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I don't think the answer is paper straws and I personally dislike them. They turn slimy from your saliva and usually collapse on themselves before you're done w

I don't think the answer is paper straws and I personally dislike them. They turn slimy from your saliva and usually collapse on themselves before you're done with using it. I normally end up taking multiple just to replace them halfway through drinking. More companies could go in the direction Starbucks has gone, switching their iced drink cups to "sippy cup" lids to eliminate the need for straws while maintaining a lid all together. But that begs the question, is the sippy cup top more plastic than just a straw and the old lid? Or why not just use the compostable plastic straws that are readily available rather than trying so hard to make your company look "green" by saving the turtles from straws that never end up in the ocean in the first place. Seriously, fuck paper straws. They're up there with coke freestyle machines. Absolute trash.

hammock 4y ago
Did you read the article?
vel0city 4y ago
Hey now, I like Freestyle machines. Where else am I going to find Cherry Vanilla Coke Zero, Raspberry Peach Mellow Yellow, and Fuze Lemon Tea all on the same fountain?
chrisdhal 4y ago
I was with you until the freestyle machine part, they're awesome. Seriously, what's wrong with them? It doesn't prevent you from getting the regular things. I too, hate the paper straws. They are terrible. The "no straws" campaign is just a feel good thing and really does little.
- JoshGlazebrook 4y ago
  I just find the consistency to be all over the place from machine to machine. Regular coke never tastes like coke. It's fine if you like adding lime/flavorings/etc but just getting the standard flavor of something is just always off.
- throwaway48375 4y ago
  My only complaints about the freestyle machines are that they are slower to use and sometimes at busy locations it can create a bottleneck. The second is that it is harder to be precise with the fill level because there is significant latency on the dispense button. Overall I am ambivalent towards them.
- toast0 4y ago
  I agree with both of the existing comments. The flavor isn't quite right (personally, I think there's something funky with the sweetener, but i dunno), especially cherry coke isn't really cherry coke. And the UX is awful; dispense latency is bad, touch screen calibration is usually bad and not really fixable because the display screen is so far back from the touch element that people of different heights are going to press different parts of the screen because that's where they see the screen. You could maybe make the active touch areas a little bigger, but the UI is pretty busy, so that won't be possible for soda selection, but it might help for flavor additives. The accessible buttons might be better than the touchscreen?, but I dunno they're not convenient if you're not in a wheelchair (which is fine, that's what they're for). I also haven't tried the scan a QR code and hope method, because it's slow enough already. Sadly, I've only seen the Pepsi equivalent once or twice and didn't get to try it.
telotortium 4y ago
Compostable plastics like polylactic acid (PLA) don't decompose at room temperature, but only in industrial composters at 60 C: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polylactic_acid#:~:text=degrades%20poorly%20in%20landfills%20and%20household%20composts%2C%20but%20is%20effectively%20digested%20in%20hotter%20industrial%20composts%2C%20usually%20degrading%20best%20at%20temperatures%20of%20over%2060%C2%A0%C2%B0C https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polylactic_acid#:~:text=degrad.....
floren 4y ago
I recently went to a restaurant where the straws were literally straw (or some similar plant stem). They looked nice, held up fine, and had the pleasant taste I associate with wheat straw.
js2 4y ago
We use stainless steel straws in our home.
krypton2k 4y ago
It is possible to drink without a straw. Adapt.
RobKohr 4y ago
Banning plastic straws is dumb, but I kinda like the sippy cup. You can taste the drink more since it brings it more to your nose.

hammock 4y ago

Did you read the article?

vel0city 4y ago

Hey now, I like Freestyle machines. Where else am I going to find Cherry Vanilla Coke Zero, Raspberry Peach Mellow Yellow, and Fuze Lemon Tea all on the same fountain?

chrisdhal 4y ago

I was with you until the freestyle machine part, they're awesome. Seriously, what's wrong with them? It doesn't prevent you from getting the regular things. I too, hate the paper straws. They are terrible. The "no straws" campaign is just a feel good thing and really does little.

JoshGlazebrook 4y ago
I just find the consistency to be all over the place from machine to machine. Regular coke never tastes like coke. It's fine if you like adding lime/flavorings/etc but just getting the standard flavor of something is just always off.
throwaway48375 4y ago
My only complaints about the freestyle machines are that they are slower to use and sometimes at busy locations it can create a bottleneck. The second is that it is harder to be precise with the fill level because there is significant latency on the dispense button. Overall I am ambivalent towards them.
toast0 4y ago
I agree with both of the existing comments. The flavor isn't quite right (personally, I think there's something funky with the sweetener, but i dunno), especially cherry coke isn't really cherry coke. And the UX is awful; dispense latency is bad, touch screen calibration is usually bad and not really fixable because the display screen is so far back from the touch element that people of different heights are going to press different parts of the screen because that's where they see the screen. You could maybe make the active touch areas a little bigger, but the UI is pretty busy, so that won't be possible for soda selection, but it might help for flavor additives. The accessible buttons might be better than the touchscreen?, but I dunno they're not convenient if you're not in a wheelchair (which is fine, that's what they're for). I also haven't tried the scan a QR code and hope method, because it's slow enough already. Sadly, I've only seen the Pepsi equivalent once or twice and didn't get to try it.

telotortium 4y ago

Compostable plastics like polylactic acid (PLA) don't decompose at room temperature, but only in industrial composters at 60 C: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polylactic_acid#:~:text=degrades%20poorly%20in%20landfills%20and%20household%20composts%2C%20but%20is%20effectively%20digested%20in%20hotter%20industrial%20composts%2C%20usually%20degrading%20best%20at%20temperatures%20of%20over%2060%C2%A0%C2%B0C https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polylactic_acid#:~:text=degrad.....

floren 4y ago

I recently went to a restaurant where the straws were literally straw (or some similar plant stem). They looked nice, held up fine, and had the pleasant taste I associate with wheat straw.

js2 4y ago

We use stainless steel straws in our home.

krypton2k 4y ago

It is possible to drink without a straw. Adapt.

RobKohr 4y ago

Banning plastic straws is dumb, but I kinda like the sippy cup. You can taste the drink more since it brings it more to your nose.