LARQ has made big strides to deliver cleaner water through sterilisation tech and most recently, a filter system in a bottle. The LARQ Filtered Pitcher is a complete water-cleaning solution for the home, featuring both purifying and filtering tech.
The premium price tag of LARQ’s upfront cost and advanced filters may be a prohibitive barrier, but the competency for unrivalled clean water at home and a smartly-designed system once again prove a worthwhile investment for the long-term benefits. In short, it’s a case of ‘you get what you pay for’ beyond the hardware.
BRAND LARQ
MODEL FILTERED PITCHER
FORMFACTOR JUG
MEASUREMENT 25.4 H X 23.8 W (CM)
CAPACITY 1.9 LITRE
WEIGHT 1KG
COLOURS MONACO BLUE, GRANITE WHITE
FEATURE PUREVIS STERILISATION WAND
FILTER NANO ZERO TECHNOLOGY
PRICE RRP 168 USD / EUR / GBP
For disclosure, this article or review features affiliated links which means I may receive a commission if you make a purchase through these links. They in no way influence or dictate my thoughts toward a brand, product or service but a professional assessment through my experience.
READ MORE LARQ
- LARQ PureVis Bottle Movement Review
- LARQ Bottle Filtered Review
- The Self-Cleaning Water to Revolutionise Travel Hydration
Pitcher Hardware
With a retail price of $168 in the US and the same across EU and UK currencies, it’s something I want to bring up first as a backdrop to the LARQ Filtered Pitcher. The price punches far above standard filter pitchers, but LARQ has positioned as a premium tech-forward health brand that so far justifies the unique technology and value.
It’s something to consider if you’re willing to invest in what the LARQ Filtered Pitcher offers. If you do, however, the long-term benefits of drinking purified and filtered water at the highest level available in everyday homeware can pay in priceless dividends.
At 1.9 litres in capacity, a full jug provides 8 normal cups of water which is the recommended minimum to drink per day. The pitcher is compact and slim, measuring 25.4cm tall and 23.8cm wide with an oval shape and curved spout. The Pitcher is made of a 100% BPA-free polymer, with a denser clear plastic bottom half and lighter upper in the colourway of your choice. The handle faces down, with a flat profile on the top that rounds off inside the palm of my hand. A magnetic charging cable is included to charge the PureVis wand, which can last up to one month per full charge.
Advanced and Basic Filter
There are two filters you can choose to use with the LARQ Filtered Pitcher: advanced or basic. One advanced filter comes included in the box, delivering the highest performing filtration to remove Chlorine, Mercury, Cadmium, Copper, VOCs, Lead, Particulates, Benzene, PFAS/ PFOA, and Pharmaceuticals thanks to the Nano Zero filter tech. That’s in addition to the sterilisation benefits of the PureVis wand. The basic filter removes the first five of those impurities. The filters are visibly kept inside a robust cage, with a soft membrane lined under the refillable filter cartridge. They’re easy to remove from the pitcher bay.
The top features a removable lid with a tray that falls open to pour water into the bay. The removable – and included – advanced filter slots into the bay, while the removable PureVis wand docks into the opening close to the pitcher handle. The entire bay can be removed for access into the jug itself.
Setup and LED Glow
Setting up the LARQ Filtered Pitcher is straightforward, giving the pitcher a rinse and submerging the advanced filter in water for 10 minutes. Fill up the pitcher and rinse the filter with the first run of water, empty the cloudy water and it’s good to go. The second run of tap water resulted in clear water filtering into the pitcher, ready to drink.
Water filters quite quickly to the bottom, more than what I’ve observed in typical pitchers so you can enjoy filtered water soon after a pour. For the size, the LARQ Filtered Pitcher does sit on the heavier side, but taking into account the filter and PureVis wand, feel justified.
A few details like the glowing light on the wand indicate when the PureVis is working, such as after a full pour of water or battery indication. The UVC-LED light at the bottom of the wand docks into place and creates a glowing light in between the Monaco blue plastic and clear bottom half, a design that’s cool to see the glow.
Day-to-Day Experience
After excessive water drinking and usage in my day-to-day, what’s it like pouring a drink from the LARQ Filtered Pitcher? There’s a definite improvement in taste when you compare it to not using any filter. It tastes refined which is to be expected from the high-performance filter and the PureVis tech. If you already drink from a filter jug, the differences may be less noticeable in regards to the taste, but certainly, the ‘softness’ from the LARQ Filtered Pitcher is one definite word I would use to describe the texture.
The clearer benefits are in the filter’s long-term effectiveness thanks to the PureVis sterilising the filter to prevent bacteria and viral growth, which not only keeps a more effective filter to clean water for longer but prevents the filter itself from becoming a hotspot for bacteria growth. This ensures the pitcher itself is clean to drink from, up until you replace the filter.
It’s easy to charge the PureVis wand since it’s removable and takes only a couple of hours for one month of use. Beyond the filter and purifying tech, there’s more tech beyond with an app companion currently available for Apple devices and yet to release for Android.
If you have an Apple device, however, you can link all the LARQ Filtered Pitchers in the house for easy viewing of their water levels, a weekly report of water consumption, filter effective rating and notification when it’s time to replace. The added visibility adds welcome insights without complicating matters further, but I’d be keen to see LARQ add order purchasing of new filters within the app.
LARQ Economics Model
There are some minor details I’d like to see LARQ improve such as the slightly creaky upper body plastic, the lid edges surrounding the PureVis wand that isn’t fully recessed with the design that sticks upwards, and either a slightly narrower spout for better flow control and less width leakage. The handle grip suffers somewhat with the flat profile as it doesn’t sit in the hand as well.
A soft-touch grip or silicone would feel more premium in the hand in my opinion. While these are minor details that can no doubt be addressed in a second generation if ever there was one, it’s worth pointing out considering the price.
And that leads me onto the price of the LARQ Filtered Pitcher itself: it’s expensive. The fact it’s unlike any other on the market and makes a fundamental improvement to drinking healthy water should not be undervalued, and for what it is, is worth the premium price and investment.
However, like with LARQ’s bottles I mentioned, the upfront cost is high and I hope they also release a version that’s more affordable like a filter-only version. And then there are the filters themselves which cost (at the time of writing) $34 for the advanced and $26 for USD / EUR / GBP territories. The advanced filters a wider range of impurities while the basic filter separates the fundamental contaminants.
LARQ offers a subscription model which saves 18% per month over buying one time, which is worth doing if you’re committed to the LARQ filter movement and lifestyle. These cost much more than typical filters but arguably the more effective filters and longer lifespan of use cuts down some of the price difference. Still, at face value, the prices are plenty to consider when purchasing. I would like to see the basic filter made cheaper so the ongoing cost of buying into the ecosystem is more affordable at the entry-level.
LARQ Filtered Pitcher Verdict
While the LARQ Filtered Pitcher is premium priced, it’s worth the investment if you have the money and can sustain the premium filter subscription model for a healthy, clean-drinking lifestyle. The cheaper option out there is ‘you get what you pay for’ and offsets the cheaper price tag for the quality of water you receive.
I’d like to see LARQ hit a cheaper price point and expand the pitcher offering with a filter only and a lower basic filter price. You can at least benefit from free shipping, cheaper filter prices and automatic delivery from the subscription model, while it’s easy to cancel for peace of mind management month-to-month.
LARQ continues to break new ground in the space, first with their portable bottles and now inside the home. Drinking water is fundamental to our wellbeing and health, but it also needs to be good quality, clean and without impurities. The LARQ Filtered Pitcher delivers in a smart, compact and stylish package to meet those needs, especially in countries where access to clean water is limited. The Filtered Pitcher then, is an excellent homeware accessory that I’d say is worth the investment, so long as you’re able to sustainably afford it. If you can, you won’t look back after.
