We've often marveled at the new subway station digital markets that are set up in countries like Korea, allowing people to grocery shop with their phones while waiting for the next train and later come home to groceries delivered to their doorstep. Evian is following this movement (in Paris) with their Smart Drop project that lets people order water from the fridge.
How it works
After putting the Smart Drop on your fridge, you turn it on and connect it to your home's WiFi network. Once you are running out of water, use the Smart Drop to select what type of bottled water you'd like delivered (basically the size and type of bottle). You then schedule a date for the water to be delivered and this order is sent out to Evian's home delivery system.
The idea is to help people live more efficiently at home without having to pay a visit to the grocery store and lug home a heavy 24 pack of bottled water.
It's great when brands create products as an extension to help make life easier at home. I'm not a heavy water bottle drinker myself, and usually just go for tap at home. However, the idea of the Smart Drop is interesting and I look forward to that type of thinking being applied to grocery shopping as a whole. Instead of jumping on the computer to order food, you can peek in the fridge, see what you're missing, and place your orders through a magnet on the fridge.
Would you use the Smart Drop if it were brought to the US?
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This idea seems at once convenient and redundant. Do I really need a separate device (however cutely shaped) to order one product? Why not just log onto their website?
You're right, if supermarkets made this then it'd be a lot more popular.
No, thumbs down to making it easier to buy bottled water. I agree it might be useful to connect to a supermarket, but I still like to wander through the produce section myself to see what looks good.
It seems like the places most likely to have this product (developed countries) are the places that least need an alternative to tap water.
disagree with bottled water in a non emergency situation, so a big thumbs down.
I can see why Evian wants to make it easier for people to buy water; in my experience, Paris tap water doesn't taste good at all.
I also hate anything that makes it easier for people to purchase bottled water.
If their water tastes that bad, there are always filter jugs or tap filters. They cause a fraction of the waste.
Big fat thumbs down.
I'm with the others, bottled water in developped countries should not be encouraged. Even in Paris where tap water has a weird taste, but you do get used to it, and like someone else said, you can always use a filter. Bottled water is just wasteful.
Firstly as most people commented already, bottled water is wasteful. But also at least in NY (and parts of NJ) we have Freshdirect, which has an iphone app. So why put a SmartDrop in your house when you can already use your phone to order all groceries, not just water?
I'm jumping on the commenter bandwagon - "Just say NO to bottled water!" (unless you're having an emergency). Seriously - one of my favorite things I own is a 16 ounce glass bottle that says "Tap is Terrific" in a lovely script font. If you don't want to fill it up and/or wash it every day, buy 7 and stock your fridge every Sunday night.
We can get so many personalized, beautiful "permanent' water bottles these days, which mean never having to order or lug bottles again, why don't people just do that?
I agree! One of the greatest advances to civilization is MODERN plumbing. Why lug water into your home at all (whether by you or someone else)? Do we want to squat outside for the bathroom too? Should women stand around the town water pump gossiping every morning while they get their family's daily jug of h20? Enjoy that we live in the 21st century and just turn the faucet on.
The more I think about this, the funnier it is.
Evian creates a magnet that sticks on your fridge and makes it easier for you to order...more Evian. (Not any other bottled water, just Evian). And a website like AT picks it up, and says "It's great when brands create products as an extension to help make life easier at home"?!?
It's great when brands create totally unnecessary products to help us order more of the totally unnecessary products they've already sucked us into buying. Right. LOL.
"It's great when brands create products as an extension to help make life easier at home."
You're kidding, right? You do understand that this doesn't have a thing to do with making you life easier? It has nothing to do with that and everything to do with selling you more crap you don't need. CORPORATIONS ARE NOT YOUR FRIENDS. THEY ARE NOT TRYING TO HELP YOU. THEIR ONLY GOAL IS TO MAKE MONEY OFF YOU.
I like the similar gadgets up there that they didn't write about: the little lemon-shaped button to remind you to buy lemons, and the one to remind you to buy tomatoes, and the one to remind you to buy ... sea urchins?
Waste of money, time, and resources.
So wasteful. Most bottles from bottled water end up in the trash, in developed countries wher the tap water is perfectly acceptable to drink.
Is this an ad? If so, plugging bottled water is horrifyingly bad -- unhealthy, toxic, and very damaging to our air and water.
The comments on this atrocity are making me feel better about humanity.
Ever hear of Brita or Mavea?
why buy bottled water? do we need something like this in wake of trying to ban bottled water as much as possible?
Agreeing with most other posters...why buy bottled?? Tap water is much more heavily regulated anyway, and it's virtually FREE! And no need to wait for a reorder...
I too have to wonder if this was sponsored?
Sponsored post was my first thought. This device is absurd and paid posts should be labeled.
bottled water = wasteful. drink tap water; it's just fine.
Drinking water imported from France when you live in the US, is fucking ridiculous. No.
What a waste of plastic, water and fossil fuel.
Tap water is perfectly healthy and home carbonization units make dandy fine bubble water.