What is it?

A sleek and effective means to extract juice from fruits and vegetables.

How will it change my life? I'm guilty of regularly picking up food items simply because I like the packaging and assume certain things without actually reading a word. Yup, the proverbial advertising man or woman's dream.

But that was until I read a magazine article the other week that stated the overwhelming majority of shop-bought fruit juices and smoothies were laden with added sugar, some with as much as four times the daily recommended amount by the World Health Organisation.

Having spent hours scouring the internet for a brand of juice that fulfils all the necessary nutritional requirements without being packed full of teeth-rotting sweet stuff, there came a light bulb moment: find a decent juicer and make it myself instead.

Good points: I've tried many juicers in the past with mixed results, but they all had one fundamental flaw: getting an adequate return of juice for the money spent on the ingredients. We live in a world where a fast food burger costs less than a lettuce so the prospect of shelling out £5 on 10 oranges for the sake of one glass of juice is a no-brainer.

The Philips Juicer has no such issues and gives a full glass of pure juice from three oranges, or equal amount of any other food where liquid can be extracted. It works by grating foods and rotating the pulp at high speed round the internal container to force out the juice which is collected in a jug.

The process is easy: just peel and drop the fruit or vegetables into the funnel and turn on. It only takes a few seconds for the device to completely annihilate the object leaving nothing but juice. The pulp can be collected from a secondary compartment and added if you wish.

The design and engineering of the components is impressive, the pulp container can handle a lot of waste without needing to keep emptying and cleaning the unit. The maintenance is extremely simple, too, as clean-up consists of removing and rinsing the components and is as quick as peeling a grapefruit.

Bad points: There's not much in the way of negatives with this juicer other than the noise it makes during operation, so you may want to wait for your other half to wake up before starting breakfast. I can't be too critical here as all juicers sound like an engine being tested in a Formula One paddock.

Best for: Anyone looking to take control of their diet for a healthier lifestyle and who wants to know exactly what's being absorbed by their bodies.

Avoid if: Peeling a few oranges sounds like too much work or you don't mind what size coffin they squeeze you into.

Score: 9/10, pure fruit juice on demand can't be bad.

Philips Viva Collection Juicer, £110 (philips.com)