I'm not much of a drinker anymore. Nope, those college days at SUNY Albany are just drunken distant memories. So, when fellow blogger Carol Mangis asked if I wanted to test a digital breathalyzer, I was hesitant at first since I'm such a lightweight now. Luckily, I have a boyfriend who is presently living out those college days, and he was more than happy to assist in the drink testing.

So last Saturday night, he and I drove to Savoy's Restaurant and Boiler Bar (which looks like a house, I know) to drink and listen to the live band playing, The Loop. The special for the night was $4 Captain Morgan & Coke drinks, so immediately my boyfriend's eyes lit up. For the first drink though, he settled on a Corona, and I had a SoCo & Sprite.

I was the one driving, so I figured I'd have one more drink, a Corona. For the next two hours, my boyfriend switched to Rum & Coke and had 7 of them. I knew it was time to go home when he started to slur his words and greet everybody who walked by. We got into my RAV4 and I tested my BAC level with the first digital breathalyzer, the AlcoHAWK Slim: .05. The second digital breathalyzer, the AlcoHAWK ABI, gave the same reading. So I was good to drive, since the legal limit is .08.

After my boyfriend pleaded with me to stop at 7-Eleven for a hot dog, we arrived at my apartment. I then let him test his BAC level. The Slim device produced a .14 reading, and the ABI had a .15. I tested mine once more, and both devices gave me a reading of .03. So, within an hour, 1 beer and 1 drink produced a .05; after 1 beer and 7 drinks for him produced a .15.

I was actually surprised that after only 2 drinks I had a .05, so it just goes to show it doesn't take much. As for my boyfriend, I put him to bed and placed a bowl next to him while he slept just in case, well, you know.

Both AlcoHAWK devices are designed by the company Q3 Innovations. I liked the AlcoHAWK Slim because it fits right in your pocket or purse. I felt that it was pretty accurate, but it takes awhile to warm up. The AlcoHAWK ABI is a bit bigger than the Slim. It's actually the company's best selling unit. The ABI takes less time to warm up than the Slim does, which is handy for impatient drunkards. If I had to choose one over the other, I'd go with the ABI, just for the fact that it seems more accurate (since it's DOT approved) and comes with a car charger.

AlcoHAWK Slim (Buy it $74.99):
-Newest
-Sleek design, weighs .3 lbs
-Very portable
-Comes with 5 mouthpiece covers
-Foldable mouthpiece
-Detects a BAC reading of .00 to .40%
-Requires 2 AA batteries

AlcoHAWK ABI (Buy it $99.99):
-Hard shell carrying case
-Soft zipper cover with wrist strap
-12 Volt A/C Adapter for car-charging
-DOT approved
-Comes with 5 mouthpiece covers

-Detects a BAC reading of .00 to .40%

-Requires 9 Volt battery

It is extremely important to wait 20 minutes after your last beverage and food consumption before testing these digital breathalyzers. To properly ensure an accurate reading, follow these tips.

Stay tuned next week for more digital breathalyzer tests, and Happy Cinco de Mayo!