Product review (5 stars): Follow the directions and make sure you do a quick self clean on the machine before you start making ice.
This machine worked great!!! I followed the directions and cleaned the machine first with the vinegar and water solution and then started making my cubes!!! I chose the medium size and boy did that thing go to town!!! I made a large gallon size bag of ice in under 3 hours! It did drop a batch of ice (8 cubes) almost every 9 minutes. I would scoop those out and put them in the bag and then throw them in the freezer. Sometimes I would wait until two or three batches dropped before I would bag them up.  There wasn't a lot of melt factor because the machine is kind of insulated.  I had purchased an ice machine from a different manufacturer several years ago and it only made a pitiful first batch and then immediately stopped working.. i was so disappointed that I sent it back, got my refund and was leery of purchasing another one until now.  I am so glad I did!  I have been wanting an ice maker because we use a lot of ice and our GE French door refrigerator just does not produce the ice cubes that we need fast enough. One of the better purchases I have made.  I do wish that the control panel was backlit but its not that big of deal.