Review: Typhur Fast Nugget Ice Maker
Who doesn’t love nugget ice? Those soft, chewy micro-cubes can turn any beverage into a delicious quasi-slushy. And slushy is arguably the perfect cold beverage consistency. Originally invented for hospital patients (seriously, look it up), nugget ice went mainstream when fast food restaurants like Sonic started promoting it. I distinctly remember my dad going to Sonic years ago just to get giant cups of the stuff for his drinks at home.
My old man is something of a nugget ice connoisseur. In fact, he was one of the first to shell out over a decade ago for the original at-home nugget ice maker, GE’s bulky and not inexpensive Opal countertop nugget ice maker. Since then, several competitors have hit the market in various shapes and sizes, including the new Fast Nugget Ice Maker from Typhur. Drinkhacker received one of these slick, compact, countertop contraptions for review recently, but since my dad is the expert in all things nugget ice, I let him take it for a spin, too. Our mutual thoughts follow.
Typhur Fast Nugget Ice Maker Review
One of the Typhur Nugget’s biggest strengths is its rapid ice production. Unlike many competing nugget ice makers that require 10–15 minutes for the first batch, the Typhur begins producing ice significantly faster and can make up to 35 pounds of ice per day. That’s more than enough to supply the drinking needs of a small family, but you are limited to how much gets made and stored at one time. The Typhur probably won’t keep up with a Full House-sized clan or your next Super Bowl party.
The ice itself is soft, crunchy, and highly chewable, some of the best my father said he’d encountered from a home machine. It’s great for cocktails, iced coffee, sodas, or crunching beverage-free when you just need a cold stress reliever. (Don’t tell your dentist I recommended that.)
Setup is straightforward and quick with easy-to-use controls and indicator lights. The Wi-Fi connectivity adds a level of convenience that many competitors lack. My dad, like most dads out there, isn’t the best at managing apps or finding the utility in them, but he appreciated how the Typhur app helps him schedule ice production, monitor the machine remotely, and ensure fresh ice is ready in time for his afternoon sweet tea. The self-cleaning function is another welcome feature, because the thing he hated most about other ice makers was cleaning them (if he ever got around to it).
A lot of nugget ice makers look like spaceships or compact versions of the ugly soda dispensers at your favorite fast-food spot, but the Typhur Fast Nugget is actually pretty attractive on a counter. Plus, it takes up minimal space, so it’s easier to integrate into the buffet of appliances that probably already crowd your countertops. It even has a built-in handle that makes moving it out of site or over the sink to drain the reservoir a lot simpler than with larger ice makers. Perhaps most important of all, it’s pretty quiet, especially compared to bigger machines. That’s very important to my dad, who is somehow both deaf and highly attune to unusual noises.
The price is a bit more than other budget models, but it delivers the kind of performance and quality that you often only get with much larger and more expensive machines. My dad loves a good bargain, but he would happily pay the suggested retail on the Typhur Fast Nugget. For quick, quality nugget ice-making that doesn’t take up too much space in the kitchen, Dad and I agree it’s an easy recommendation.
A- / $199 [BUY IT NOW FROM AMAZON]
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