Every month, new products compete for our attention in the highly competitive lifestyle market. To make your purchase decision easier, we test exciting new products in advance and report on our experiences.
Spend Friday evening with a super fun board game, test the children’s watch with the kids or conjure up delicious dishes with new spices? The lifestyle world offers new, exciting attractions every month. So that you can find your way through the product thicket, we test exciting new releases for you and say openly and honestly whether the purchase is worth it.
So orange, so clean Colleague Lara likes products that can do everything © PR
Product: Frosch “Universal Cleaner Orange”
Price: 750 ml costs around 2 euros
To use: Its formula with degreasers made from orange peel and highly dirt-dissolving soaps promises residue-free cleaning for floors and surfaces in the household. There is also an orange-fresh scent.
Application: Dosage: Two tablespoons (30 ml) in five liters of warm water. For stubborn dirt, apply undiluted, leave to work and rinse well.
Conclusion: This cleaner was already a cleaning classic in my family. And I’m betting on it too! Everything gets clean, without much scrubbing and without a pungent smell that gives you a headache. Instead there is a subtle orange scent and the price-performance ratio is also right.
Magnetic attraction Editor Janine and her children feel magnetically attracted to the Connetix building blocks © PR
Product: Connetix Pastel Geometry Pack
Price: 63.93 euros
To use: The small and large tiles in hexagonal and triangular shapes can be put together to form countless figures and geometric constructs thanks to the magnetic outer sides. This promotes, among other things, creativity, spatial thinking and motor skills. But more importantly: it’s really fun!
Application: The main focus of this Connetix set is on two-dimensional shapes that are reminiscent of mandalas. But small buildings like pyramids are also possible.
Conclusion: “Don’t believe the hype” is actually my motto. The pretty magnetic plates have been smiling at me in a few Instagram feeds lately. Luckily Connetix moved in with us because we are all thrilled – from the children to the adults. I have rarely seen my three-year-old daughter play with such concentration and endurance. Sometimes she lays a sun, sometimes a tree, sorts colors into a rainbow or builds little houses in which treasures are hidden. In fact, everyone who visits us is magnetically attracted to the colorful discs. After testing the Connetix Pastel Geometry Pack, we are already thinking about which additional set we should get in order to be able to build even more complex things. Luckily, the grandpa said to the child during his last visit: “These are great things – we’ll probably have to get you a few more.” Grandpa, we’ll take you at your word!
Lots of independence, few frills Editor Jenny tried out the watch with a first grade child. © PR
Product: KWIO TIKK children’s watch
Price: 79.90 euros
To use: A children’s watch in a simple but really chic design that is independent of whims such as unicorns, princesses or dinosaurs. Because such preferences never last longer than a watch. An enclosed booklet helps introduce you to the topic of “What is time”: How do you feel it, how is it divided, why is the clock round?
Application: A six-year-old child can easily put on and take off the watch independently. Because the bracelet doesn’t have a complicated pin buckle, but rather several Velcro points that stick very well. Even this bit of independence makes you proud and relieves the parents (at least for this one moment).
Conclusion: The children’s watch passed the acid test straight away: it fell into the child’s yoghurt – the bracelet could be wiped off without any further traces. By the way, it could be washed in the machine at 40 degrees, so it could even fall into the autumn mud. The differently designed hands are a real help when learning to tell the time: On the one hand, they have different colors. On the other hand, the hour hand ends with an arrow, but the minute hand ends with a circle. So simple, so brilliant! That makes explaining easy. The booklet addresses this distinction and is a good support for parents to teach how to read the clock. The fact that the dial is so tidy and not overloaded with colorful stuff makes it even more pleasant. Clear recommendation.
Naturally tart. Editor Susanne is enthusiastic about the naturally bitter taste of the cider. © PR
Product: leev Cider bushes tart
Price: approx. 2.09 EUR per 0.33 l bottle, box with 24 bottles approx. 25.08 EUR
To use: The new variety Santa Pauline from “leev Cider büsch’n herb” is a slightly alcoholic apple wine without preservatives.
Application: Summer is coming to an end and autumn is slowly coming. Perfect for a light drink that is tangy but not quite as sweet. New to the leev Cider range is Santa Pauline, which is produced regionally with crisp apples from the Altes Land.
Conclusion: For me, a glass of cider on the beach is a must for me when I’m on holiday in northern France during the summer holidays. I was all the more excited about a cider that is made in my region and that I can enjoy on the sofa in autumn instead of by the sea in summer. And what can I say – I immediately fell in love with Leev Cider, which means “love” in Low German. The tart, fruity taste immediately wins me over. The fizzy apple cider mixtures are often too sweet and sticky for me. This cider is exactly how I like it. Slightly sour and with natural ingredients. The alcohol content is a moderate five percent, which makes the cider a light after-work drink. For apple fans and lovers of natural drinks, Leev Cider is definitely worth a try.
Spicy pumpkin Editor Julia loves all kinds of pumpkin. Even more with the pumpkin spice from Just Spices. © PR
Product: Pumpkin spice from Just Spices
Price: 4.99 euros
To use: Give the pumpkin dish an extra spicy kick.
Application: Autumn time is pumpkin time. As a warming soup, roasted from the oven or as a risotto: the vegetables are versatile, quick to prepare, super healthy and filling. Pumpkin becomes particularly tasty when you emphasize its strengths with one or two spices. This is where Just Spices pumpkin spice comes into play. No matter how you prefer to prepare it, simply add the sweet and spicy spice mixture.
Conclusion: Pumpkin is often on my menu in the fall because it is so easy and quick to process. The spice mixture comes in handy for me because it gives the quick pumpkin the perfect seasoning. The pumpkin spice from Just Spices goes well with any pumpkin dish, but the spice mixture also gives sweet potatoes, carrots or an autumn vegetable stir-fry that certain extra something. It contains, among other things, Tellicherry pepper, sea salt, turmeric, celery, sumac and cinnamon. I really like this spice and will definitely buy it again because it has definitely earned its permanent place in my autumn kitchen.