Water bottles are no longer just vessels for the health necessity that is H2O — they’ve become a statement piece expressing the latest trends in hydration. Thanks to the popularity of bottles like the Stanley cup, and the reusable water bottles that’ve come before it (Nalgene, Hydro Flask, CamelBak and more) the red carpet has unrolled for a new type of water bottle: the Air Up.
The Air Up is unique in that it’s designed to alter the natural taste of water, but not by flavoring it. Instead, the Air Up activates your sense of taste by adding a scent pod near the nozzle to provide you with a fragrance as you sip your water — a water bottle concept that was born as part of a final project by two German university students. Because smell is so closely linked to our taste (as anyone who’s ever lost their sense of smell will tell you, it can dramatically affect the tasting experience), the Air Up is meant for people who don’t particularly care for the taste of water, are hoping to replace their soda or carbonated beverage with the plain stuff, or who simply are interested in taking a sip of the latest trends coming from the water bottle world.
But concept is different than reality. I tested the Air Up with a selection of its flavor pods to get a taste of what the company is s(m)elling. I also asked my colleague who uses the water bottle what her experience has been like. Here’s what I found.
The Air Up water bottle with an “activated” pod, from the side. When the pod is pushed down or not activated, the thin gray line isn’t be visible and it’ll also be easier to drink out of the bottle. Drinking with an activated pod results in a slurping sound, but that’s what helps deliver the “flavor.”
How the Air Up works
By way of what the company says is its patented Scentaste technology — attaching a pod with scent around the nozzle of your water bottle — you’re tricking your mind into thinking you’re drinking something flavored. This works because your olfactory sense (smelling) is intimately related to taste; in fact, smell makes up the majority of our perception of taste. (If you need an example of this relationship in reverse, try plugging your nose the next time you eat your favorite food.)
Once your pod is activated or nudged in properly, you’ll drink through the straw like normal, which stirs up air and kicks up flavor through your mouth and nose, giving you the illusion that you’re drinking flavored water, without changing the actual composition of the pure stuff you’re actually drinking.
As long as you’re using Air Up, you’ll need to buy replacement pods, which is probably one of the bigger downsides to this water bottle — it can add up cost-wise.
A plastic 1 liter Air Up bottle in the charcoal color. The company is selling Gen2 water bottles in Europe.
Who’s the Air Up for?
The Air Up isn’t for people who are expecting this smell-meets-taste experience to be delicious, and it may not be for people who dislike the taste of artificially sweetened things. People who don’t have a particularly strong sense of smell may also not get a lot out of it. Strictly in terms of sustainability, there are better options out there for water bottles, since you’ll need to continue buying pods as long as you’re using the Air Up.
Basically, people who don’t mind the taste of water and/or aren’t interested in finding a way to drink more of it should save their money. There are cheaper water bottles that deliver the (plain) goods.
People who are down to experiment with the latest technology in water bottles, folks who don’t mind spending a little money to spice up their hydration routine, and people who aren’t thrilled by the taste of water may be good candidates for this water bottle.
Jokes aside about the noises the Air Up makes, and the not-for-everyone “taste” of the pods, the company behind the Air Up makes a good point about homing in on the benefits of plain water, and about the benefit of people getting back to the basics instead of opting for the popular carbonated drink or sweetened beverage. Sugary and/or carbonated beverages aren’t great for your teeth and may work away at the enamel (protective coating) over time, as can adding acidic fruits like lemon to beverages all the time.
Also, hydration is the simplest tool we have at our disposal to boost our health and help our body clear out its waste, regulate its temperature and function more smoothly overall. In the pursuit of better health, we can’t yuck whatever is someone’s yum in getting them there.
