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The best soda maker
By Anna Perling, Dorie Chevlen and Jamie Wiebe This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter. When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, Wirecutter and Engadget may earn affiliate commission. Read the full guide to soda makers. To elevate water from a flat biological necessity to a fun, bubbly treat, your best option—environmentally and financially—is a home soda maker. Since 2015, we've spent over 200 hours researching and testing 14 models (plus our own DIY version), and after drinking gallons of seltzer, we think the easy-to-use SodaStream Fizzi OneTouch makes some of the fizziest, tastiest sparkling water. For years, SodaStream has dominated the world of home soda makers. After looking for any other worthy competitors, we've found that the company still makes machines that work better than any other store-bought option we've encountered. We think the Fizzi OneTouch is the best of SodaStream's available offerings due to its easy-to-control fizzing mechanism and sleek design. If the SodaStream Fizzi OneTouch is unavailable, the Fizzi makes a good alternative. It made equally bubbly water in our tests, and its bottles are just as easy to insert. However, unlike the OneTouch, the Fizzi isn't automated and provides no indication of fizz level. As a result, it can be hard to tell how much you've fizzed, which makes it possible to accidentally over-carbonate and cause the bottle to overflow. The iDrink Drinkmate is a great option if you want to experiment with carbonating other drinks in addition to water. In our tests, it successfully carbonated rosé and mocktails. Carbonating anything besides water in SodaStream machines, in contrast, will void your warranty.
Pepsi is making a SodaStream-like sparkling water station
Now that Pepsi owns SodaStream, it's trying its hand at a make-your-own-drink station -- though it's not for the company's usual sugar-laden fare. The company has unveiled a water dispenser system that lets you create your own zero-calorie beverage. A touchscreen interface lets you make it as carbonated as you like, choose the flavor (including its strength) and dial in the temperature. You could get a strong, cold raspberry lime drink when you want something punchy, or plain uncarbonated water if you're not feeling adventurous.
Pepsi buys SodaStream for a future beyond cola
Traditional soda brands are facing tough times right now, as consumers move away from sugary soft drinks to healthier, low-cal options. Pepsi has already tried to diversify away from its fizzy cola roots with Aquafina water, and more recently, sparkling water brand Bubly -- now it's planning on reaching customers in their homes with the acquisition of at-home carbonated drink-maker SodaStream.
SodaStream’s new concentrate lets you mix your own champagne
SodaStream has been inching its way into the adult beverage scene for a little while now and today the company announced that it's launching its take on champagne. Sparkling Gold is a new concentrate from SodaStream that supposedly tastes like a fruity Riesling and when mixed by the recommended one part concentrate to five parts sparkling water, it contains 10 percent alcohol by volume. Each bottle has enough concentrate for up to 12 glasses of DIY sparkling wine.
SodaStream recalls 51,000 bottles because they might explode
Your greatest SodaStream fears have been realized: tens of thousands of SodaStream's plastic bottles may not be able to withstand quite as much pressure as the company thought, causing the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission to issue a recall because they pose an injury risk to carbonation-happy consumers. Some 51,000 bottles sold in the US and another 7,600 bottles sold in Canada are included in the recall because they could potentially explode under pressure -- either while pumping them full of CO2 or simply by shaking a full, carbonated bottle.
SodaStream will replace some obsolete Keurig Kolds for free
Now that your Keurig Kold machine is suddenly obsolete, SodaStream is stepping up to replace that fizzy, carbonated hole in your life. The company is offering a free Fountain Jet sparkling water maker -- either out of the goodness of their hearts or because they've got a bunch of old stock to unload -- to anyone affected by the tragic and sudden closure of Keurig's pod-based soda efforts.
Yup, there's a Sodastream for cocktails
Our modern consumer age hasn't been kind to SodaStream, since bottles of soda are cheap enough that you don't need to make your own at home. Thankfully, the company has finally worked out that cola-addicted teens aren't its future customers, but drunk adults who want something fancy for cocktail parties. That's why the firm has teamed up with name-brand designer Yves Behar (he's previously designed the SodaStream Source) to develop the SodaStream Mix, which is one part CO2 injector and one part internet of things device. You see, Mix can't be a buzzy new gadget unless it's connected to the cloud (it is), and the company has also baked in Bluetooth and app compatibility as well.
Keurig's soda machine will let you make Dr. Pepper drinks
Keurig just got a big edge over SodaStream in the make-it-yourself beverage wars. The normally coffee-focused company has reached an exclusive deal that will let you make some of the Dr. Pepper Snapple group's drinks in its upcoming Keurig Cold machine, which arrives this fall. There's no mention of the exact brands, but it wouldn't be surprising if you get pod-based versions of big names besides Dr. Pepper or Snapple, like Canada Dry and Crush. Between this and a pact last year with Coca-Cola, about the only recognizable soft drinks you won't make with Keurig's machine are from Pepsi, which has been testing versions of its beverages with SodaStream. It's too soon to know if these on-demand versions of major drinks will taste like the real thing, but you at least won't have to settle for generic recipes when making fizzy liquids at home. [Image credit: Frankieleon, Flickr]
