Okay from the goosebumbs title yes this was a horror story that came out with a good ending so get your popcorn. Bough this thing for my wife, along with the warranty (dont buy that the machine comes with 2 gear warrenty), and plugged it all in. Went to make our first liter and boom! Nothing happened. The machine was dead on arrival. So I callef Soda Stream and against my opinion the first sent me a new canister to see if that worked... shocker it didnt. So I callef again and had to do an annoying facetime thing with their cuatomer service rep to "mAKe SUrE it WorKS".. aftet that tedious task. They sent me a new Soda Stream that... *drum roll* actually works. When working the producy is great but realistically makes 30ish liters so be aware of that. Your welcome for my reveiw.The SodaStream Fizzi One Touch is a must for those who love sparkling water. Quick and easy to use, it allows you to customize the amount of sparkling bubbles that you enjoy. Once the carbonating cylinder is inserted and the machine is plugged in, just fill the specialized carbonating bottle with cold tap water and press the button for your desred fizz. It's that simple. For those who prefer flavored beverages, different flavors are sold separately. It makes a great gift for those who enjoy carbonated water.I enjoy seltzer water and would give it 5 stars except that it had stopped working twice when I don't use it for a while. At first I thought the the carbonating canister was empty but when checked it, I found the canister still had plenty of CO2. After wiggling it back into place, I was back in business. That has been the only mishap.Not exactly sure what I was expecting, but I like fizzy waters so thought I would give it a try. Was surprised how easy it was to use straight from the box....even without reading the instructions.The water.....its interesting - I like fizzy water so went straight for the maximum mode and pressed the appropriate button....I was not disappointed the water came off the machine very fizzy, almost like freshly opened Perrier water, but after a few minutes (literally 2-3) in the glass left untouched it was much more like pellegrino water, the bubbles had reduced in size and the number was notably less. Leave it another 5-10 minutes and there were no noticeable bubbles but when talking a mouthful a tingle could be detected in the mouth from what must be minute bubbles still in the water.Summing up, this works when you want to create fizzy water but dont expect the bubbles to last - drink it reasonable quickly if you want that pallet cleansing bubbly drink, and dont expect any bubbles to last beyond 20 minutesUPDATE.... As I have become more familiar with the unit I decided I would add some additional thoughts/ advice.There is a distinct difference between when the CO2 cartridge is new to when it has been used a number of times. My unit has three buttons on the top. When the cartridge is new if I press the center button, the CO2 is delivered as expected in a number of short bursts, but on about the 4th or 5th burst you can hear excess gas being sent to air ... I assume this is a safety function. Once the bottle is removed I can confirm the the water is well carbonated .... however after a few uses, maybe ten, the additional gas is no longer sent to air and the water is not quiet as fizzy. However if at this point you change to pressing the button that delivers most gas, the extra gas can be heard venting towards the end of the process. Bottom line, as the pressure drops in the co2 cylinder dont expect consistent performance from the same button. Furthermore, when the cylinder gets towards its end you CANNOT get good fizzy water..result you change the cylinder while there is still CO2 left, so increases cost of water.All this being said, I still like the fact that I get bubbly water whenever I want without have to stock from grocery.Hope this was helpful to somebodyYou should really analyze why you are getting this before you purchase it. Cost effectiveness if you are a regular soda drinker has been discussed on several sites, so I'll leave that at the basics.For weight loss, depends on your level of craving and how much taste you are willing to give up.For recycling, it can't be beat...ish. LOL I address all these below.I've had two days with this and I've already found out how to ALMOST make a perfect Cherry Coke using it. I'm a Coke addict (Cherry.) I clear usually anywhere from two-four Liters a day, needless to say, it's an issue. (And a good deal of my weight problems as well.)I got this hoping that it would help with my addiction and because of the reduced sugar (via the addition of Sucralose and Ace K) to help with some weight loss as well.I want comments about the machine and Syrup together here, for a complete breakdown. I got the four pack of Cherry 'Coke' syrup. You need to understand that it isn't just the syrup that makes a Coke...it's the carbonation also. And Coke, as it turns out, is ridiculously carbonated. I knew the one setting wouldn't be enough, I went straight to the two-setting. Not knowing exactly how it worked (the instruction sheet that comes with it is crap) I accidentally hit it twice. Then I tried the third setting. None of these provided the necessary carbonation levels for a standard Coca-Cola imitation beverage.So I went max setting twice. And that's how I found the proper carbonation level for a proper Coke imitation.(The carbonation also keeps longest in this way.) Unless you find a certain, shall we say, CO2 trick, you will be spending a LOT more on CO2 Tanks.Flavoring (or as they say in the UK, Flavouring). To get to the best of the off-brands, I had to use 1.5 the recommended syrup amount. A little over that and you're getting much closer to the 'Real Deal.' Needless to say, however, for most, that is CLOYINGLY sweet. If you like, however, say good 'ol Texas Sweet Tea, you'll be fine. But keep in mind, that clearly adds to the expense, and while the bottles are smaller, there will still be waste, combined with the carbon footprint of having them sent from Israel.My advice if you've already purchased your syrup; save the container for homebrew recipes. Whatever your preference, you should be able to find a copycat recipe to suit your tastes. My advice, take the copycat and get it to perfection, then start seeing where you can tweak to still keep the flavor, but reduce the ridiculous amounts of sugars and such. It will be cheaper by far, at any rate. (But I haven't done a price breakdown to prove this, mind you.)This isn't to say that the machine is useless. You can make great flavored drinks with a moderate amount of carbonation and be just happy with them. You can use it for Tonic Water, Club Soda, Italian Sodas, and the best of the off-brands when it comes to pop.But if you're looking for the perfect "Real Deal" (with ANY of the popular flavors) you'll need to learn the cost-saving tricks to justify the purchase. If you want to be eco-friendly and still have your favorite softdrink, this will offset that a little. More if you're a heavier pop drinker as I am. (And if you want the REAL taste, you'll likely have to turn to a copycat recipe anyway.)If you're looking to lose-weight with a fun variety of drinks that may or may not taste like the original, this is the best purchase, as sugar-free flavored drinks that taste good are impossible to buy in the stores. Even the manufacturers can't figure out how to make their own drinks sugar-free and still taste like the original. (Closest contender for this is Diet Dr. Pepper, which has that 'almost there' Dr. Pepper full flavor.) You'll have full-control over the amount of sweetness of your drink, and can add any sugar-substitutes as you feel warranted.(For those complaining about the 'aftertaste' of these drinks, I hardly noticed any, which is saying a lot, as I'm very sensitive to aftertastes.)As for me, I'm happy with my investment, and will likely use this a LOT for the foreseeable future. (I gave it four-stars because of NOT being able to carbonate like a store-bought soda without zipping through C02. At the very least, that should have been available on the max setting, pushing it once,) That and the ridiculous lack of comprehensive instructions. One little sheet with very little information. (It's not clear, for example, that you screw in the C02 tank, but not the Carbonator Bottle.) Obviously, when placing the C02 tank, you will realize you have to screw it in, but still. Overall, though, GREAT purchase!! 8DThe carbon canisters are where the real costs of this item shows up. Even using refills at $22 a pop it can cost almost $500 a year to feed this thing. That is if you use it every day. You can buy diet cola at a buck for two litres. If you drink a litre a day that costs about $180 a year. Sodastream costs about 2.7 times as much as buying pop and you do not have to hunt for retail canister replacement outlets. Some sellers charge twice3 aw much as using the exchange canister outlets. $1,000 a year for sparkled water? On the plus side, the unit works as advertised. It better!Very easy to use; three carbonation choices, but the "60L" CO2 canister lasted maybe 20L of medium carbonated water.Definitely, something useful to have if you drink carbonated drinks often (once a day - a few times per week). The options/levels of carbonation are amazing, the highest level of carbonation is so good, it's like drinking Canada Dry type of "spicy", maybe even more "spicy". The carbonation cycle takes merely 10 seconds max, so very fast and efficient. However, one thing to note, is that I feel as though the duration of carbonation is quite short-lived. But other than that this product is amazing!I am using it at least twice a day since I purchased it and just love it. nSome flavours are better than there. So far I am leaning to the Sodastream suit flavours but that is personal preference. I like this unit since I can select the amount of bubbles.This wee miracle (the three button model) saves about a half dozen bottles and a half dozen cans a day every day. Works a dream.