OXO Good Grips Ice Cube Tray 34881 – Nice Idea, But….
Written: Sep 10 '09
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Pros: Lid keeps cubes fresh and clean, cubes release easily
Cons: Lid doesn't slide smoothly resulting in spilled water
The Bottom Line: Ice cube tray with lid to keep cubes fresh, allows you stack other items on top. Lid doesn't slide smoothly though and water spills. Dispensing feature overrated.
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| amyk49's Full Review: OXO Oxo Good Grips Ice Cube Tray 34881 |
My apartment came with a basic refrigerator with a top freezer, and of course no ice dispenser, so I needed some ice trays to make ice. I really don't use ice all that often, but I like to have some around when I do need ice. I saw a display at Bed, Bath & Beyond for these OXO Ice Trays, and thought the design seemed like a great idea.
~ Product Description
OXO Good Grips Ice Cube Tray 34881 features a sliding lid that covers the cubes, which allows you to stack more trays or other items on top, plus the lid helps to reduce odor for fresher, cleaner cubes. Additionally, the lid is designed to slide open to dispense as many cubes as you need, two or three, or however many.
A tray will make 14 ice cubes. They are in a half-circle shape, and measure about 2 inches by 1 inch. The tray is white plastic, with a light grayish-blue plastic lid.
To fill the tray, first remove the sliding lid and fill the tray with water. Place the tray on a countertop and steady it with one hand while sliding the lid back on. To release cubes, twist the tray to loosen the cubes. To dispense, slide the lid until the desired number of cubes are fully exposed, and turn the tray over to release the cubs.
I bought two of these for $4.99 each.
~ My Experience
I loved the idea of a lid covering the cubes to keep them fresh, and also if necessary I could stack other items on top of the trays. Plus I figured with a lid you'd have less spilled water getting it into the freezer.
I removed the sliding lid from the tray - it simply slides off and on. I filled the tray with water from the tap and then set it on the counter and began to slide the lid back onto the tray. Well, the lid doesn't slide all that smoothly or easily, and I had to fumble with it, which caused water to spill out. Not a huge deal, but I had to wipe up the water. After the lid was on, I didn't spill any water getting the tray into the freezer however.
The OXO Good Grips Ice Cube Tray is designed to dispense the cubes by sliding the lid back, thereby getting just as many cubes as you need. Sounds good, but here's the deal: Unless you have a big container like a pitcher, dumping cubes from a tray into a glass doesn't work very well. I don't know about you, but I usually pick out the cubes with my fingers and put them in the glass.
The tray twists easily enough to loosen the cubes, and once the cubes are frozen you can slide the lid back and not worry about spilling water. The lid is designed to dispense one, two, three, or more cubes as you pull it back. But again, turning over the tray and shaking the cubes into a glass - they aren't going to fall into the glass!, so you end up picking out the cubes with your fingers anyway. So the lid dispenser really only works if you're using a pitcher or a blender, but in that case you're likely using most of the tray of cubes anyway.
I do like the lid for stacking the trays, and it does keep the cubes fresher, cleaner, and more odor free, plus you don't drip water in the freezer. I like the shape of the cubes, a semi-circle with a one straight edge and one rounded edge. The cubes do release easily from the tray, and the plastic seems fairly heavy duty and hopefully crack resistant.
~ Final Thoughts
I'm on the fence about the OXO Good Grips Ice Cube Tray. Filling the tray with water and sliding the lid back on results in water spilling on the counter every time, because the lid doesn't slide very smoothly. But once you get the lid on at least you don't have water spilling as you put the tray into the freezer. The lid does help keep the cubes fresh and clean once in the freezer. The dispensing feature is not very helpful, as I end up picking out the cubes with my fingers anyway. I like the shape of the cubes. I will recommend, but I can't give it any more than 3 stars.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 4.99
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