SodaStream Review: Ya Gotta Get One!

We had the opportunity to review one of the coolest kitchen contraptions in the world! It's called a SodaStream and you wouldn't believe how well it works unless you tried it yourself. Here's what I'm talking about:

Right, it looks like it fits right in with the coffee makers on the market...without the plugs!

Immediate Reactions

I must say that the immediate reaction when the huge box arrived was pure excitement from all of the children. I however, am a mean mom. :) I wouldn't let them open it until Daddy arrived home from work. He, of course, was more than willing to assist the children with tearing the box open and start figuring out the contraption. From what I observed, the set-up was fairly easy. Within 5-10 minutes, we had our own homemade soda.

In a Nutshell...

So, here is the SodaStream in a nutshell...put water (you can use tap water or your favorite bottled water) into the water container, stick it into the SodaStream machine, push the carbonation button on top of the machine...release the water container and add a flavor to the water. Viola! Your very own homemade soda!

Now, here is probably the best part: the SodaStream sodas have a HUGE assortment of flavors to choose from and they are more "nutritious" than regular soda. Here's a chart from the SodaStream website to give you an idea of some of the flavors and the nutritional info: 

Come up With Your Own Ideas

We've got a secret to share, too. You can carbonate Kool-Aid and it's your very own concoction of soda. My husband concocted some mixture of Kool-Aid that turned GREEN...he called it "Shrek" Kool-Aid and the kids went nuts carbonating it. I'm sure that we will come up with more fantastic creative ideas as time goes on...

We were sent about six different flavors to try out along with the SodaStream and were excited when we realized that there were a ton more to choose from, including regular flavors, diet flavors, energy drinks, sparkling naturals, sparkling teas and My Water Flavor for lighter, sparkling water.

Not many days have gone by without the kids calling out, "Mom! Can we make some soda?" And, I get to give them some chores or something extra to do to "earn" the soda. :)

What's the Catch?

The are two "cons" that I can come up with: one is the fact that you have to purchase the carbonators (they start at $29.99) to continue to make soda with the SodaStream. Of course, one lasts a very long time; I would say that one carbonator lasts about two months in our house - and I would guess that one would last much longer in a house with less than 8 people who are addicted to carbonated drinks. You can take the used carbonator back to a store like Bed, Bath & Beyond, JC Penney's, Macy's or the Bon Ton. You can visit this page to see the retailers that carry SodaStream products.

Oh, yeah, and you have to buy the flavoring to add to the water, but honestly, one bottle of flavoring is $4.99 to $9.99 and all you need for a whole 1 liter container of soda is a cap-full. So, even the flavors last a while. If I had to take a guess, I would say that one bottle of flavor can make about 10-15 1 liter bottles of soda and maybe even more, but we like ours sweeeeeet and thick. But, you're going to buy drinks - and soda - anyways, right?

The other "con" is the fact that the SodaStream costs anywhere between $79.95 and $199.95, depending on the type of water bottles that you prefer to use and the construction of the machine. The most expensive one is stainless steel.

But, for you coffee drinkers...how much do you spend on coffee makers and coffee? And, how much do you spend on soda at the store? I think I made my point...

Great for Gifts!

My husband mentioned that the SodaStream would be the perfect gift for people who already "have everything". You know, those people that you struggle to figure out something to buy for on Christmas or other special occasions during the year (weddings?)...only, these people have everything you can possibly imagine, so it's really difficult to get them anything. So, you start looking at gift baskets and...Then enters the SodaStream! The perfect gift for people who have everything!

Have You Figured It Out Yet?

If you haven't figured it out yet, we LOVE our SodaStream!






I received a SodaStream, a carbonator and some SodaStream flavors in order to perform this review. I did not receive compensation for this post. All opinions are those of my own and my family's.