To be honest, after having owned a restaurant and buying and using commercial ice makers, I really didn't have much expectations with these.The price was very inexpensive for what it promises to do so I went ahead and bit the bullet just to try it out. I've been using it for about 2-3 weeks straight now and I gotta say, I'm IMPRESSED!The unit is bulkier than what pictures may seem. But that's ok as I've got plenty of space for it. When they say it makes ice in as little as 6-7 minutes, it wasn't lying. However, the first batch isn't the greatest. Still, it was quite amazing. It's fairly loud when running, but tolerable. I would say it's quieter than most dishwasher for sure. I leave it running all the time. When the ice bin is full, I'd say it's enough ice for 2 tall glasses if filled up almost all the way. So it's not meant to produce ice for a party, but 3-4 people no problem. If you have kids too then they can wait another 20-30 minutes for theirs. You of course don't have to wait for the bin to fill up, so if you're in a hurry less than 10 minutes and you'd got another batch.You can choose small or large ice sizes. I prefer the large as it melts a lot slower. The ice maker itself doesn't have a water filter, but I'm glad it doesn't cause that'll be one more thing to upkeep. So I just use a Brita water filter pincher I keep in the fridge to fill it up. Filling it up is extremely easy as well, you just open the lid, lift the ice bin and pour water in. There is a MAX marked line that is very easy to see so you'd know never to overfill it. There is a red light that comes on when water is running low too, which is really useful because it's bright enough to see from far. Each fill produces quite a bit of ice so it's not something you'd have to do often. Also, I've tried it with water from the tap and the ice tastes amazing... using ice from the filtered pincher makes it taste PERFECT!! Also, speaking about the pincher I use to fill it, because I keep it in the fridge, it helps speed up the ice making process tremendously. I've never timed it to see how much faster it is, but I will say it's kept up easily with the ice usage in my household. So that's something I recommend.I haven't had it long enough to speak on it's longevity, but so far for the price and what it does it's been a SUPER awesome purchase!