Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker Reviews – ICE 60 and ICE 70

Today we’re going to be looking at 2 Cuisinart Ice Cream Makers, the Cuisinart ICE-60W and the Cuisinart ICE-70.

Cuisinart have a large selection of ice cream makers and they are all similar to some degree. These 2 ice cream makers are very like the Cuisinart ICE-30BC  in looks and design except these have been improved into smart digital versions.

Both of these 2 ICE machines are a Cuisinart 2 quart ice cream maker. Like all of the Cuisinart ice cream makers that don’t have compressors, the freezing part is done with a double walled bowl that is stored in the freezer overnight to get it to the desired temperature, then it sits in the base unit ready for the ice cream batter.

There is no difference in either of these machines regarding the bowl, the paddle and the lid.  The clear plastic lid has an integrated measuring cup that sits in the opening, this stops anything falling into the ice cream while it’s being churned but is easily removed for you to add any extra ingredients to the ice cream before it is finished.

The difference between this lid and the lid of the Cusinart ICE-30BC is the integrated measuring cup. Customer opinion was that they didn’t like the open part of the lid being uncovered while processing, so it looks like Cuisinart listened and added that improvement into these 2 upgraded ice cream makers.

The base unit is where everything is different, the Cuisinart ICE-60W has a digital control panel. There is the on/off switch and 3 buttons which are pre-set, for ice cream, gelato and sorbet. The buttons control the time to churn and the speed of the paddle. There is an automatic shut off after the programmed time is finished. The ice cream runs for 25 minutes, the gelato for 30 minutes and the sorbet for 40 minutes.

So the difference between the ICE-60 machine and the Cusinart ICE-70 is in the options on the base. On the ICE-70 there is a countdown timer, this also allows you to adjust the time on the pre-selected options, if you decided to make a smaller portion for example and you didn’t need the ice cream function to run for 25 minutes, you can adjust it down to whatever time you think you need, then switch it on.

That in a nutshell is the main difference between these 2 Cuisinart ice cream makers, a timer and also the colours. The ICE-60 is in white with stainless steel accents and the ICE-70 is in brushed chrome.

What about the price?

If any of the digital programmed bits don’t appeal to you, then go for the Cuisinart ICE-30BC, it only has 1 speed and no set timer, but it can churn the same amount, you only have to monitor it yourself and it is the cheapest. The Cuisinart ICE-60W is approximately $30 more, but you have the fully enclosed lid and digital timers with automatically adjusted churn speeds and automatic shut off after it’s done. The Cuisinart ICE-70 is another $20 on top of that (and that is the deal price on Amazon.com, it could be more) for all of the above, plus adjustable timer with countdown.

Conclusion

In my opinion, if you can afford it I think I would suggest the Cuisinart ICE-60W out of these Cuisinart ice cream makers. Why? I think the automatic function is good, you can set it and get on with something else and know it will shut itself off when it’s finished if you forget about it. I like the full covering lid and I think both of these improvements make for a more user friendly machine, and I would pay a little extra for that, but I don’t think the addition of the timer on the Cuisinart ICE-70 , or the colour, gives enough of a benefit for the user to justify the price rise. It is nice to be able to adjust the time but if I was going to make a smaller batch of ice cream I wouldn’t mind checking in at 10 – 15 mins and just turning the machine of manually.

The choice is yours, if you want to see the current prices on Amazon.com click on the banners below.