This smart bottle top will sort out your water drinking aversion once and for all

See how we got on in our Waterdrop Lucy smart water bottle review. 

According to waterdrop CEO Martin Murray, people tend to "drastically overestimate how much water they consume". So maybe you think you're staying hydrated, when really you are not. There are low-tech solutions, of course. Some of our picks for the best water bottles have markers on them so you can see how much you're sipping.

But let's say you're also worried about the quality of your local tap water (another reason, according to Martin, why people don't drink enough water). waterdrop has come up with a solution to both problems in one go: the Lucy Smart Cap. It purifies its contents via UV-C (this is a tried and tested way to purify water in the wild), and it'll track how much you're drinking and remind you when it's time to rehydrate, too. 

Over-engineered? Perhaps. Annoying? Probably. But we all know how important water is to staying healthy and on-the-ball, and for many of us, drinking enough does seem to be a more of an issue than it really ought to be. So perhaps waterdrop's Lucy is the solution we've been waiting for. 

Most of today's best water filter jugs work by physically putting your water though a filter, and you'll also find hiking water bottles that take the same approach, to let you confidently drink from slightly suspicious looking water sources in the wild. The Lucy Smart Cap doesn't have an in-built filter, but instead cleans your water using UV-C; a purification process that promises to remove up to 99% of potential germs and bacteria in your water, without using any chemicals. Press the button on the top of the cap to kick off the purification process, and in under two minutes it'll be ready to drink. It's a more high-tech solution that most of today's best water purifiers use, and a very effective one. 

To keep an eye on how much you're drinking, the cap basically measures the distance from the water surface. If you're neglecting to drink often enough, the icon on top of the cap will flash to remind you to take a sip. You can adjust frequency via the companion app.

That companion app – called the Hydration App – is also the place to go to get an overview of how much you're drinking each day, and how it matches up against your personal "hydration goals". You can add in factors to do with how much you need to be drinking, too, such as if you're doing lots of sport, if it's very hot where you are, or if you're pregnant or breastfeeding. Finally, if you really want to up the ante, you can get involved in a community of other like-minded, enthusiastic water-drinkers, competing for badges and awards such as "Fresh and Fly" or "Santa's Little Helper" (no, us neither). To find out more, or order your own, head to the waterdrop website.