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The Silonn Countertop Ice Maker is the fastest-to-first-batch pick in my countertop ice maker guide, and when this review was written it carried 28,690 ratings, the longest track record in the category by a wide margin. That is no longer what Amazon shows: as of 7 September 2026 the listing displays no customer ratings at all, and the rating figures below are recorded as they stood on 30 August 2026. This review covers the thing most buyers get wrong before they order one, what 26 lbs a day really means, and why the price has moved.
Quick Verdict
| Score | Price | Rating | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7.5/10 | $96.06 | Not shown today | Check Price |
Specifications
| Spec | Silonn SLIM01B |
|---|---|
| Ice type | Bullet ice, two selectable sizes |
| First batch | 9 cubes in about 6 minutes |
| Stated daily output | Up to 26 lbs in 24 hours |
| Water tank | 2 litres, filled by hand — no plumbing |
| Power | 150 watts |
| Dimensions | 12.3 x 8.7 x 12.5 inches |
| Refrigerant | R600a |
| Other | Self-cleaning cycle, full-basket sensor, scoop and basket included |
The thing to understand before you buy one
A countertop ice maker is not a freezer. The basket is insulated but not refrigerated, so ice sitting in it slowly melts, the meltwater drains back into the reservoir, and the machine simply makes it again. That is normal operation and not a fault.
What it means in practice is that this is a machine for making ice when you want ice, not for storing it. If you need a standing supply, you fill the basket and move the ice to your freezer. Buyers who expect a small freezer are the ones who end up disappointed, and it is the single most common misunderstanding in the category.
Who It’s For
- Households whose freezer ice tray cannot keep up with drinks, parties or iced coffee
- Anyone in a rental, dorm, office or boat where plumbing an ice maker is not an option — this fills from a jug
- People who want ice on demand within minutes rather than a stored supply
- Anyone who wants a proven machine rather than an untested one, which is what 28,690 ratings buy
Who Should Look Elsewhere
- Anyone expecting ice to keep. It will not, and no countertop machine at this price does
- Anyone who wants chewable nugget ice or clear cocktail cubes. Bullet ice is neither
- Anyone counting on the full 26 lbs a day, which is a ceiling in a cool room rather than a working figure
- Anyone buying purely on price — it has drifted above the Frigidaire EFIC189 in the same guide
Performance
Six minutes is real, 26 pounds is a ceiling
The first nine cubes in about six minutes is the specification people buy this for, and it is the one that holds up: from a cold start you have usable ice faster than any freezer tray. That responsiveness is the genuine appeal of the format.
The 26 lbs per 24 hours figure is a different kind of number. It assumes continuous running in a cool room with the basket emptied as it fills, which is not how anyone uses one. Treat it as a ceiling for comparing machines rather than as an amount you will collect.
Bullet ice, and what it is good at
Bullet ice is cylindrical and partly hollow, which is why it chills a drink quickly and also why it melts quickly. For everyday soft drinks, iced coffee and cooling a sink of beer it is ideal. For a whisky you intend to sip slowly, or for anything where dilution matters, it is the wrong ice.
The two selectable sizes are a genuine convenience rather than marketing: the smaller setting produces ice faster and suits chilling in bulk, the larger melts more slowly in a glass.
Water, noise and the self-clean cycle
There is no water line. You fill a 2-litre tank by hand, and the sensor stops production when the basket is full. Using filtered water is worth doing, because scale and taste both carry straight into the ice.
The self-cleaning cycle handles routine maintenance but does not replace an occasional manual clean of the reservoir. The guide to using a countertop ice maker covers the setup and running routine in full.
Design and Build
A compact 12.3 by 8.7 inch footprint and 12.5 inches tall, which fits under most wall cabinets but is worth measuring for, because the lid opens upward. The transparent lid is a small practical win: you can see the basket level without opening it and letting warm air in.
It runs on 150 watts and uses R600a refrigerant. Noise is the specification nobody publishes usefully; it is a compressor appliance, and it is audible in a quiet kitchen.
Value
At $96.06 the Silonn has risen from the $79.94 the buying guide previously recorded, which now places it above the Frigidaire EFIC189 at $93.99 and well above the EUHOMY at $69.78. The value argument has weakened even though the machine has not changed.
What it still has is the track record. Those 28,690 ratings were more than the Frigidaire and EUHOMY had between them, and on an appliance category full of thinly-reviewed hardware that counted for real money. It counts for nothing now that Amazon displays none of it, which is why the Frigidaire EFIC189 rather than this machine is the Best Overall pick in the guide. If price is the binding constraint, the EUHOMY is the guide’s budget pick for a reason.
Durability
Across the 28,690 ratings recorded on 30 August 2026 the distribution ran 68% five-star, 13% four, 6% three, 4% two and 9% one-star. Amazon no longer displays any of this, so treat it as a historical snapshot rather than something you can check yourself today. That 9% is roughly 2,580 people, which is a substantial absolute number rather than statistical noise, and it is the highest one-star share of the machines in the guide.
Read together, the shape is familiar for this category: most owners are happy, and a minority have a machine that fails or arrives faulty. Countertop ice makers are compressor appliances built to a price, and the honest expectation is a few years of service rather than a decade.
Alternatives to Consider
- The full ice maker guide — including the cheaper EUHOMY, the Frigidaire, and the nugget-ice machine if chewable ice is the point
- How to use a countertop ice maker — setup, water, cleaning and what to expect in the first week
- A small chest freezer — the right answer if what you actually need is ice storage rather than ice production
Verdict
The Silonn is still the sensible default countertop ice maker, and the reason is boring and sound: it does the basic job quickly and more people have bought and rated it than anything else in the category. Six minutes to the first ice is genuinely useful, and the self-clean and full-basket sensor remove the two chores that make these machines annoying.
Buy it understanding what it is. It makes ice on demand, it does not keep ice, the 26 lbs figure is a ceiling, and at $96.06 it is no longer the cheap option in its own guide. On track record it still earns the top spot; on price it no longer wins by default.
How This Review Was Put Together
Plainly: this is research-based, not a hands-on test. I have not owned or used this machine, and nothing here should be read as a report from my own kitchen.
What it rests on: the published specification — ice type and sizes, first-batch time, stated daily output, tank capacity, wattage, dimensions and refrigerant — read against the other machines in the buying guide; plus the shape of the rating distribution across 28,690 Amazon ratings rather than the 4.2 average it produces.
What I could not establish: real daily output in a normal kitchen, and noise. Neither is published in a form that can be compared between machines, and nothing here claims a measurement of either. Price and stock were read from Amazon’s US marketplace on 6 September 2026 and will move — this one has already risen from $79.94 since the buying guide was last checked.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the Silonn ice maker keep ice frozen?
No. The basket is insulated but not refrigerated, so ice melts slowly, drains back into the reservoir and is remade. That is how every countertop machine at this price works. If you need a standing supply, move the ice to a freezer as it is produced.
Will it really make 26 lbs of ice a day?
Only in ideal conditions. That figure assumes continuous operation in a cool room with the basket emptied as it fills, which is not normal household use. The number worth trusting is the six minutes to the first nine cubes, which is what the machine is genuinely good at.
Does it need a water line?
No. You fill a 2-litre tank by hand, which is what makes these machines suitable for rentals, offices, boats and anywhere plumbing is not an option. Filtered water is worth using, since scale and taste both carry into the ice.
Is bullet ice good for cocktails?
Not particularly. Bullet ice is partly hollow, so it chills fast and melts fast, which suits soft drinks and iced coffee more than a slowly sipped spirit. If dilution matters to you, a nugget or clear-cube machine is the better format.
Glenn is the founder of Kitchenware Compare and has spent years researching, testing, and reviewing kitchen appliances, cookware, and gadgets. A lifelong home cook raised in a family that treated every meal as an occasion, Glenn started this site to cut through the noise of conflicting product reviews and give readers honest, practical guidance. When he is not testing the latest air fryer or digging into the specs of a new espresso machine, he can usually be found experimenting with new recipes or hunting for the perfect cast iron skillet at a flea market.
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