Zero Installation Purifier Water Filter- Alcapure Edition, Reverse Osmosis Countertop Water Filter, Purified Alkaline Water, Certified by IAPMO R&T, Patented 4 Stage Technology, No Assembly Required

I live out in the desert and my tap water is very hard, with TDS reading in the 350s. Been using a brita filter pitcher up until now which only slightly improved the taste of my water but did nothing for the TDS. I've tried the zero water filter before too which was great but needed replacement every 3wks or so because of water hardness. In my search for a more permanent way to improve my water quality I began considering reverse osmosis filters but put off purchasing a system for a yr because of the apparent hassle of installing one. Luckily this little gem popped up on my Amazon search results one day promising the convenience of a water pitcher with the quality of a under sink reverse osmosis system. When I first received my Zip there was some kind of glitch where the pump kept turning off after 5min and I had to keep restarting it which was pretty annoying. I emailed their customer service and Eric responded promptly walking me through a couple possible fixes which unfortunately didn't work. He sent me a replacement unit within the week which has since been working perfectly. The zip is really convenient, you just fill up the reservoir with water and press the button to begin the reserve osmosis filtering, no installation or drilling holes necessary which made the higher price worth it to me. Not to mention the wastewater is collected and saved so I can reuse it to cook in my sous vide supreme water bath before dumping it on my thirsty desert lawn. Water conservation! The zip is pretty heavy at about 25 pounds and it takes up a good chunk of counter space, but still totally worth it if you don't want the hassle of installing a under sink system. The water quality and taste is amazing, the TDS runs in the 70s since there is a filter that introduces calcium and magnesium back into the water. The ph when I tested was 7.5 so it is slightly alkaline if you're into the alkaline water hype.

Update - changing from two stars to one, the plastic spout broke. The rocker that locks the spout is just plastic so it will break. The company did send me another they have replaced the plastic rocker with metal inside the plastic so it was a design flaw. At least they sent me a replacement, but they should just make it out of all metal. The alkaline filter is very hard to replace, you have to hook up a hose to it with a weird connector. The filters are expensive, a big reason I am changing the ratings is the company charges $25 for shipping. If you buy it here they jack up the price by $20. I understand it does cost to ship, but not $25. On top of that, they also want you to insure the shipping for another $7 or else they are not liable if it doesn't arrive.I don't know why so many five stars. To me, its like the designers never used the product.One of the reviews has a picture that looks like they dismantled it to show the insides. I thought wow, they went to a lot of trouble. No, that's not it. The button on the front is on a plastic mounting plate that has screw heads that fit into slots behind the mounting. It comes off ALL THE TIME. The spout, which you assume is durable metal, is chromed plastic. Not what I would prefer at this price, but its OK. The issue is the spout pushes up the mounting EVERY TIME you flip it up to allow a stream of water. So I am always catching or pushing the plastic mount down when I get water. And what is the purpose of the plate coming off you may ask? - its so you can take the top tank out to clean it. The top tank is the one that has the PURIFIED water ...... how often do you have to clean a tank that only holds purified water? Compared to every time you get water and the front coming off? If they made the spout look decent, they would not even need the plate - it is just empty space that covers the spout, and has the button on the outside on the front of it. It is mostly empty space. I suppose it might be good if you ever have to replace the button. Just make a good button instead.The button on the front is lit a nice blue, only you will rarely see it blue. You will see the kind of sickly yellow (opinion on color - but yellow generally means something is wrong or slow down).So I am giving it two stars because I think for over $400 they could have designed it better. (If they read this and respond I may raise it up). But think about it, its a pump, with filters. Filters they will charge you for when they need changing and they make more money.