The amount of ice you put in a cooler is totally subjective and depends on how cold you want the cooler’s contents and the conditions and temperatures in which you’ll be taking the cooler. Just make sure to read the specs carefully and assume that max can carrying capacity listed is for only cans in most cases. Despite looking like a Yeti—and having thicker insulation on its lid (by half an inch)—it didn’t quite have the same performance as the Yeti Hopper. At the end of our 24-hour ice test, the Orca had no remaining solid ice, while the Yeti had some. And where the Yeti’s inner temperature increased by about 6 degrees over 24 hours, the Orca’s went up by about 13 degrees.
A one-year warranty is pretty standard in the soft cooler market, (like what you get with RTIC), while three to five years is fairly generous. For reference, YETI and ORCA both offer three-year warranties on their soft coolers, while Hydro Flask leads the charge with a five-year policy. Importantly, all of these are limited warranties that solely cover defects in materials or workmanship and exclude damage from typical wear and tear. One exception is REI Co-op, which offers a full refund or replacement within one year of purchase for members (90 days for non-members). Finally, it’s worth noting that many companies provide different warranties for their hard-sided versus soft-sided offerings.
We’re the testing team at Reviewed, which means we designed and implemented the experiments involved in this article. Do it Best has been proudly serving the do-it-yourselfer since 1945. We are your local hardware store providing the best home improvement products to your community. The handles on the Hydro Flask Day Escape Tote were a great length and easy to slide over one shoulder.
Whether you’re going the super affordable route or looking for coolers with the most high-end design features, you can find the perfect Igloo cooler bag right here. To learn more about coolers and how to shop for them, we spoke to professionals who frequently insulate food, drinks and game for long periods of time. Below, you’ll find their recommendations as well as their shopping advice for how to pinpoint the best options on the market today. For instance, a heavy, bulky option might be awkward (or simply too hard) to carry over one shoulder. Backpack-style coolers are often the most comfortable, plus they’re usually on the smaller side and can be folded flat and packed into another bag.
One thing we hate about many of the soft coolers we come across is that the zippers, even though they’re heavy-duty and do their job well, are pretty hard to operate. Other Features
A few other notable features to be on the lookout for include integrated bottle openers and vacuum ports for adding or releasing air. ICEMULE’s Classic has a similar valve system, although in this case, the process involves adding air to boost cooling capabilities and buoyancy and removing it to compress the cooler down for storage. We have a huge variety of insulated bags all at different prices.
Our major gripe with the Hydro Flask soft cooler is that it’s less comfortable to carry for long periods of time. The shoulder strap is fine, but the handles are on the thin side and lack padding. As soft-sided coolers have become increasingly popular, the market has become more and more innovative. At one time, the presence of an airtight zipper and waterproof exterior indicated solid insulation. Now, various closure solutions continue to impress us with their ability to keep things chilled.
Even though the color options are limited, Igloo still didn’t fail to deliver variety in terms of sizes. The backpacks are particularly handy because they have interior zipper pockets to keep small accessories in. Our favorite feature, however, has to be the variety of carrying options that you get. It seems the designers at Igloo tried their best to anticipate all the possible preferences users might have, and we think they have largely done a very good job. I also like how spacious each one of them is, with a large main compartment where you can keep everything.
That’s where the Realtree group comes in, as you’ll be able to choose between the Tactical Duffel, Gizmo, Square 30, Launch 2 Go and HLC 12 Cooler Bags. We also wanted to pick a diverse list is prices, functions, and specialties. From there, we purchased the best 30 coolers we could find to take to our lab in Brooklyn for testing. It’s tall enough for wine bottles and can carry about 18 cans with ice, but it’s not so big you hate to carry it, and it only weighs 3.6 pounds empty. Today we’re excited to the whole Igloo’s latest cooler series – the Reactor. For the most part, this backpack did a good job preventing leaks, though a small amount of water seeped through once the ice melted.
With 25% more foam, your items will stay cold for longer periods no matter how quick the ice melts. Capacities in a soft cooler are often stated in sheer storage capacity listed in various volume measures such as gallons, quarts, or liters. Many companies also list capacity in terms of the number of cans, which can be easier to visualize. We’ve taken this cooler and Yeti’s BackFlip 24 on many fishing and fly-fishing trips.
igloo trailmateIt doesn’t have the snazzy laminated exterior and waterproof zipper that so many others boast. Yet underneath this unassuming exterior, this is a totally decent soft cooler that’s simple to use and easy to love. Thick foam surrounding the entirety of your contents provides reliable insulation for an above-average amount of time. A single long opening makes it uncomplicated to load and easy to search. On the outside, a large zippered pocket provides a good amount of dry storage, and its duffel-style handles can be joined together for easy transportation.