And like cavemen to the freshly slaughtered mastodon, guys went ga-ga for it.

For Lowery, it was confirmation that he had a hit on his hands.

"Some guy comes in, dragging his wife by the arm, with a huge smile on his face," said Lowery, product director for the appliance company's strategic initiative group. "Last year during test marketing, we had a guy actually hug it."

"It" is the SkyBox, a personal vending machine that can hold up to 66 12-ounce cans or 33 long necks - a cold beverage dispenser that doesn't ask owners to fish through their pockets for loose quarters or unwrinkled dollars. The SkyBox even has shelves to hold favorite snacks - enough chips, pretzels, peanuts or SlimJims to feed even the most ravenous armchair quarterback. Even better, the machine can be customized with college, NFL, NASCAR or whatever sports logos desired.

"It's new ground for us," Lowery said. "Most of what Maytag makes is for women. This is for men."

For men and their man caves.

SkyBox represents only the latest in advancements that are turning man-centric basements and garages into show palaces fit for a king.

Dank, dusty, musty spaces where men have traditionally found refuge as the wife and kids lord over the rest of the home are now being transformed from lonely lairs to places of pride. A man's home is being reclaimed as his castle, thanks to fix-up jobs, pumped-up appliances, clever design elements and state-of-the-art electronics - all aimed at upgrading the typical male domain: the garage and basement.

"The garage and the basement are the two undiscovered home spaces. It's the next place to tap for improvement in the house," said Bill Sykes, vice president of programming for DIY Network, a cable channel dedicated to do-it-yourself enthusiasts.

"People are taking their garages and turning them into home gyms or gardening centers, or taking their basements and turning them into darkrooms or whatever their special interest might be."

The basement or garage has become such a special place for special man-projects that DIY is even devoting special programming to it: "My Ultimate Workshop," a one-hour special scheduled for May, looks at gussied-up garages and basements where guys hone their crafts, be they woodworking, car restoration, wine collecting or model-train building.

"These are more than hobbies with these people; they're passions," Sykes said. "It's more than just a place to go hammer and saw. It's a place they love to show off."

So how did the man cave make such a transformation? The experts said there are several factors at play: more disposable income, better gadgets on the market for trading up, keeping up with the Joneses and the post-9/11 cocooning factor.

Whatever the reasons, the focus on improving garages and basements has been significant, said Mandy Holton, spokeswoman for Home Depot.

In a study it did last year, Home Depot found that basements and garages represent "found" space in the home: untapped frontier for home improvement and living expansion. Not only were these spaces untapped territory, they were male-specific space.

"One of the things we found is that, when it comes to rooms in the house, men and women tend to both share the kitchen; they own that together. Women own everything else but the basement, garage and backyard area," Holton said. "Men own those spaces; the rest of the house belongs to her."

So if men own only specific spaces, what are they doing with them? Holton said they're turning them into home theaters, workout rooms, home office space and recreation areas, the uses that DIY's "My Ultimate Workshop" suggests. In short, these "found" spaces have become the new man caves.

"People are rediscovering the basement. Five years ago, the basement may have stored a few Mason jars. Now it represents a new frontier," Holton said. "There's great potential in the basement. We believe there's going to be tremendous growth in the coming years."

Already, Home Depot is seeing growth in products that are turning dark warrens into spiffy man caves: ready-to-assemble cabinetry, storage units, carpet tiles, wine coolers and mini-refrigerators.

The SkyBox, launched on amazon.com in October, went into Home Depot stores March 1. It sells for about $600.

Maytag has big hopes for its masculine new appliance. The vending machine is only the first in a new line of big-boy appliances that will be marketed under SkyBox by Maytag.

"We found that every guy is looking for his space in the home. He's looking for that space to call his own," Lowery said. "The man cave is an area of opportunity."