Muggi drinks tray – review
It's "the safest drinks tray in the world" – have you been doing the office tea run all wrong?
It says a lot about RadioTimes.com's attitude to office harmony that the only time we consider doing a tea run is when someone sends us an unnecessary gadget that promises to transform our beverage transportation ways.
We may not be great fans of the office tea round, but will the Muggi – a "new and safe way to carry hot and cold drinks" – change our minds? It's time to put the kettle on.
What is Muggi?
A small square plastic tray designed to carry four different mugs safely, snugly, and without spillages. Actually, sorry, it's not plastic – apparently it's made out of a "lightweight but super tough Polypropylene material".
It's plastic.
What does it look like?
Like a giant Lego brick, or something that could go either way on Dragons' Den. You know the kind of thing; one minute it's going to be the next Trunki, the next Deborah Meaden is delivering a witheringly scripted put-down like, "You've really mugged me off with this one. I'm out."
So what does it do?
Carry drinks. Yes, in this brave new world of connected homes and fridges that know when you're out of milk, it's good to know that people still care about the really important things.
And, to be fair, it does its job very well. The four compartments each have a hole for the cup handle cut into the side, stopping drinks sliding and sloshing around. Stow four beers instead (drinking at work, us?), and while the bottles won't fit quite as snugly, it at least leaves you one hand free to push the kitchen door open.
For all our aversion to social bonding rituals, it also felt good to bring people's orders back in their own individual serving pods. The boss's brew came back unsullied and unspilled; the always awkward order of caffeine free rooibos tea with, I don't know, regurgitated yak's milk, was safely navigated; the only thing that defeated it was the inexcusably large Sports Direct mug, which proved too large for the Muggi holes – but who really wants a pint of tea anyway?
What's the verdict?
The Muggi was originally designed by a sailor for life in rough seas, and while we didn't quite get round to testing it in a Force 10 gale, it proved stable enough to handle the choppy waters of Radio Times HQ during Bake Off's switch to Channel 4.
And who knows, perhaps our new-found appreciation for the office tea run will finally turn us into a ship-shape crew? Either way, we're now firmly ensconced in Muggi's warm embrace.