HidrateSpark Water Tracker Reviews

by Drew926783

It is absolutely absurd that they’d paywall a feature like customizing the LED light colors. After spending $85 dollars for a smart bottle, the fact that they want to ask for even more money for the simple function of changing the colors? There’s no extra development required, no extra overhead to provide the feature. They are just charging for the sake of making more money off of an already expensive purchase. Next thing you know there will be a subscription model for the thing. Just sickening. It’s a water bottle for heavens sake. Why leave your early-adoption customers with a poor impression by even considering this option? Almost no one will pay for it, literally no one WANTS to pay for it, and almost everyone will be insulted that you’re even trying to make extra money for such a trivial feature. And with how buggy HidrateSparkWaterTracker appears to be from other reviews, it appears to me that youre investing resources into the WRONG thing. Why don’t you work out the bugs that currently exist rather than using resources to make more money off of your customers.

by Ameenakel

The idea for tracking water intake is interesting, though HidrateSparkWaterTracker leaves much to be desired in terms of usability. Menu items are often named in an unclear manner, leaving users guessing as to what they actually mean. Performing simple functions, like changing the color of the lights on the base, are a huge hassle; just this function alone takes multiple seconds to actually register. As a computer engineer myself, I have no idea why it HidrateSparkWaterTracker needs to (seemingly) synchronize with the device itself before registering (and returning responsiveness back to the UI).

Additionally, the biggest and most egregious problem, is that hidrate thinks that they’re building a platform from which to syphon money from its paying users: they offer in app purchases for “options” that a user would consider standard: changing the color of the base of the device. Want to assign a simple color change that’s not part of the basic six color options? That’ll be $5. This is a simple LED controller; I have no idea why the business side of this startup would believe that they should nickel and dime users who have already paid a significant sum for simple cosmetic features. This isn’t a multiplayer game—these are simple functions that shouldn’t be held back for a stupid $5 sum.

As a result, I cannot recommend this device, or HidrateSparkWaterTracker , to any other potential users. Beware and choose wisely with your dollar.

by Scootage81

I long ago gave up on using the sensor stick because it required near daily recalibration to record the full amount of water I drank, despite following the guidelines. HidrateSparkWaterTracker also functions poorly for manually recording water consumption. It seems to fail to record manual additions without or until it finds an internet connection, which seems unnecessary for simply tracking your own consumption. (Do the developers need to be monitoring our water intake?!) It also has an annoying bug where it will sometimes double count the most recent addition and won’t correct itself until you switch to the history tab. The alerts are also wildly unreliable. In theory if you haven’t made suitable progress (probably defined as some percentage of your goal) toward your target for the day, it will send notifications at noon and at 5 p.m. But some days those alerts come and some days they don’t. What’s also annoying is that if you’ve met your goal but it subsequently increases it due to additional activity, it won’t alert you that you need to drink additional water to meet the newly upward-adjusted goal. And the latest kicker is that this morning HidrateSparkWaterTracker has almost completely crapped out. It won’t let me add anything for today and won’t save any updates to previous days.

by Bwilliams2800

Very deceiving that you have to pay an extra 5 bucks to customize colors. I already paid 60 bucks for the bottle then they want 4.99 tor just to pick some colors. My smart home light bulb has millions of color combinations and it’s all included with the cost of the product so it’s disappointing that Hidrate is charging extra. Same thing with my ember Mug, I can use a color wheel to choose any color: When it’s time to replace the bottle things like this is why people shop around. There’s no reason why the company needs to nickel and dime customers through HidrateSparkWaterTracker for buying their product. It makes me think of what else they will try to charge for on the future and if I want to be a repeat customer. Still debating if I want to ship around and return the 2 bottles I just received today. It’s these little features that make the difference and to have to pay for them is frustrating.

Also, even with the pay feature you can only buy 1 color, it’s not even that they let you unlock all the features. Whoever came up with this idea needs to know it’s cheap and terrible, and will only lose customers over time. Unlock the features like your competitors otherwise you’ll start losing customers.

by Calebjames

The idea is great but the design and app are failures. Why would you design a puck which has to be removed to be charged? Why is it so difficult to change the color? Why don’t you show a number percentage for the charge so a consumer can tell when the battery is low or is almost finished charging? Why don’t you notify the user when the battery is low with a push notification? Why don’t you notify the user when the puck is finished charging with a push notification? Why can you only snooze it for 3 hours when most people sleep for 7-8 hours? Why isn’t there a quite hours feature to turn off alerts and lights when you’re in meetings or sleeping? Many missed opportunities. Please share an email address for feedback. I would love to connect with your product director to help capture this feedback and design improvements for HidrateSparkWaterTracker before a competitor tries to enter the space. Hydro flask, Blender Bottle, and Corkicle are right there. Let’s make you guys the best by using your loyal community members help!

by Clkenttttt

When my bottle arrived came with two sets of batteries. The first so it was dead before I ever used it and the second only lasted for a month. The month that I got to use my bottle it was great! Drinking the right amount of water each day was really life-changing for me. I genuinely felt better after just seven days. Unfortunately when I sent in an email explaining that both sets of batteries were dead (they should apparently last for a year) customer service was a real pain to work with. After a lot of back-and-forth they sent me another battery holder and batteries without any instructions. It was easy enough to figure out how to put it all together but a little crazy that it didn’t come already put together and without any instructions. Why make it harder for your customer? Unfortunately that set only lasted two months. The outside of the bottle also has this frosted coating on it which is now rubbed off in patches making the bottle look terrible. At the end of the day when the product worked it was great but it’s a terribly made product that doesn’t last and they have terrible customer service (very condescending).

by CS Teacher

I love the design of the bottle and simplicity of the system. And I would love to give this 5 stars but HidrateSparkWaterTracker responds way too slowly. For example, changing the glow/colors doesn’t really work… I’ll tap a new color and HidrateSparkWaterTracker will register my touch but won’t actually select the new color (I’ll see a gray box around my section but no check mark which actually selects the color)…. I have to quit several times for it too work… it’s a shame because there is a $5 in-app purchase to unlock infinite number of colors beyond the 6 default options; which is ironic because how do you expect me to spend $5 when the free stuff doesn’t work. Bottle glow reminders seems to be hit or miss for me; I don’t actually see the reminders when I expect them too… so maybe some clarity in language for users is the problem not the actual software/tech. There are a lot of water tracking apps out there with beautiful designs and responsiveness, I wish the developers had a look at those for inspiration. I really want to like to his product. Will edit/update my review when changes are made to HidrateSparkWaterTracker .

by Steve 7876

Got the Hidrate for Christmas. I’ve been good at drinking water via a Nalgene for years but have never really been able to track consumption. This solves that issue. The reminders are ok - really just like that I know how much I’ve had each day. Takes a little getting used to - for example waiting after each fill of the bottle for HidrateSparkWaterTracker /bottle to record and be ready to use but it’s only a few seconds.

My 1 request - the battery! I have no way of knowing how much life is left in the battery until it disconnects and I notice HidrateSparkWaterTracker isn’t updating. Why isn’t there a percentage on HidrateSparkWaterTracker to tell battery life or a warning that gets sent for a heads up - “hey be sure to charge your bottle tonight,” for example. That’s my biggest issue thus far.

A dream...I wish Hidrate would make a lid or something that would work with a Nalgene bottle. I have the 21oz Hidrate bottle and I’m constantly refilling it. I’d prefer to use my Nalgene with this system for less refills.

by Xmoov

I’ve owned both the plastic and steel versions. I lost a plastic one and upgraded without doing thorough research because I had such a great experience with the plastic version. The steel version is extremely buggy. It’s inaccurate and requires frequent recalibration. They have a very stupid proprietary cable and you have to remove the puck in order to recharge. And after each recharge of course you have to re-calibrate. The steel version also seems to have connectivity issues. And to add injury to insult an in app purchase for the LED composer cost five bucks? Are you serious? What a reward for being a loyal customer. I’ve talked to customer support about this and you get the usual marketing oriented canned responses Period nothing that gives you the feeling that they are actually on your side.

All in all hidrate seems to be a very thought through and carefully planned product. The steel version was obviously rushed. And we pay the price. Don’t make them the same mistake I did. I’ll be returning this and getting the plastic version again.I never write reviews, it’s that bad.

by Batman_Lover92

I started out almost two years ago with the Spark3. I just got a Steel about a month ago. I LOVE the Steel- the fact it’s rechargeable, can intermix lid types, and can use ice with it (I hate lukewarm water!). However, I really wish HidrateSparkWaterTracker was a little better. First example, there’s no indicator to know what the battery percentage is at. There’s a battery icon that will go down, but it gives no indication what the level really is. Also, I’d love to see the option for alert notifications when battery percentage is down. I don’t always look at the bottle page, and will find myself with a dead water bottle because I didn’t realize the battery needed charged. Second thing in HidrateSparkWaterTracker - when trying to change the glow color, it doesn’t always recognize that you’ve touched a different color so you have to hit it a bunch of times until it finally takes. Just an odd bug I think.

I’ll definitely give this 5 stars when I see some app changes happen- I LOVE my water bottle!

by Disappointed151619

I just received this as a gift and have only been using it for a few days I really like the concept of being reminded to drink and love the steel option. I would never have bought a plastic one. My kids think it’s cool when it lights up and want one of their own too. I will say HidrateSparkWaterTracker is ok but the trophies aren’t properly working. I changed my goal to be significantly above where it recommended I drink because I think the predictor of how much I should drink based on activity/pregnant/breastfeeding is way too low, not a big deal since the option to set your own goal is there. I will say however that the trophies are not being awarded in accordance on me actually meeting my goal. Example: I’ve had the bottle for a week. I’ve logged in every day but haven’t earned the 3peat trophy for logging in 3 days consecutively. I have however earned the 3day streak goal for meeting my goal three days in a row, but in actuality I’ve only met my goal consecutively 2 days in a row. So I think there are some bugs in HidrateSparkWaterTracker . Otherwise a great product and I would absolutely recommend this to others!

by ARTS - Addiction Counseling

I’ve been using these bottles since they first came out. Each upgrade seemed to improve my experience with them. When the Hydrate Steel came out with rechargeable battery in the bottom, and non sweating of the bottle, I thought they had developed the perfect bottle. I would easily have given them 5 stars, as I did with each update.
I even bought two of the bottles at my last order
8-10 months ago. (One for the car and one for the house). However, I quickly realized that the heavy rechargeable battery in one bottle came loose easily, and I nearly lost it. I thought it was probably just a fluke and I hate returning things so I used tape to secure it. I kept it in my car, so didn’t use it as much as my main one. Within the last month, now my other battery has become loose, and guess I will have to use tape on it. Other than that complaint, it is easily worth the 5 Stars.

by Jmaclachlan

I actually really love this.. my husband got me a hidrate bottle because for medical reasons staying hydrated is extremely important for me. At first I was dubious and was not a huge fan of having to always use this one bottle, and it’s not a glass bottle like I prefer. I used to have a few that I always kept filled and in their location (work, bedroom, car, etc) but I grew to love this bottle and am now so glad he got it for me. I have had zero issues with the bottle and app, even with getting a new phone and smart watch it was easy to connect again. I’ve had the bottle a few months now and have really like that it does not take any effort on my part to track water intake, and it’s easy to add in extra if you want to add the water you had not from the bottle (like with dinner?). I find the user interface quite friendly and just ignore the features i don’t use.

by AaronLove29

Wish they had a better color section. That needs work, should be able add up To 6 Colors Gradient effects. & i wish the pro bottles had Hoilday themes. Like white with red hearts valentines hearts, Halloween 🎃 pumpkins all around. & wish they had clear pro thermos. The lighted all up! Like a acrylic plastic outter display & the outer metal thermos inside. Was all led’s. That you customize to glow rainbow, gradient red, purple, pink, white, Valentine’s, rainbow 🌈 imagine Selecting. For bottle To glow. top to bottom or bottom to top option. The leds would glow through the colors. & have a slider slow to fast. & whole thermos lights up inside the clear acrylic body. Or clear hard silcone. slowly lighting up. Not just the bottom. & if you were created like that you could even have preet patterns. Like hearts swirling around the thermos, pumpkins, like even could make 1 out of a OLED Display. With hard clear silcone. Then The thermos could look anyway you wanted it to. Could display photos on it. Id pay like $199 for bottle like that. Thats handwash only! Hidrate spark this idea could be a game changer. Hidrate spark 1st smart hydrate tracker, Oled display thermos bottles… OLED is essentially a Displays made from a metal sheet that has programable pixels in it. Be Amazing. I’m sure in the future this could be a very possible thing!

by Angiep801

I hate reviewing things in general and was very skeptical of this working. I am a big time coffee drinker and really wanted to focus on my health more and well being so I saw immaculate reviews for this and just couldn’t say no to buying this. I picked the hidrate spark steel bottle in the spring color amethyst and was so surprised at how cold my drinks really were. Then I set up the bottle to my new app I got that also syncs to my Fitbit info so whatever I drink also goes to Fitbit as well. HidrateSparkWaterTracker was super easy to understand. At first I thought for someone who isn’t super active 70 oz of water seems impossible but the reminders during the day, the glowing on my bottle was just motivating me to drink more and more. It’s changed my life and I will never go back to the way I was . I used to drink maybe 1-2 oz a day from 70 oz now! On top of that I purchased the customization glow colors I added to my bottle so it matches my mood. And I was able to also join a bunch of communities with fun challenges to do where were literally drinking to beat each other for fun so it’s a nice little incentive for anyone trying to kick start their habit or lifestyle change. I never review but felt HidrateSparkWaterTracker and bottle has proved me wrong and is so much more convenient than guessing if I drank enough or not. Keep up the great work hidrate u got me as a long time customer!! 👏🏻👏🏻

by Erick.a.gonzalez

This bottle paired with HidrateSparkWaterTracker and an Apple Watch really makes you drink more water. I used to drink way too little compared to what I should be drinking. The notifications on the watch could not be any better, the watch face which now supports the series 4 watch is perfect. I keep a percentage of my intake on my face and now have a constant reminder of how much I have as the day progresses. The blinking is nice but not needed, wish I could take it off since I use the reminders from the watch itself but nice for those that don’t have or use the watch/app to monitor their intake. Customer service is amazingly fast and very helpful, they literally reply to you within a few hrs of your request being sent it. The battery still going strong for my bottle and I have 2, one for my wife and one for me. I do go to the restroom more often but that’s just how it’s got to be, I do feel better drinking more water. Keep up the good work!

by Pringlle

I bought the black bottle at a discount store for $30 and love it honestly. I bring it into work with me and have shown it to everyone with a bit of a laugh because of what it is. They joke with me and ask if I have an app to tell me when to go to the restroom. Anyway I take it and go on with them. Honestly I think it’s the coolest thing. I had an issue with my black bottle and I when I was replacing the batteries, I had lost a little piece of the battery tray somehow. I contacted the company and they gave me 50% off a new battery tray ($4) for my black bottle. I found a white bottle in the meantime at another discount store for $21 and purchased it. I have 2 set up and working now on my one app. It will be interesting to see how both work on HidrateSparkWaterTracker together to track my water intake. The company seems very responsive to help with the issue I had even though I didn’t purchase it from one of their retail suppliers. I love the finger loop on the bottles also, Great idea. I am a very techie guy if that says anything. I REALLY love the reminders HidrateSparkWaterTracker sends. VERY AWESOME!

by Lazarbeamislife

First of all - I love my bottle! I bring it everywhere.
But as for HidrateSparkWaterTracker - there are some issues. A huge bug I noticed is when I clicked “more” in the bottles tab, it gave me a long list with options I don’t think I’m supposed to have - for example: It gave me an option to downgrade the bottles firmware, gave me the option to look at a list of “debug” info, it also gave several other options that any regular user shouldn’t have. Another thing that happened is when that menu was up it showed my exact battery percentage (59%) of my bottle (note that this only happened once and it hasn’t happened since, but this was only a few hours ago). This brings me to my next section - ideas for improvement. It would be way better in my opinion to have the exact percentage of battery available. Another idea I had is for the user to be able to set exact times in the day for the bottle to notify you to drink.
All in all, this is a great bottle and app and thanks for taking the time to read this!

by ITS Prof

I use a lot of tech in many areas of my life. This smart water bottle checks all the boxes. It shows where I need to be at any time of day to meet my goal, allows for the use of ice and/or flavoring products, it’s easy to clean, keeps the water cold (or hot), has a lockable flip cap (won’t open accidentally), a very handy but simple strap to carry (I pinch it between my thumb and forefinger), the battery puck lasts for ~1 week before needing a charge (they sell just the puck if/when it stops taking a charge someday in the distant future), the mobile app provides you with current information (e.g., battery level, amount I’ve drink, my goal, color options, control reminders, put reminders temporarily to sleep which is good for mtgs, …), and it looks good (not that I’m trying to show off my water bottle). Pardon the run-on sentence, the HidrateSpark Steel and companion iOS app are very well done and have helped my create a habit of drinking water daily. One last item, the fireworks that go off in HidrateSparkWaterTracker when you meet your goal are just icing on the cake.

by Tes21189

Earlier this month I had given a bad review for me and my husbands hydrate that we both received as Christmas gifts. After a couple of weeks ours had stopped working. They seemed to be charged but would not register on HidrateSparkWaterTracker . In fact HidrateSparkWaterTracker basically could no longer connect to the bottle. We had tried many fixes from internet. I was contacted by the company because of my review a few things we could try. After doing everything they suggested, they decided it was our charging cords. Without hesitation they got our shipping information and had two new cords to us in just a few days. We charged our bottles and now they are working properly again. I want to say how it was so nice to have a company reach out and do everything they could to make their product right! I have told everyone about my bottle and the awesome customer service given.

by ATVYSC

I bought my bottle 3 days ago everything seemed fine, I read the reviews and was disappointed in my purchase but I decided to keep it. I followed instructions as it said in the handbook to avoid any personal mistakes which really helped. HidrateSparkWaterTracker and my bottle were syncing perfectly, reminders conquered with my preferred setting. However, I did notice the light level dimming by day 2 which was a bummer and today I unfortunately dropped my bottle three feet from ground level and everything went downhill from there. HidrateSparkWaterTracker stopped syncing with the bottle, it stopped flashing, I would get too many reminders. I tried to restart and it began to sync but then go back to not being able to locate the bottle. For the money that I paid for the bottle seems agitating having to logout and log back in every time just to know how much water I’ve drank. I wanted to be optimistic about my purchase but unfortunately that was a mistake. If you plan on purchasing the bottle don’t do it, it’s a waste of money. If you already purchased the bottle and are reading the reviews just now, return it, save your money for something better.

by Soluvio13t

I really love my HidrateSpark and HidrateSparkWaterTracker helps with accountability. I’m someone who needs routine in life generally, so this has been a great product. I only give three stars because I understand the concept is still new and kinks need to be worked out plus it’s the first and really only interactive water bottle, with Bluetooth feature of its kind and in its own market. I would love to see this concept take on more while it has the opportunity to do so. With pursuit for ethical, fair trade and sustainable and/or recycled materials, more affordability of their product to target a wider market that would benefit more greatly, partnerships with grassroots nonprofits that combat against systemic issues and the climate crises. Water is life after all. As far as HidrateSparkWaterTracker and product alone, I find that the battery dies too quickly, a self charge option would be cool to see. And HidrateSparkWaterTracker still has some bugs. I’ve completed a couple “achievements” that have not unlocked or synced.

by Djnoxious

I’m a huge fan of this as it came recommended from a close friend. I already recommended it to my girlfriend. However, I’m noticing a few issues with HidrateSparkWaterTracker . First, it does NOT connect to Apple’s Health app even though this is advertised on their site and in HidrateSparkWaterTracker description. Second, I can’t add any friends. HidrateSparkWaterTracker says I must enable contacts, which has a button that redirects me to my phones setting app, but there’s no enable/disable contacts toggle. This is very frustrating as I want to remain motivated in the first few days of using this.

UPDATE: After playing around and tapping every possible button, I found the workaround for syncing my contacts without Facebook, which is aligned with what the developers said. I also had to mess around to find a way to connect the Apple Health app. Once these UI issues are fixed, it’ll be a much better app. With that said, I really enjoy HidrateSparkWaterTracker and service.

by Ragdoll9

I just got this the other day and have improved my drinking of water because of it. I currently use a FitBit, but will be getting an Apple Watch soon. I hope the developers can add something to the software in which notifications can be sent to your FitBit/Apple Watch that lets you know you are behind in drinking water etc. I do not stare at my water bottle waiting for it to light up. It would be nice to have a vibration on the Fitbit like it does when you need to “get moving” when falling behind in your steps etc. That way, I would get the notification vibration on my arm and then go drink more water. The idea of this is cool, but could be so much better utilizing my suggestions. I’m a mom, so I am not in one place at one time carrying around my water bottle. I drink it while in the kitchen from walking back in between laundry loads, bathing kids, homework, dropping off kids, cleaning etc. This would be a home run addition.

by Madi321123

I like HidrateSparkWaterTracker . There are some improvements that could be made. For one, it would be great if HidrateSparkWaterTracker could send you a notification when your sensor battery is low so that you’d know it’s almost time to replace it. It’s frustrating because one day you’ll try to connect it and it doesn’t connect and won’t glow, and then you realize that it’s been dead for 2 days and hasn’t been tracking your water. If it couldn’t let you know when the battery was low, it’d be nice if you could choose to have it notify you after a selectable number of hours of your bottle not being connected (24, 36, 48, etc.).

On a completely different note, it will occasionally have issues connecting with my bottle. Usually after I exit HidrateSparkWaterTracker , turn off and back on my Bluetooth, and reopen HidrateSparkWaterTracker , it will work. That’s a little frustrating though.

by Laurenj223

I’ve always been forgetful when it came to drinking water on a daily basis. My boyfriend bought me this bottle a couple of years ago for my birthday and I’ve been using it ever since! I love the loop that’s attached to the lid so you can carry the bottle with your finger if you need to.

I will say, I wish the batteries lasted longer. I know that can vary on brand and batteries and what not as well.. but a bottle design that somehow incorporates a charging design of some sort. Instead of replaceable batteries.

As far as HidrateSparkWaterTracker goes, I’d love the option to “nudge” a friend if they’re falling behind on their goal mark. Kind of as a little motivation here and there. I love the competition aspect for fun reasons, but I also love how it can be used as a tool for providing support to friends and family ❤️ My boyfriend now has one as well and we help push each other towards our goals 👩‍❤️‍👨

by Cottoncandy37

Hey all!! I got the bottle several months back, and as some of the other reviews mention, the battery went low right away. I contacted support and they let me know why, and apologized. I replaced the battery and it worked great after that. They also updated something so the battery does not do that anymore when you first get it. Nice! Way to listen to AND address the concerns of the customer!! Other than that ONE MINOR issue, everything has been so great! HidrateSparkWaterTracker and bottle sync well. The alerts are adjustable and they also work great. The staff is phenomenal!! And this has only gotten greater! There is now a Facebook community so we can all talk with each other and communicate. The staff is on it also and participate right along side of us. There are challenges and prizes! This is one of my favorite items/apps and I am happy to spread the word and build!!!! Thank you Hidrate team!!!

by Michlynnf

I have bought the 2.0 loved it and then broke it after dropping it several times and by several probably 10 or more before it just finally cracked completely user error. Then bought 3.0. Absolutely loved it. Only complaint was water never stayed cold. But battery was good. Bottle and app worked great. Dropped that too but it is still in tact and working great. Then saw hidrate steel was out. Ordered it immediately. I was so happy when it shipped out first day available. Even more excited that I was getting it in two days. Then got disappointed because there was a delay and was told I needed to wait another day but shocked that when I came home there it was. Half day into it and I absolutely love it. Reached my goal. Water stays cold. Battery charged in 2 hours and I am set. Easy set up and sync. 3.0 for back up but steel is awesome.