Gear Patrol

SodaStream teams up with the Korean electronics giant to integrate their automatic sparkling water dispenser inside the Samsung RF31FMESBSR 36-inch Four-Door Refrigerator.

Ask any coffee aficionado about the best method for brewing a cup and they’ll rifle off one of several manual techniques. That’s because doing it yourself is far more precise than your average Mr. Sloppy in terms of water temperature and distribution, which are key for the proper extraction of coffee bean oils. Behmor’s Brazen…

The plastic pitcher currently filtering water in your fridge is a far greener way to stay hydrated than pounding down bottles, but it stills leaves plenty to be desired — both in terms of form and function. Its tupperware aesthetic isn’t exactly ready for the bright lights of the dinner table, and if you fill…

Even if you’ve got ample counter space in your kitchen, pile on a bevy of appliances, and your fat cup’a joe is elbowing in for some premium real estate next to your dish rack and your collection of Major League beer steins. Innovative but simple, Princess Compact4All Appliances (~$52) can return much needed space to…

Are you having trouble getting a rez at WD50? Did your connections at elBulli or The Fat Duck across the pond fail to pan out? Well, you could own kitchen into an experimental food lab this weekend with the Cuisine R – Evolution Molecular Gastronomy Set ($60). Yes, with some time and a little experimentation,…

Like a lot of discoveries on Quirky, we’ve filed this away under “unnecessary, but cool”. The Stem ($5) is the latest bit of esoterica from the online incubator, and its design and purpose are both simple, straightforward and a bit ingenious: plug the plastic stem (see what they did there?) into your citrus du jour,…

Spoons, forks and knives, have admirably served western eaters well for centuries — but that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for innovation. Following in the prestigious footsteps of the spork, the product think tank at Quirky has devised a new eating utensil that combines the shoveling benefits of a spoon with the spreading skills of…

Sous-vide (pronounced soo-veed) is a rather nerdy, but effective cooking submovement in the world of haute cuisine. The term literally translates to “under vacuum” in french, and involves sealing food in airtight plastic bags which are then placed in a precisely maintained hot water bath for extended periods of time. Typically the water temperatures are…

DeLonghi’s new 12-cup food processor with blender ($300) is designed to combat the kitchen gadget sprawl that plagues many yuppie households. Thanks to a dual-drive motor system, the die cast metal base unit supports speed variations found on most blenders and food processors. With that power issue out of the way, users just have to…

Typically we avoid covering anything that could anchor a 45 minute infomercial at 4:00 a.m. Based on your response to the King Arthur mini donut maker last spring, though, we had to share this automatic mini donut factory ($180) — which takes a vastly improved assembly line approach to creating the addictive breakfast staple. Simply…

There’s nothing groundbreaking about snow cones. They’re just shaved ice topped with colored syrup. Still, shaving ice at home isn’t the easiest task in the world. That’s why we had to share Nostalgia Electric’s Retro Series Snow-Cone Machines ($45). The enterprising kids on our block may put a price on our heads for spilling the…

We love camping as much as the next guy, but there’s no reason why the consumption of one of the world’s greatest deserts should be restricted to just jaunts in the woods. Enter the S’More To Love STL-600 S’More Maker ($15). Up to six stacks of marshmallow, chocolate and graham crackers can be locked-down securely…

Kitchen scales aren’t critical for all cooks, but they come in handy for those who prefer to count salt grains pre-spinkle. The Caso X3 kitchen scale ($45) takes an interesting design approach to the typically boring product category. As a scale, it can weigh up to 6.6 pounds in 0.03 oz increments — meaning it’s…

Those with dish washers can just ignore this post since your existence is one of privilege. Other readers who deal with the pain of hand-washing out of a lack of space or funds though should listen up. We know its hard to get excited about a dish rack — but eliminating the need to hand…

Draught beer is the ultimate party beverage. But let’s face it, unless you’ve got fraternity pledges to do the heavy lifting, kegs are an enormous pain. Mini kegs are the tiny answer to this problem, but dispensing these bad boys properly can seem as troublesome as dealing with a whole keg. That’s where EdgeStar ($160)…

We have all tried (and failed) to create iced coffee by brewing a pot, and immediately pouring it over a glass of ice. A true glass of iced coffee however takes time, patience, and effort. Or at least that’s what we thought before discovering the Fretta v60 Ice Coffee Maker ($33), which effortlessly brews a…

While the word grill typical inspires visions like this in our head, there’s something to be said for having an electric version on standby just in case. They’re also a great appliance for those short on space who want an alternative to broiling or pan frying. The Breville Smart Grill ($310) is a good option…

Hand mixers may not be on the top of your must own kitchen gadget list, but their main benefit over that aircraft carrier KitchenAid Stand Mixer you have prominently docked on your counter is that they allow you to bring the power to the place where you need it rather than transferring ingredients to the…

All of this talk of glorious, French-pressed coffee got me thirsty to thinking. Sure, boiling water is a pretty simple task, but what simple task hasn’t been made better by the advent of a wonderful gadget to perform it for you. Wheras I love a nice stove-top kettle as much as the next guy, I’m…

Let’s face it, there is an entire industry dedicated to producing highly specialized (and some would argue pointless) kitchen gadgets. This industry exists because in the mid 90s the kitchen became The Place to deck out in the home, and Williams Sonoma, Crate and Barrel, Pottery Barn, etc. needed shiny stainless steel things to line…

The idea of juicers sounds like more of a pain than it’s worth, but have you ever had fresh squeezed orange juice? It’s outstanding. The L-Press’ brings on an entirely new look and style to the citrus juicer with it’s appropriately named L-shape juicer. Just get yourself some nice oranges, chill them in the fridge…

Make delicious shaved ice drinks with our fully programmable Ultimate Professional Drink Maker. The secret is in the Revolution ™ Portion System, which counts how many times the agitator passes the shaver blade and then releases just the right amount of ice to mix and blend with the liquids. Create tasty tropical drinks year-round with…