Oh yes, quite popular here in the US. There are two kinds, really - the ones the post is about are in the door, so you don't even have to open the door to get ice, which you'd think would appeal to people trying to save energy. The other kind make ice and dump it into a tray in the freezer, and you have to open the freezer door or drawer to use it.
We have the latter, and we use enough ice that we keep up with it - it doesn't fill up and shut off or anything like that. I can use ice cube trays but I prefer my ice maker. In fact when we bought the house, it wasn't hooked up at all, because the previous owners had a dedicated ice maker in the garage that they used that they took with them. I made the effort to get it working pretty quickly after we moved in.
Yeah I was amazed by those when I visited the us. They are quite energy inefficient, but feel like decadence.
Then again, I figured the amount was by design. You guys use a lot of ice in everything. Like this big soda cups are at least half full of ice. Where I'm from there's two to three cubes per glass.
Well, to comment on this take, I would like to mention that in America (at least) ice makers in the fridge (either freezer or dispenser in freezer door) have been an unavoidable option when purchasing new appliances for about ~20 years. Even used ones in that timeframe mostly have this feature. Buying fridges over 20yrs old is.. not recommended
I use an excessive amount of ice for my water, and only use 3 to 4 × 14 cube trays a day. Bear in mind that I have a 64oz thermal mug that I use for water, and I fill it 2-3 times a day in the winter, and 3-4 times a day in the summer. I've been checked for diabetes and don't have it, I just sweat excessively. I'm also 6'3"/192cm tall and weigh around 220 to 230 lbs so I need a bit more water than about 92% of the population.
Are you making smoothies or iced coffee? I can't imagine using 8 trays of ice per day.
I live with someone who also does that, and also does make ice coffee, and it's in Arizona. Plus I have this nice insulated bong with a big chamber for ice water...