Go on, read through the comments on the Infinite Cooler’s Indiegogo campaign, which blew through a March 2019 ship date with nothing to show for it. I did my best to account for those size differences as I evaluated each cooler’s relative performance, but first, I needed to be sure that I had accurate measurements. That meant putting those manufacturer capacity claims to the test, and I wanted a better, more universal metric than just counting how many cans I could cram into each one. Not only will it keep your food cold for a very long time, but it’s also all but indestructible. If you’re really serious, you can even add a reflective material on the outside of your cooler (this is an excellent tip for camping in summer heat).
It wasn’t a major issue, but it also wasn’t a reassuring thing to see on a cooler. Nothing broke, and we could simply press it back into place, but each time we did this it got noticeably looser. By the end of our testing, it had loosened to the point that simply lifting on the handle was enough to pop the lid open, making the latch essentially useless. We liked that the BMX wasn’t as heavy and bulky as the Yeti and RTIC. The top handle made the cooler easy for just one person to carry, even when it was fully loaded. The rubber gasket and rubber feet weren’t quite as securely attached, and we felt that both could have been pried off with some effort.
For the ultimate in portability, the IceMule Pro is where we turn to. It won our Top Pick award for backpack-style coolers in our review of the best soft coolers. Though the number of backpack-style soft coolers has continued to increase, this one is the only one we truly find comfortable to carry for serious and longer distance hikes.
That’s important, especially if you, like most people, don’t have a freezer that can produce enough ice to fill a cooler and you tend to resort to buying bags of ice from the grocery store or liquor store. We’ve tested coleman ice chest Polar Bear coolers for seven years now, buying them or receiving test units from Polar Bear. Recently, however, we’ve been let down by the lifespan of its soft coolers (though not this backpack in particular).
Lastly, our team includes Rebecca Glades, review editor and research analyst. Throughout her time earning multiple science degrees, she has been trained in taking a non-biased approach to research. This, along with her never ending love for the outdoors, gives her the necessary skills to create honest and trustworthy gear reviews. This team of dedicated testers and reviewers understands the power of a great cooler’s value, whether for off-grid living, celebratory summit beers, road trips, or backyard barbecues. The Tundra line also includes a plethora of other sizes, many of which we’ve tested — from small, personal boxes to behemoths. Like many of its competitors, the Tundra 65 has a tiny lip on the inside of the bottom of the drain, so it is challenging to fully empty without flipping the cooler upside-down.
With about two liters of water in each cooler, we flipped, rolled, and shook them to see how watertight they were. We gave them a rating out of 10, where 10 was no water spilling out and 1 was no seal at all. For longer getaways, anything shy of 50 liters is likely to feel cramped, especially when you factor in that at least half of that space should be reserved for ice. It has a drain on one side, but other than that, the Coleman Steel Belted Cooler doesn’t have much in the way of features. We loved the sleek, retro look of the Coleman Steel Belted Cooler. But while this cooler impressed in some ways, it suffered from a disappointing lack of durability in some of its smaller components.
In other cases, you can spend far less without a substantial drop in overall performance. It’s also helpful to consider how often you find yourself needing the cooling and insulating services these ice chests provide and how burly and rugged you need your gear to be. For soft coolers, we recommend anything in the 20- to 24-can range.
As with all soft coolers, you shouldn’t leave the RTIC Soft Pack Cooler out in the sun or resting on very hot surfaces like the back of a pickup truck or on top of a picnic table for a long time. Although the exterior of the cooler is made of a durable, thickly coated nylon—waterproof and tough—the sun and heat will degrade the material and slowly wear it out. The Coleman Xtreme features replaceable hardware, whereas some of the company’s cheaper models don’t. This is an important detail because the first thing that will wear out on a cooler is either a hinge or a handle, and having affordable replacements means a cheap repair rather than a brand-new purchase. At the moment, you can buy Coleman’s replacement hinges and replacement handles for less than $10 each.