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Does It Really Do That? Ice Genie

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- With summer get-togethers coming, the Ice Genie claims it can help you make more ice in less space.

In fact, the commercial says it can replace as many as 10 ice cube trays.

With a claim like that, we wondered, does it really do that?

Lori McNeely, from McCandless, agreed to help us put it to the test.

Her initial reaction when she took it out the box?

"It's kind of little," she said.

ice genie
(Photo Credit: KDKA)

It seems easy enough to use in the commercial. An announcer says: "The secret is the unique double-chamber design. The outer chamber freezes the ice cubes, while the inner chamber holds them until you're ready to use them."

You can make more ice in the meantime.

The announcer continues: "Then just fill and freeze again. Ice Genie can hold up to three batches of ice cubes. That's 120 ice cubes at a time!"

But McNeely wonders how big those cubes could be, and the tongs that come with the Genie seem to reaffirm that. She describes them as: "Teeny tiny!"

The instructions tell us to get the inside cylinder all the way down, so water doesn't leak into the middle.

And before we make ice, we had to test one part of the commercial which says: "The revolutionary space-saving ice cube maker that can replace as many as 10 traditional ice cube trays."

Replace 10 trays?

We measured how much water fits in traditional ice trays and found that 28 cups fit in 10 regular trays.

By comparison, McNeely was surprised that only a cup of water filled the Ice Genie.

So even if it holds three batches, as advertised, the volume of ice the Genie can make is far less than 10 trays.

Now, it's time to make some ice.

McNeely fills it at the faucet, which is a little tricky because the chamber is narrow, and then there's the lid.

ice genie lid
(Photo Credit: KDKA)

"It keeps popping back up," said McNeely, as she struggled to get the lid on tight.

Once the lid is on, the Genie ad points out that the tight seal keeps the ice from taking on any freezer smells.

McNeely tucks it in her freezer, and we check it the next day.

We have a little trouble getting the middle cylinder out, but once she does, the ice pops right out with a squeeze just like in the commercial.

But McNeely's suspicions about the size are confirmed.

"They're about as big as my thumb," she said.

ice genie ice cube
(Photo Credit: KDKA)

The ice is easily half the size of a cube made by a refrigerator ice maker.

In its defense, the Ice Genie did make ice, but KDKA's David Highfield asked McNeely if she thought it really did what was claimed in the commercial.

"I think it makes ice cubes as it says it does, but I think they're pretty small and most likely unusable if you really wanted to keep your beverage super cold," she said.

But wait, there's one last claim in the ad that it's perfect to keep cold a pint of ice cream or a bottle of wine.

"I would use it as a chilling bucket for a nice bottle of wine," McNeely said.

As for the price, we paid $19.99, but there are some places online selling it for less than that.

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