On my way home on the tube I read the box it was a Fridgemaster FM-05 Personal Refrigerator. Once home I opened the box inside a mini fridge – mine was blue – and had two leads a mains one and a 12volt car cigar lighter one as well as an instruction booklet.

Open the fridge and there is one shelf that can be placed in several positions, in the central position it can store 8x275ml cans four above and four below. However it can be totally removed to allow different sized cans or bottles to be accommodated.

Not only can this sit beside the sofa for the use of the total slob but more likely in an office to provide an occasional cold drink or even taken in the car for that long hot journey when a cool drink is much appreciated.

The unit can cool drinks to a maximum of 20 degrees below the external temperature so ice will not last long on a hot day. However a flip of a switch on the back allows it to heat things to a maximum of 20 degrees above the current temperature, so no piping hot drinks just comfortably warm.

It now sits in my office, it is almost totally silent in operation and in the few days I have had it already I have had several cool and on one occasion a warmed drink.

I shall list the link at the end but the company seems to be Hong Kong based and wholesale only, however if you trawl though from the home page to custom designs you can see a cream coloured replica of my gift, sorry I cannot find a price but I have seem similar products on sale in numerous shops normally advertising a company and probably also a beer or soft drink.

The whole point of this gift from a large IT company there was no logo, no blurb, nothing to say who it was from. The colour was blue but I understand there were some red ones and the outside of the box also shows a white one.

I know I was not the only person given one and if everyone thinks as I do, then, they may have hit on the greatest advertising gimmick around – word of mouth – as I for one have not stopped talking and thinking about it. It is not an accident that I have not mentioned the company after all we cannot let the advertisers win can we. By the way unnamed company thanks the cooler/warmer fridge is great and I for one will think of you when I use it, and the word of mouth advertising, secret or otherwise will prevail.

Certainly a gadget but as the days pass I tend to think how on earth did I manage without one, cheers.

Link : www.mobicool.com then from the homepage click > products then design your own coolbox or fridge then click here for details and then the Fridgemaster is the top item. Alternatively to go straight to the details use : http://www.mobicool.com/pages/promo/details.htm