Activate Drinks

Product Type:Water: Enhanced; Container: 16 oz vitamin PET
BevNET Review: The Antioxidant variety of Activate is a pleasant tasting one, which is certainly something that'’s important regardless of the product’'s value proposition. In this case, the stevia sweetened berry flavor is light and tangy, with just the right amount of sweetness to satisfy the palate. Like the other varieties, this product’'s flavor and nutrients are stored in the cap, which requires ample twisting and shaking for it to be thoroughly mixed. In our tests, not shaking the product sufficiently resulted in bright-colored liquid dripping from the cap. Functionally, the product contains 1000mg of polyphenols, tea catechins, EGCG, acai extract, and pomegranate extract. Aside from comparing the polyphenol content to cups of green tea, the benefits of these ingredients aren'’t able to be easily articulated on the back of the label. So, it’s probably smart that they'’ve just listed what’'s in it, rather than making claims about what the benefits might possibly be. And last, but not least, the product has a very clean and polished look to it. This not only helps catch the eye, but also adds a sense of credibility to the product. Definitely worth a try.

Product Type:Water: Enhanced; Container: 16 oz vitamin PET
BevNET Review: Also known as Activate’'s “Energy” formulation, this Lemon Lime flavored beverage is enhanced with goji berry extract, yerba mate extract, natural caffeine, and B vitamins (the B vitamins are dispensed from the cap – we’ll get to that soon). It’'s sweetened with stevia, which keeps the calories at bay and allows the product to label itself as “naturally sweetened.” From a flavor point of view, it definitely tastes like a functional product, with a lemon lime flavor that’s similar in style to what you'’d expect from a sports drink. There'’s a decent amount of stevia flavor left behind, but it'’s no worse than any other diet product. Really though, this drink is about bioavailability of nutrients, which brings us to the cap-dispensed nutrients. While some of it is definitely gimmicky (it also dispenses coloring), Activate is attempting to spread the word about the fact that nutrients can disappear from bottled beverages. Their solution, of course, being to keep it in an air tight cap. It’s pretty easy to figure out the cap, although there'’s a large graphic on the label in case you can’'t figure it out. However, the issue remains that consumer education is going to be required about the deterioration of vitamins in water. Regardless, they’'ve made this product look quite slick – and the taste is pretty enjoyable, too. So, even if consumer education takes a while (and we'’re sure it will), we think that the novelty factor and enjoyment of the product will be sufficient for now.

Product Type:Water: Enhanced; Container: 16 oz vitamin PET
BevNET Review: The Orange variety of Activate is the “Immunity” blend, which means that it’s fortified with vitamin C, zinc, and Echinacea. Like the rest of the Activate varieties, it features a cap dispensing technology that keeps the functional ingredients separate from the liquid until the consumer is ready to drink the product. After turning the cap, the product is ready to drink within a few seconds. As far as the drinking experience is concerned, it’s not bad, at least as far as diet drinks are concerned. There’s a light orange flavor, but also a pretty strong note of sweetener flavor (they use stevia), so it’s definitely not a product that someone is going to consume for flavor alone. On the exterior of the bottle, the clear label features bright graphical elements and easy to read text. It’s the clear sign of an experienced package designer, giving the product a credible feeling which helps reinforce the product’s intended functionality. Overall, we like the package a lot – it’s one of the best cap dispensed products we’ve seen so far – but the flavor leaves something to be desired. Improving upon that would make this a much more enjoyable drink.

Product Type:Water: Enhanced; Container: 16 oz vitamin PET
BevNET Review: Of the all Activate flavors that we sampled, this was our favorite as far as taste is concerned. That’'s the result of a good choice of flavor to go with the stevia-sweetened mixture, keeping the aftertaste at bay and delivering a fruit flavor that’'s pleasing to the palate. From a functional point of view, this one is the “Vitamin” variety, which, as the name implies, means that the product is fortified with vitamins. In this case, they’'ve given the product 100 percent RDA of 5 essential vitamins, including A, D, E, C, and B vitamins. They’'ve also added pomegranate extract, although the benefit of this isn'’t explained on the label (antioxidants, we assume). Packaging is a square shaped 16 oz. plastic bottle with raised water droplets (which are the Activate logo) around the neck. It'’s a clean and polished presentation, complete with easy to understand instructional text on the back of the bottle. However, we a’re not sure how “Vitamin”, which, unlike some of the other Activate varieties, isn’'t actually a function, will perform in the marketplace. Still, it'’s a nice tasting product and the function and appearance of the cap are sure to catch some eyes.