After all, is there anything better than an ice cream maker that’s reliant on disposable pods to produce your food? Well, if you’re concerned about the environment, then yes. But we digress. Let’s take a closer look.

Ice Cream in 90 Seconds?!

It’s perhaps easiest to think of the ColdSnap as a reverse Keurig machine. Rather than creating hot drinks, the machine turns its pods into ice cream, smoothies, iced cocktails, and other frozen delights. Some of the more surprising items on the ColdSnap menu include protein shakes, frozen yogurts, and non-dairy ice cream creations.

The ColdSnap unit is 17 x 17 x 9 inches, so will comfortably sit on the countertop in your kitchen. Beware of the weight though; all that refrigeration power means it comes in at a back-breaking 50 pounds.

What’s the Catch?

The obvious issue is the environmental concern. While the pods have been made from aluminum rather than plastic to aid recycling and supposedly reduce the company’s carbon footprint, you can be sure that millions of disposed of capsules are still going to end up in the regular trash.

And in keeping with the ice coolness of the ColdSnap machine, the price of the unit is sure to make your wallet shudder. Although the machine is still in the prototype phase, the company confirmed the device could cost anywhere from $500 to $1000 when it becomes available in the second quarter of 2021.

You also need to consider the price of the pods themselves. Each one will cost up to $3, meaning that using the ColdSnap to make dessert is going to be a lot more expensive than grabbing a cornetto from your local ice cream van.

Lastly, of course, we still have no idea what ColdSnap’s ice cream will taste like. The nature of virtual CES this year meant we couldn’t do any hands-on testing on the show floor. We’ll just have to trust the photographs and assume it tastes delightful!

What Other Kitchen Tech Is New at CES?

ColdSnap wasn’t the only company releasing new kitchen tech at CES.

The build-up week kicked off with Sharp unveiling new Alexa-enabled smart microwaves at the Techfluence fringe event, while the Blendjet 2 promises to let you make healthy fruit drinks while you’re on-the-go.

CES is now winding down, with today being the last official day of the event. Make sure you follow along for all our post-event analysis in the days ahead.