Drinkmate

Let me get this out of the way. I kind of love this thing.

Yes, I'll be objective, but ... I've been using the Drinkmate just about every day since I got it. And I don't see any sign of stopping.

The Drinkmate is a product that carbonates water, just like all those other products that carbonate water. But the big difference is that the manufacturer says you can use this device to carbonate things other than water. In fact, they say you can use it to carbonate pretty much anything, as long as it isn't "pulpy." I guess that means you'll need to use orange juice without pulp.

I've mostly been using it to carbonate water with ginger flavoring in it. It's refreshing and crisp and not sweet. I'm not a huge fan of super-sweet drinks most of the time, so this is perfect for me.

It uses a large 60-liter carbonation tank rather than the single-use little cartridges. It comes with a smaller 3-ounce tank, but the larger ones are available in stores, or from Amazon. I actually found them at my local Ace Hardware, so that's really convenient.

This thing is easy to use - just press the button on top to send carbonation into the liquid. When it's at capacity, you hear it hiss a bit. Or you can make your drink less carbonated, if you prefer.

There's a screw-on top that you can use to store the bottle in the fridge. I usually end up drinking it all in a short time, so I really don't know how long the carbonation lasts. I'd guess you wouldn't have any reason to make it in advance though, since it's so quick to make a batch.

Who's it for: People who like fizzy drinks but maybe don't want all the sugar. Or folks who want to create their own flavors or have fizzy water for cocktails.

Pros: It's easy to use, doesn't require power. Not huge. You can buy a spare fizz infuser, so if you lose it or your dog chews it, it's not tragic.

Cons: The 60-liter gas canisters aren't super cheap - probably less expensive than soda, but still not super-cheap.

Wishes: Spare bottles are about $20 for two, which is kind of spendy.

Source: I received this from the manufacturer for the purpose of a review.