice machine other than Ice Trays so this really would have come in handy for when the family wanted ice for drinks and especially come summer time here in Florida. Still unsure what to do with it or if they are all like this then we will have to send it back unfortunately. I just want one that has a good supply and works at a fair rate of speed.

Definitely not built to last. Considering this has an evaporative cooler like a refrigerator or air-conditioner, which are permanently sealed from the atmosphere with no possibility of leakage or contamination, this thing should last a very long time. However, the manufacturer seems to have used so many other cheep throw-a-way components (such as for the control mechanism) that this unit is likely to be taking up space in the land fill way ahead of it's time. Mine has not been shutting off when then ice basket is full since it was new, and more recently it only produced tiny little beads instead of ice cubes, hence useless.Hello Global Corporations - if you want to do the so called "sustainability" thing, built it to last!

Worked one year and two months and then DIED! Warranty just ran out! Go figure!

Very slow making ice. Must empty the bin into your freezer frequently but, the ice cubes are still wet. When they get into the freezer the freeze together into a large lump. We returned ours. We made much more ice faster using 6 old fashioned ice cube trays.

It was great until it stopped working after 9 months of use.

I bought this in September; it died in December. Says "ice full" when there is no ice in it. We're disappointed. At this price point, I expected it to last at least a year. To not even survive to the end of the year is unacceptable.

Worked for 3 1/2 months.Used it 3 or 4 times a week and it worked great.Now..... it only makes 2 cubes at a time.Too late to send back to Amazon and talking to Curtis International is useless. The people at their support could only speak broken ENGLISH. Being hearing impaired I could not understand him, nor could my wife. Was able to make out that we couldn't get a return number and must send it to Amazon which won't take it according to their return policy. It will make a nice mailbox,raise lid and have dry mail!

Christmas gift and it was great! LOVED it, raved about it, told everyone how much i loved it. I am really picky about ice and use my reverse osmosis water. before buying this, we were buying ice at the gas station every few days because I hated the way ice maker ice would taste like food and smell! this solved all of that. It is so cute, fits on the counter, was stylish red, etc.

Along comes month 3, the fan is getting louder and louder. Now, when the water is filling up, it is SCREECHING! it sounds terrible. Come online to check my order, and I find "there is no order support for this item" as an option for this order. Try to find warranty info, no where to be found! Mine was bought from someone named DBROTH.

Luckily, I read all 73 questions/comments and found info from there. Also, one other user posted a VIDEO of the same exact problem we are having when the water is filling. I did just use the drain hole, rinse the unit a few times with hot water, wiped it out. But using only RO, there should be no build up.

My husband said use it until it breaks! But, it's embarrassing and I would expect more from AMAZON! SPEND MORE AND GET A GOOD WARRANTY!!! AND ORDER PROTECTION!!!

Worked great for 6 months. Now it just squeals and makes loud noises and does not produce any ice. Now let's see if I can get anywhere with the manufacturer, as Amazon does not wish to help.

I really dislike being negative. I do however really like honesty more. I got this icemaker in 7/17. It'snow barely December (still 2017) and the machine is shot. The water pump that delivers said water to the freezing tray won't pump. I know you get what you pay for, but seriously? Not even a full six months? And no, I didn't run it into the ground. No overuse. I periodically turned it off at least overnight specifically to let it "rest." Sorry to say, but I would be very wary of another machine in this line.Keep looking unless you have lots and lots of disposable income.

I looove it loooovvve it looove it. I have lived in my place for almost 3 years now, and my fridge does not have an ice maker. I am constantly thirsty and constantly crave ice cold water, and was tired of going next door to Starbucks for ice. This arrived early, and it is beautiful!! I washed it out as instructed, and plugged it in, filled it with water, and it started making ice as promised. It made the first batch in about 7 minutes. This is the greatest thing ever to assist with beating the summer heat. Now I can have ice water 24/7 without leaving home. Having this combined with the AC unit is just heavenly.
Yes there is a strong smell upon first opening it but its not that bad as some make out. I can't complain I love my machine.

2017 update: so machine has been working fine since first purchased 6/2016 - now has a funny smell that won't go away no matter how many times you clean it and it's in the ice. So we quit using it. Not even year and $130 down the ole drain.

We bought this ice maker for our RV. It makes ice faster than we ever could have imagined - much faster than our Samsung fridge in the kitchen in our house! We love it and will always have it in the RV - Or in the kitchen when entertaining. Superb.. not a complaint about it.

***** UPDATE*****
We used this item in our RV and it was fantastic. We recently emptied our RV for winter storage and decided to use the ice maker for extra ice for thanksgiving. It has failed. It makes very little ice. We get one or two under-developed ice cubes per cycle or none at all. It sounds like it is working but no ice. So 5 months after purchase this expensive gadget is trash. Very upsetting that it only lasted 5 months, most of which time it was in storage.

I had entered a great review previously as I love these appliances. This is the 3rd I purchase. They tend to last a year or so and then have problems, but that's ok. HOWEVER, this last one, supposedly from RCA, did not even last TWO MONTHS!! It's unreal. I'm very careful with it, placed in a secure place where it cannot be damaged at all. Yet, from this morning to now at night, it just ceased working. Incredible! I had purchased a warranty which I have just submitted (just a week or two ago I had requested the warranty to keep with my paperwork...I sure hope the next one is at least as good as the previous ones. It's not worth it if it will only last a month or so...

Save your money. Worked for a couple of months and then stopped making ice. Customer Support appeared to be from India. Huge language barrier and wanted my charge card # to charge me just to look at it. To ship to Customer Support in US would cost nearly $50.00 plus fee just to look at it. Spend a little extra money so you won't have to go through what I did.

Purchase June, 2016 and now it's not working properly. I've used it 6 times before it started making loud noises. Now it's so bad that that we can no longer use it. As you can see from other reviews this product seems to have a very short shelf life. I would recommend finding another product as RCA ice maker is junk.

Unboxed, set it up, waited for 2 hours as recommended and within a few minutes we had ice! I used this for 2 straight nights and it works amazing. Funny thing is it became the talk of the party. Everyone enjoyed the fresh ice to cool off their drinks. This works wonderful and was worth every penny I paid for it.Update: It's been 2 months now and it still works like a champ. Our friends come over on weekends and this thing gets a work out with all the mixed drinks we're making. The ice tray is almost always full and everyone loves having fresh ice. I highly recommend buying one of these.Update 2: The machine flat out died. It gave an "Add Water" warning even though the machine was full of water. I cleaned it out but nothing. It would cycle, pretend to make ice and then error out again. Here's where I got mad. It was still under the 90 Igloo warranty so I called them.Igloo informed me that even though it has their name on it, they don't make it and they would not honor the warranty. Click, they hung up on me. So,Igloo just lost me as a customer for life and I plan on making it know to everyone how horrible their customer support is.Thankfully, I purchased the extended warranty through canopy and they were really awesome. They e-mailed me a shipping label within minutes for a full refund. So, lesson learned, never trust Igloo but by the extended warranty.

piece of crap...I bought it on 9/5/15 and in December, not even 3 months later it was having problem. First it started making micro ice, that is what I call it, where it is super tiny and melts very fast. Then in January 2016, it started reading as Ice Full, all the time. I would open and close the lid and it would work for a while.Then it completely decided not to work. So on 2/3/16 I called Curtis, because it was still under warranty period, and the extended warranty I had bought told me to do it this way. They told me to reset the ice maker. I did. It was a pain.It did start to make really tiny ice,even smaller than before, but the ice full light was always on and I had to empty tray each time it made ice for it to make a new batch.On 2/5/16 it totally died... nothing. so i went to drain it, and the stopper on the bottom broke off in the unit causing water to shoot all over the counter tops... yay!... and once emptied it was left to dry.On 2/8/16, today, I called Curtis, to let them know, the reset didn't work. I called at 9:10am, Sam hung up on me. I called at 9:12 am, Paul hung up on me. I called at 9:17 and finally Daisy, did not hang up on me. She was very nice, but I am still not happy with the way they go about their repair process:I had to pay $7, right then, for their insurance, for after the repair to ship it back to me.I have to pack it in a safe box, and pay to ship it back to them. Included all this info, plus sales receipt. Describe the issues in detail with all the previous calls and issues also in detail.After all that, they will repair it and ship it back to me.I will update after I get the unit back.*** UPDATE****2-8-16... so I just found out it will cost me $65 to ship it back... I can't believe a company can get away with this kind of customer service.I am so disgusted with Curtis International ltd. I am shipping it back and will update again when i get it back.****UPDATE****11-2-16Update********************************So after I paid the $7 insurance, the $65 to ship it, Curtis Int. did ship me a total brand new one. It was an Igloo same design, same color, same buttons, same Issues, Just with Igloo instead of RCA... It lasted 2 months and totally died.I had to wait till Sept 2016 to use my extended Warrenty.They didn't even want this turd back.They told me don't bother shipping it back and they just refunded me my purchase price, not shipping on an Amazon Gift Card.So to sum it up. This Ice Maker is crap. Save your MONEY, and just buy the bags of ICE.This unit costed me $127 the first time, $8.99 Assurion Extended Warrenty, after it died (RCA) $7 insurance to Curtis International, $ 65 to USPS to ship it back to get repaired, they just replaced it... and a grand total of $207.99 and I am right back to buying bags of ICE...Save your $$$$$, RCA and the Replacement IGLOO, both are crap and both died.HOpe this helps.

Worked about a week right then all it made was one huge piece of ice you would have to wait for it to melt to try again. Returned it!

Bought this based on reviews. At first we were very happy with it. The ice cubes melt/shrink if left in the machine, but that wasn't that big a deal. The family and kids loved it overall.
After 5 months it stopped working. The tray full light comes on, when the tray is empty. No customer service info readily available through AMAZON or on the web. Eventually, after a lot of work, got the contact for the service/warranty. Never got a live person and never got a call back or email response. Several months later, finally got a live person, but was told that the device was one week over the warranty period (4 months after we had first contacted them). AMAZON should not let this product be sold without the warranty information and the customer service for the seller being readily available and transparent.

Ordered this item on 8/24/16 and received on 8/26/16 so ordering and shipping were great. Worked great...for 4 months. In November it started reading as full when it was not but that was fixed by turning it off and on again. It is 12/28/16 and it has stopped working entirely, the fan doesn't seem to be turning and it is not producing ice at all. Pretty expensive purchase for a product that lasts for such a short period of time. I would not recommend.

Horrible! Worked great at first. Started to make weird noises with the pump. That was the first sign of trouble. Went from a slightly loud pump noise to a high pitched screetch. Decided to see how long it would last. Just a few days ago the pump made a new, low noise. Seemed like it was having trouble pumping. Then it started not freezing. Wouldnt make anything, pump still worked. Left it off overnight, it started working again. And now its stopped! Full of water telling me its empty tray not filling with water. I have cleaned this machine MANY times. Never EVER used hard water in it. ONLY PURIFIED OR BOTTLED. and i ALWAYS had orange stains inside. Can anyone explain that? Or the white stuff that floats around after its ran a few times. The same white stuff that comes back out AFTER cleaning. Disgusting. Defective. Not worth $130 for something that only works for 5 months.

So...I bought this ice maker after looking at several units on Amazon. First, as others have noted the ice does melt unless you get it out right away. But what is worse is the MOLD. I don't need 20 lbs of ice a day, so don't use this constantly. I'd put it on at night when I got home and wanted ice water or chilled drinks, and then shut it off until the next night. And then after a few nights I noticed mold on the handles of the ice basket. And that it was also in the bottom of the machine near the water uptake/pump. So I drained the water, cleaned the machine, and assumed something had fallen in and was more careful just to empty the basket. I've kept an eye on it and regularly cleaned it. Well today, maybe 6 weeks after purchase, I inspected in and found mold up in the ice making unit where no human contact is as well as the basket and bottom of the water basin AGAIN. I would never have seen the mold in the top, I just happened to notice as the mechanics worked to fill the ice bin. I'm just filling this with bottled water. It should not be a health hazard. I'm disgusted I was drinking ice from this machine last night:( I'd avoid this, I feel lucky to not have gotten ill (or have I, I had a bout of "tummy issues" out of nowhere a week ago...ewww...)

Bought in Nov to replace the ice maker we owned that seemed to be going out. Did not put in service until February this year. Today it is now making a loud squalling noise. What a waste of money.