# Vessyl's smart cup will be able to tell the difference between Coca-Cola and Pepsi when released in **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 15, 2014, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856 "2014-06-15T21:56:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/41 "2014-06-17T16:11:11Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Even if this particular product isn’t very useful, it seems to me that the technology behind it could have many medical uses. Absolutely. In fact, one of the most surprising things about this product, for me, is the incredibly redundant and hipsterized implementation of what is very impressive and potentially useful technology. ---
**Author:** ![armedmonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@armedmonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/armedmonkey)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/42 "2014-06-17T16:24:17Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Even if this particular product isn’t very useful, it seems to me that the technology behind it could have many medical uses. Just off the top of my head, a device that can measure the sugar content of a soft drink should also be able to measure the sugar content of a diabetic’s blood, for instance. Don’t current testers rely on disposable test strips? Meh. We already have [real time glucose monitoring](http://www.medtronicdiabetes.com/treatment-and-products/continuous-glucose-monitoring), devices that far out strip this thing both in tech and usefulness. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/43 "2014-06-17T17:01:38Z")
It doesn’t have to solve a problem, just help. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/44 "2014-06-17T17:13:16Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > You keep mistaking me. I’m not really mocking the product. The technology, and the implementation of it, seem quite impressive, at least if the claims of the maker turn turn out to be true. > > I’m mocking anyone who would buy one. Well I am all for mocking stupid people. Carry on. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/45 "2014-06-17T17:31:22Z")
I wonder if the “drinking history” of the cup is maintained and that would inevitably lead to suponeas for your imbiding history. E.g., from law enforcement to reinforce a DWI case, an ex suing for custody. (“The Cup says you had 9 mixed drinks last Saturday when you were supposed to watching the kids!”.) Etc. But we all know the real use, just like camera phones, it will be used to upload crap to Facebook pages. “Hey guys, here’s the analysis of the drink I’m downing! Woohee, ain’t I da koolz!” ---
**Author:** ![HelloKindWorld](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e79b87/32.png) [@HelloKindWorld](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HelloKindWorld)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/46 "2014-06-17T18:06:29Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > “Hey guys, here’s the analysis of the drink I’m downing! Woohee, ain’t I da koolz!” “HelloKindWorld and 12 others like this.” ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Quatro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/bc8723/32.png) [@Mr\_Quatro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Quatro)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/47 "2014-06-17T18:11:01Z")
I would like to see feed back from users first, before I purchase one, but surely this is the future of healthy living. The smart cup keeps you aware of what you are consuming. Look how many fat people are fat just from drinking say three cans or bottles of soda a day … the smart cup app goes to your smart phone and wham you can say enough is enough of soda pop for the day or for the week or forever. I wonder if you can put a paper cup in it with say coffee and the sensor reads through the paper? This is the future and if you invented this cup wouldn’t you be looking for some up front money to market it and bring it to bear fruit ? The next generation cup could tell you if someone put a drug in your cup while you were in the restroom … silly thought? I don’t think so …🙂 ---
**Author:** ![DataX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@DataX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DataX)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/48 "2014-06-17T19:18:49Z")
Am I the only one who almost immediately came up with ideas that then made me think “oh crap - I guess I’ll need two of them, cause after I do that - I’ll never want to drink out of it again no matter how clean I get it?” I really want this gadget to be true! You probably won’t want to drink out of mine after I’ve used it though. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2014, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/49 "2014-06-17T20:28:52Z")
> [@Mr\_Quatro](#): > > Look how many fat people are fat just from drinking say three cans or bottles of soda a day … the smart cup app goes to your smart phone and wham you can say enough is enough of soda pop for the day or for the week or forever. What percentage of overweight people are overweight because they are actually unaware of how much they’re drinking? And what percent of overweight people are overweight because they know very well how much they’re drinking, but don’t have the willpower to put down the soda can? ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2015, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/50 "2015-12-05T05:19:09Z")
So, did anyone in this thread actually get in on the crowdfunding for this fabulous product? 🙂 If so, you’re [still waiting](http://consumerist.com/2015/12/04/vessyl-backers-still-waiting-for-smart-cups-slated-for-early-2015-debut-so-whats-the-holdup/), i guess. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2015, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/51 "2015-12-05T11:17:07Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > If so, you’re [still waiting](http://consumerist.com/2015/12/04/vessyl-backers-still-waiting-for-smart-cups-slated-for-early-2015-debut-so-whats-the-holdup/), i guess. > [@](#): > > “I have not yet asked for a refund, but I will not opt-in for Pryme,” he wrote, adding that others who had opted in for Pryme hadn’t received their units yet, despite Mark One’s pledge to begin shipping the cups in on Nov. 12. > > This, despite the fact that Mark One was selling the Pryme in Apple stores online and at retail locations to the general public for $99. On Nov. 18, Mark One acknowledged that due to retail demand being higher than anticipated, backers who’d opted in for a Pryme wouldn’t be getting their units yet. Shouldn’t these shipments have been first, before Apple and other retail? Or am I misunderstanding the way this sort of funding works? (Pryme is the Vessyl scaled down to hydration monitoring, as **Dewey Finn** referred to above.) ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2015, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/52 "2015-12-05T16:11:24Z")
> [@Frank](#): > > Shouldn’t these shipments have been first, before Apple and other retail? Or am I misunderstanding the way this sort of funding works? That would be my understanding too, although i have heard of this happening before. I think the idea, if they’re struggling, is that if they sell the product through retail outlets they can get some cash flow to keep the enterprise going. If they just start shipping products to the original kickstarter investors, it’s just money out the door, because those people paid up front. Pretty fucked up if you’re one of those people still waiting, but somewhat understandable from the business’s point of view, especially if the alternative is to run out of money. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2015, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/53 "2015-12-05T16:19:44Z")
So people are actually buying a high tech cup that only measures how much water you’ve drank? Wtf? ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2015, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/54 "2015-12-05T16:24:34Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > So people are actually buying a high tech cup that only measures how much water you’ve drank? Wtf? Incredible, isn’t it? I’ve already ranted about this “amazing” product on the first page of this thread. As [this review](http://www.theverge.com/2015/11/17/9750952/pryme-vessyl-smart-cup-water-hydration-dumb) says: > [@](#): > > Regardless, there is a much better app that tracks your water consumption and lets you know when you need to drink more water. It’s called your body, and it’s been a proven technology for thousands of years now. The Mayo Clinic recommends that as long as you drink enough fluids so you don’t feel thirsty and your urine is yellow or without color, you’re getting enough water. Those are the important things, say actual doctors. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2015, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/55 "2015-12-05T16:31:24Z")
Stephen Colbert had a great [segment](http://www.cc.com/video-clips/9nzwjt/the-colbert-report-vessyl-digital-cup) on the Vessyl last year. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2015, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/56 "2015-12-05T16:34:14Z")
The original product is mostly useless but I could see people buying it because hell, that’s damn neato! But a cup linked to my phone to remind me I’m thirsty is just insulting. “A few more sips and you’ll be at your Pryme™!” ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2015, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/57 "2015-12-05T16:40:04Z")
It’s almost as if they’ve asked themselves, “What is the most idiotically useless thing we could get a bunch of morons to fork over $99 for?” As you say, the technology behind the original product is pretty impressive. I concede that, even while i would still mock the people who bought one. But that impressive technology is now over half a year behind schedule, with no word on when (or even whether) the product might be ready to ship. ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2015, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/58 "2015-12-05T19:13:44Z")
> [@Mr\_Quatro](#): > > but surely this is the future of healthy living. The smart cup keeps you aware of what you are consuming. Yeah, what I need in my life is being nagged at by my dinnerware. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2015, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/59 "2015-12-05T19:57:50Z")
Do people think I use use a Pryme or wait for the Vessyl to drink my Waaatyr and Koffyye? What about my Peppsy? One of these days I might order a Myartyeenyee. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2015, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856/60 "2015-12-05T20:17:52Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > As you say, the technology behind the original product is pretty impressive. Assuming it exists. I see no evidence that it does. There are a lot of reasons to believe it doesn’t exist, at least not in any useful way. It probably uses some form of optical spectroscopy. Which means it probably works great under absolutely ideal conditions, and with a fairly small database, but totally breaks down as soon as it has to differentiate between a million possible drinks. Or there’s a bit of residue from the previous drink, or you put something in that’s not in the database, or whatever. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vessyls-smart-cup-will-be-able-to-tell-the-difference-between-coca-cola-and-pepsi-when-released-in/690856.md?page=4)