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The new Opal Flake looks almost identical to the Opal Nugget Ice Maker shown here.

A micro-factory that has succeeded in its gold nugget ice maker has now turned its attention to ice cubes for frozen beverages. FirstBuild's $399 Opal Flake Ice Maker is a countertop device that can make up to 36 pounds of extremely soft ice per day, suitable for smoothies, snow cones and frozen cocktails. 

FirstBuild now offers a limited number of pre-order machines. According to the product's website, you should get Opal Flake within six to eight weeks after ordering. 

Opal Flake Ice Maker aims to make up for the frustration of making this ice. The traditional method is to manually scrape the ice cubes with brute force-this is a typical technique of street vendors. Another option is to buy expensive commercial appliances. Of course, you can put ordinary ice cubes in the blender and turn on the switch, but the result is usually a small piece of rock-solid ice.

Opal Flake Ice Maker is another Opal product Opal Nugget Ice Maker spitting picture. It solves a similar home ice-making problem and provides chewable gold nuggets (also known as pellets) ice for families. FirstBuild was born in collaboration with GE Appliances and the University of Louisville, and successfully delivered Opal Nugget Ice in 2016. Maybe this new ice maker can also achieve the goal.