Ice Check: The app that tells you when a McDonald’s ice cream machine is broken

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We’ve all been there. When the craving for a McFlurry or milkshake strikes, only to discover that, once again, the ice cream machine at McDonald’s is broken.

Now though, thanks to the launch of a new app, you’ll never have to take that gamble again.

The aptly named Ice Check allows users to search for nearby McDonald’s restaurants while also revealing which of those locations has a working ice cream machine.

Based on community feedback, the app – which officially launched back in April – allows users to change the restaurant’s status to either ‘on’ or ‘off’ depending on whether or not its ice cream machine is in service.

If it is the location’s icon will appear pink, but if it’s not working it will appear grey.

Created by writer Raina McLeod, Ice Check was designed after she experienced the disappointment of one of McDonald’s machine’s not working, just when she got the urge for a soft-serve.

“I came up with the idea for the app around a year ago, after a late night Oreo McFlurry craving went unfulfilled due to the ice cream machine being down,” she told Buzzfeed.

Unfortunately though, UK McFlurry fans are going to have to wait a little longer before they can completely avoid an ice cream anti-climax.

This is because there are currently only McDonald's restaurant locations listed in the U.S.

However McLeod has confirmed that restaurants in the UK and Canada will be added “in the next update”, she told Metro.