Kids obviously won't accept that as an alternative, though, as what they're really after is an opportunity to show off owning the Air Up brand to their peers, and to get excited about trying out the snazzy flavours. Strawberry-Balsamic, Wild Berry, Raspberry-Lemon, Orange-Passionfruit, Iced Coffee, Orange-Vanilla, Basil-Lemon, Sweet Coconut, Guava, Watermelon, Mango Passion Fruit, Elderflower

It also got me drinking more water for the week I used it, although that probably has more to do with my needing to write this article than any sudden strong desire to drink more water. My favourites were the Orange-Vanilla and the Raspberry-Lemon. In both cases, one of the flavours was more dominant than the other (orange and lemon, respectively), but they gave my water a pleasant citrusy zing, and I enjoyed sipping away at those. Weight: We found the plastic Air Up bottle to be lightweight, but the stainless steel version is on the heavier side. In the Good Housekeeping Institute Kitchen Appliances and Innovation Lab, we've tested countless water bottles over the years. We evaluate them for performance, durability and ease of use. In addition to Lab tests, we send water bottles to consumers to get their opinions on how the water bottles fare in the real world. a 650ml tritan plastic bottle, available in five colours (charcoal grey, ocean blue, hot pink, sunset purple and royal blue)Air Up was founded by Lena Jüngst and Tim Jäger, two German university students who, during their studies, read Neurogastronomy: How the Brain Creates Flavor and Why It Matters, a book by neuroscientist Gordon M. Shepherd that posits that the sense of smell is a more powerful component of flavor than previously thought. A key consideration is the premium you pay to get on board with this craze. Not only are the bottles more expensive to buy than competitor brands such as Chillys, but there's also the ongoing cost of the Air Up Pods. Without a pod attached, the bottle doesn't work - you'll need to keep an empty pod attached if you just want to use it as a normal water bottle. Our experts in the Good Housekeeping Institute Kitchen Appliances and Innovation Lab tested the Air Up to evaluate the performance of the pods as well as to assess the bottle's durability and ease of use. Flavour preference differs from person to person. I found the cherry flavour a little too much, with an odour more akin to cherry-flavoured sweets. Strawberry and lemongrass, on the other hand, was right up my street, as were the yuzu and rosemary pods. My daughter, on the other hand, was particularly taken with the kola flavour, the more artificial and sweet taste appealing to her. When you sip from Air up, scent-flavored air bubbles travel through the straw into your mouth which produces a bubbling sound and means it’s working. As the scent-flavored air bubbles rise it is perceived as taste.

Plus, there’s a lot less plastic in an Air Up pod compared to buying water in plastic bottles. Pods and their transparent cases go in plastic recycling, but the pod pouches can’t currently be recycled, as they have a layer of aluminium; Air Up says it plans to change the pouch into a recyclable mono-material in the future. Flavour I was surprised at just how disappointing I found the Watermelon, Peach and Wild Berry flavours. They tasted incredibly synthetic to me – more like cheap sweets than fruit. There’s enough variety in pods to find a flavour that will suit you or your kids, delivering a gentle hint of flavour without any additives or sugars. Whether you’ve got kids that won’t drink much water or you just like a bit more flavour to your drink, the Air Up system is excellent. Design and pods To me, Air Up is really an alternative to flavouring your water with bits of fruit. I don't know how disposable plastic pods, which can be recycled a maximum of two or three times (as with all recyclable plastics), can possibly be better than using fruit, which you can eat or put in your compost bin once you've used it to flavour your water.

That said, Air Up is not for everyone, especially those who drink a lot of water and need a larger water bottle capacity (the plastic version holds 22 ounces while the stainless steel version holds 28 ounces). One tester said, "I wish it were available in different sizes, so I didn't have to refill it so often." When you attach an Air Up Pod to the top of your Air Up bottle, the pod releases a scent as you drink, giving you the impression that the water is flavoured when it hasn't actually had anything added to it. According to Air Up, the flavorings in the pods are made from natural flavors, extracted from plants, fruits and spices. The company noted that specific details that "relate to Air Up's [intellectual property] are proprietary." If you've seen the Air Up water bottle on social media, you may already know that it's a water bottle that utilizes flavor pods to enhance the taste of your water without actually adding any flavoring to the water itself. The pods are placed on the water bottle and when you take a sip, the flavored air bubbles travel through your mouth to your nose where your brain interprets it as flavor.

Comfort: We found the mouthpiece to be more comfortable than other water bottles we've tested with soft silicone material, but we did note that you had to sip a little harder on the water bottle to get enough water compared to competitors. And the straw was difficult to remove and to reattach as well. "I wish the straw were easier to put on the bottle," said one consumer tester. "I struggle to get it on just right every single time, and then I can't screw on the cap." Fill your water bottle with water to the capacity line, then attach the mouthpiece with the straw to the bottle. The bottle also makes quite a noisy slurping sound when you drink from it with the Air Pod engaged. According to Air Up this is intentional, but I can't imagine how infuriating it must be for a teacher to have 30 of these things being slurped in their classroom. It's probably a good thing I'm not a teacher.Smell and taste are linked. It’s the reason why things like oranges and strawberries taste how they smell. Using this link, the Air Up system uses scented pods to add flavour to water without actually adding anything to it.