Silonn Ice Maker Countertop, Portable Ice Machine with Carry Handle, Self-Cleaning Ice Makers with Basket and Scoop, 9 Cubes in 6 Mins, 26 lbs per Day, Ideal for Home, Kitchen, Camping, RV

Why it's worth it

The Silonn is under nine inches tall with a carry handle, weighs about 14 pounds, and still makes 26 pounds of bullet ice a day. It has a real self-clean cycle, which most compact machines skip.

At 8.7 by 11.4 by 11.6 inches, this fits where the others won't — an RV galley counter, a dorm desk, an office break room shelf. The handle isn't decorative either. At under 14 pounds you can genuinely carry it out to a patio table or load it into a camper without a second person.

Getting a self-cleaning cycle in a compact machine is unusual, and it's the strongest argument for this one. You pull the basket, add water, hold the clean button for five seconds, and come back in half an hour. On a machine that's likely to live somewhere with hard water — a campground hookup, a rental — that automated descale matters more than it would in a filtered kitchen.

From our review of 7 portable ice makers, by David Sinclair, Managing Editor

What we like

• +At 8.7 by 11.4 by 11.6 inches, this fits where the others won't — an RV galley counter, a dorm desk, an office break room shelf
• +Getting a self-cleaning cycle in a compact machine is unusual, and it's the strongest argument for this one
• +Nine cubes in six minutes and 26 pounds a day is the same production class as the Frigidaire, from a noticeably smaller box

What to know

• –The side-mounted fan blows warm air, so you can't tuck this against a wall or into a cabinet nook
• –The 1.3-pound basket is tiny and the 1.2-liter tank needs frequent refills
• –Like most machines here, it needs to sit upright for 24 hours before its first run, and it benefits from several clean cycles…