Dentyne Ice

[Vendingguy]

Well, I have decided, since I still see alot of vendors on here kinda skiptical about the new Dentyne Ice machine that has hit the market, to write a informal review of what I have seen with the machines I have.   A few guys on here have the machines, and have posted some really good numbers on some of them, but other DI machines have not, which leads into the same dilemma as every other machine......It's all about location, and maximizing potential growth by marketing areas that you feel confident about.

Pro's

1.  It's unique.  Not many people have it, and I'm the only one around here who does. Which means, as with everything, when the customer base sees something new, they try it out.  Everyone has seen gumball machines, and candy machines, but something new- that targets adults will ( or should) see success.

2.  Because it is different, you should be able to place machines in different locations that you thought were impossible to get.  I have 1 Dentyne Ice machine in a pizza and wings restaurant that is packed all the time.  In the restaurant, they have a arcade game room that is full of games, and vending machines.  Kids swarm this area like it's going out of style, but you really don't see adults in there much.  When I dropped off the machine, the owner wanted the Dentyne Ice machine right next to the register, because he understands that people would want to freshen up after eating pizza and drinking beer.  Because of this, every customer sees the machine, and according to the owner, the machine is used all the time, by customers and employees.  Just to let you know, I checked this machine after two  weeks, and had about $37 in it, so I know this location is a winner.  If I dropped off a run of the mill gumball machine, it would probably be setting in the arcade, competing against 5 -6 other gumball machines, and I probably wouldn't do nearly as well.

3.  Everybody has heard of dentyne Ice, and everybody knows what it does.  It is sugar free, so you also have the ability to get business from individuals who can not have sugar.

4.The machine vends 2-3 pieces at a time.  This one thing was thought to be a negative, but the pieces are much larger than regular chiclet gum.  I would be safe to say that 1 piece of dentyne Ice equals 3 or more pieces of chiclet gum.  By dispensing 2-3 pieces, you are giving the consumer 1 full serving, and more than enough to make them happy.

5.  The size of the globe is large, and holds quite a bit of gum.  After checking on my locations, it appeared that they still had the same amount in them as when I filled them up, but of course, they were used, and used alot.  Because of this, you should be able to put 6 lbs in the machine, and not recheck for 60 days or so.  Each bag is supposed to vend roughly $100 worth of quarters,  SO your service time is essentially cut in half, or more.

6.  #1 customer service.  I could not ask for a better group of people to do business with.  They truly are commited to customer service.

Cons

1.  Well, the price.  The machine itself sells for about $120-$140 depending on how many you buy.  This was a big negative in many vendors eyes, but you did recieve 1 three lbs bag with it, which will vend $100 worth of quarters.  So, to me, this really wasn't a negative, other than making myself a lab rat and seeing the machines capabilities ( in profit)

2.  The cost of the gum is high as well.  1 three lbs bag is aobut $27.  That's how much I paid for them, but I believe the cost is going to go up slightly.  According to SuperPro, they will ensure the cost per vend stays at or below .08 cents.  Because of there shipping, the best thing to do is whenever you purchase additonal machines, purchase additonal gum as well- you'll save on shipping ( they always pay shipping, but it is factored into the price)

3.  This is merely my opinion, but I have seen better quality machines out there than the dentyne Ice machine.  I'm not saying it's bad, but I'm not saying it's great either.

In the end, if you purchase these machines, and market the areas in which they were intended, like upscale restaurants, pizzaria's, bars, night-clubs, and even the better hair salons ( old women love chomping on this stuff), you should do fine.   I'm not saying that they won't work everywhere, as my experience is limited with them, but you shouldn't settle for any location, just because it's a location.  I have decided to have different focus points for the different machines that I run, and so far, have had pretty good success.

[new2this]

Hi,

 

Nice Review.  Good Luck.

Thanks

Tee

[gemstate]

Well, I ordered 1 Dentyne Ice machine to try. I'll let you know the outcome.

Don

[T BIRD]

Good for you Don!

[Beer980]

I guess I am going to have to try one out and see how I can do with it. Can't let you guys get all those quarters.

[gemstate]

Go for it. Tell them Don from Boise sent you. I am not affiliated with Superpro at all, nor do I get anything special from them but nice folks.

Don

[T BIRD]

Yeah!  What Don Said.  Good luck with the Dentyne machine.  I placed one at location today and have 4 more to go.

[gemstate]

I also placed an order for 5 machines instead of one. 1st one was placed as soon as I talked about it to one location that didn't want a regular candy machine.

Don

[Vendingguy]

Dentyne Ice is great, but just like anything else, you gotta have the right location.  Try to focus more on the adult consumer, and pick your locations accordingly and you'll do fine.  Your not competing against the gumball machine, the DI is in it's own little world.

And remember, the DI comes with 1 bag of gum that will fill the globe about 1/4 full.  This will make you about $100, so there's not really any use in tying up more money until you need more, but you will get better pricing if shipped with equipment.

[caserri]

Ok, I just received my first DI machine and stand yesterday and will give you my honest review of the equipment here. As I gain more experience with it I will update.

Here are my initial impressions of the equipment.

The machine came to me on the day promised with the gum and stand securely packaged in the same box as the machine. The packaging was sufficient enough to prevent damage while in transit. After I unpacked all of the components, my first thought was that this machine was of better quality than I expected. To be honest, I didn't quite know what to expect but I was definitely impressed to say the least.

The machine went together quite easily with no problems at all. The directions provided could have been a bit more detailed although, together with the color photo page, provided enough details to quickly set the machine up. This is an impressive looking machine and the branding will really make it stand out from the crowd of potential competition on location. Overall I rate this machine setup 4 quarters out of 5.

And now for a detailed look at what I consider to be the pro's and con's

Pro's

• Branding. Any edge that you can acquire in this business is paramount. A quality brand like Dentyne will go a long way.
• Lock. I really like the fact that the lock is attached to the lid itself. I have a tendency to loose or misplace locks when servicing machines. This will help a lot. The lock is removable if you need to replace it.
• Machine Construction. I rate this 4 out of 5. The construction of this machine is on par with that of Seaga and Oak. It is a sturdy machine and solidly built.
• Machine Quality. Not to be confused with machine construction, the quality refers to the finish and craftsmanship put into this machine. I rate the quality 5 out of 5. The DI machine is on par with the quality of Seaga however it is much better than that of Oak.
• Lid Seal. The machines ship with a user installed foam seal that is to be placed around the inside of the lid that seals the product in the machine. This is a great feature that I have not seen on any of my other machines.

Con's

• Stand strength. - The biggest problem I see with the setup is the stand. While the stand itself is beautifully finished and looks great under the machine, I have reservations as to the strength of it. The one weak point is where the pole meets the base. There is 1 bolt that attaches the base to the pole and I have tightened it as much as possible. There is a certain amount of flex that occurs at that point when the machine is mounted. I'm sure it will perform admirably if placed in its prime location, an adult oriented setting, however I would be reluctant to place this setup anywhere a child may be present. I feel that it would be easy to bend the stand at that particular flex point.
•  Chute cover - The chute cover is made of clear plastic. It is the hard kind that appears to be breakable. The problem with this is that in addition to this vulnerability, There appears to be no easy way to replace the door without dis-assembling the internal components of the machine. SuperPro appears to have thought about this and incorporated a built in "cup-like" area at the bottom of the chute. Should the cover break off, the product will still be contained upon each vend. See Pic. 

• Hidden Coin Mech - The coin mech appears to be very solid and rotates extremely smoothly. The problem with the mech is that it is hidden behind the enclosed product chute. In the event of a coin jam, it would not be an easy task to extricate the mech to work on it. It is not as simple as removing the hopper and sliding the mech out. Like the chute door, It appears that you will have to disassemble the internal components to gain access to the mech.Overall, The pros of this machine far out-weigh the cons for me. The cons would not prevent me from purchasing more of these should they perform as expected. I may not purchase these with the stands unless for an employee area where there is little chance of children being present. There are other options that I will employ when it comes to the stand. I believe I will drill the appropriate holes into the mounting bracket to accommodate an Amerivend stand. There are multiple holes already on the underside of the the machine itself however the metal is a bit thin and I would be reluctant to bolt directly to that. The modified mounting bracket will do just fine.

  SuperPro Dentyne Ice vender. 4 quarters out of 5. I do recommend!

  I hope this review is found to be informative.

  Steve

[Vendingguy]

I told you Steve You wouldn't be disappointed, and I'm happy your happy.  Now, get that bad boy located so you can see what it can do!!!!!!

[caserri]

That is my next order of business!

Steve

[gemstate]

Just my 2 cents worth. Di machines are very nice. i too give it a 4 of 5 rating. Only have 3 concerns (not major).

1.) Chute Door breakable and difficult to get to.

2.) 2 out of 5 machines I got had loose mechs. One even had mech tightening arm not in place. 4 out of 5 were loose enough to have to tighten.

3) Would like to have seen a coin drawer or door to be able to service without pulling entire machine off of base. Always a chance of dropping.

Still would recommend.

 

[T BIRD]

I agree Don.  It needs a easily accessible coin tray.  Also........when I transport these machines in my car?  At the point where the weight of the base is on the floor of my car as the machine is being driven to location laying down in the car, the base at that point bends and is dented when I stand it up at the location. And the paint at that point cracks where the dent is. I would have to transport with the base off.  No one else notices that problem? I would like to hear some feedback from DI machine owners.

[Vendingguy]

  I have not had that issue at all Johnny, but, then I don't lay the machine down either.  My sporty mini van has enough room for it to stand up straight, and I just tie it up so it don't move around.....

[Beer980]

caserri have you tried the wheel in your Seaga's yet to see if it will fit?

[Smiley]

What kind of wheel is the Dentyne Ice machine using? Does anyone have a picture of the inside of the machine?

[caserri]

Smiley,

Unless someone beats me to it I will put up a couple pics in a few minutes.

Steve

[caserri]

Here you go smiley,

Wheel with a piece of gum. They vend out in this fashion 2 deep.

Mech hidden behind enclosed chute.

Steve

[Smiley]

Thank you. Very interesing. I would think that some  of the time it would only vend 1 piece depending on how the gum fell.

[gum_father]

Yes, it will vend 1 piece quite often.

 

John

[Lucero]

Thank you. Very interesing. I would think that some  of the time it would only vend 1 piece depending on how the gum fell.

That would be my guess too, Smiley.  Steve from superpro says that it's a consistent 2-3 pieces per-vend though. 

[Vendingguy]

I have not seen the Dentyne Ice vend only 1 piece.....Not saying that it does not happen at all, but from the experience I have had with them, it does consistently vend 2-3 pieces all of the time. 

[polecat]

The DI wheel is designed to vend a 2-piece serving. However, at times it may dispense 3 and in rarer cases, 1.  We've vended through several bags and have always averaged 2, so you can still count on that on a per-bag basis for figuring your vend cost and cogs.  We usually see a higher 3 piece vend when there's more gum weight, as pellets will sometimes get squeezed through the springs on the wheel housing. We're experimenting with a fix on this.  

[AmuseStar Vending Co]

The PM Supreme is laid out the same way. The coin mech is behind the chute. 

Kyle