I have an ORCA 58 for parties and weekend trips, and a IceMule 23L Pro backpack for day hikes, beach, park, and Disney trips. Nothing against any other company, but I’m super happy with my products.
Good Review! Thanks, a mill for taking the time (and the expenses) to put it all together. As a motorcycle camper, my main priority is how compact I can pack down any gear, when not in use. So, for me the "IceMule" would be my choice. I'm only really interested in a cooler that can get me from where I purchase my drinks and dairy products and to a campsite which may be 2 hours away, and then keep things cold throughout the afternoon and a night.
I really wanted the IceMule to do better. I like the footprint of it and how it closes. Maybe they need an insulated pad at the top or maybe they have one. For me, if the performance is close I would choose the one that is Made in the USA. Great tests.
I have the engel backpack it’s a great cooler for the beach or a day fishing . I normally just throw one engel cooler pack in and it keeps the drinks plenty cool enough for the day without throwing a bunch of ice in it. It’s less than half the price of a yeti and has way more options for storage than pretty much any other soft cooler out there.
Gotta add the brand new Premium no leak Ozark Trail 20 and 30 can cooler. Unreal. Just bought a 30 can for $49. If it said Yeti you would believe it was. OT has really stepped up their game!! Huge step up from the orginal.
You could build our own. Basically just a box within a box. VIP are quite fragile and w/o vacuum are useless. Glacier Bay sells them. Might cost about $2,OOO to make for a average size cooler. Have seen shipping coolers with it. 10 day vs 2-3 with foam. Aerogel offers a r value of 10/inch vs XPS foam 6.5. Costs about $15/sq ft. Sailors will make coolers with 6 to 8 inches of XPS insulation. High end roto cooler have about 2" side/3" top
For car camping, 12 volt Fridges, ie Dometic / ARB, sip electricity. Not much more than a roto cooler and you have much more capacity with out ice and no soggy food.
Bruh, if they only made that large 40can Engel in a BACKPACK model like the Engel Prym1 camo, it would dominate all the other "large" softsides like RTIC40, ORCA Pod & Yeti hopper imo.
The Engel backpack is probably the most compact that we've tested: amzn.to/2LJMuwR And the Polar bear here: amzn.to/2JtPf8O is a little bit cheaper and feels more like a backpack.
But it's not a real test with 2 drink. Realistically for a true test there has to be drinks (their capacity) to test this because it means less ice to start with.
*Full Review:* bit.ly/2vcCmIG
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▶ Orca Pod: amzn.to/2sSUT8g
▶Engel Backpack: amzn.to/2t6oK0Q
I have an ORCA 58 for parties and weekend trips, and a IceMule 23L Pro backpack for day hikes, beach, park, and Disney trips. Nothing against any other company, but I’m super happy with my products.
Good Review! Thanks, a mill for taking the time (and the expenses) to put it all together.
As a motorcycle camper, my main priority is how compact I can pack down any gear, when not in use. So, for me the "IceMule" would be my choice.
I'm only really interested in a cooler that can get me from where I purchase my drinks and dairy products and to a campsite which may be 2 hours away, and then keep things cold throughout the afternoon and a night.
Something to keep in mind "these Backpackable Cooler Bags double as Day Packs as well as insulated Dry Bags when needed.
I really wanted the IceMule to do better. I like the footprint of it and how it closes. Maybe they need an insulated pad at the top or maybe they have one. For me, if the performance is close I would choose the one that is Made in the USA.
Great tests.
I have the engel backpack it’s a great cooler for the beach or a day fishing . I normally just throw one engel cooler pack in and it keeps the drinks plenty cool enough for the day without throwing a bunch of ice in it. It’s less than half the price of a yeti and has way more options for storage than pretty much any other soft cooler out there.
Awesome to hear you enjoy it.
Gotta add the brand new Premium no leak Ozark Trail 20 and 30 can cooler. Unreal. Just bought a 30 can for $49. If it said Yeti you would believe it was. OT has really stepped up their game!! Huge step up from the orginal.
Need to get the Pelican soft cooler, rtic soft cooler, and Yeti up in that mix please.
Add a techni ice 34L soft cooler as well!
Yes please on the Pelican. I am sitting on a $150 Cabela's gift card and was hoping the Ice Mule performed a little better.
Should make a graph of internal temperature over time...
Did y’all guys ever test the AO coolers against any of these soft coolers?
Need to try the one from Bison next time
I'm getting 4 days out of my orca 26 90 everyday in a bed of a black truck and black bedliner
I have an Engel tpu it is legit amazing
Glad you're enjoying it.
Why no RTIC Soft Pack 30? Could be wrong but I think they claim to be the best selling soft side cooler on Amazon...
Can you test the otter box bag cooler?
Hopefully in the coming weeks. We are working on it now.
Is anyone developing a vacuum insulated cooler?
You could build our own. Basically just a box within a box. VIP are quite fragile and w/o vacuum are useless. Glacier Bay sells them. Might cost about $2,OOO to make for a average size cooler. Have seen shipping coolers with it. 10 day vs 2-3 with foam. Aerogel offers a r value of 10/inch vs XPS foam 6.5. Costs about $15/sq ft. Sailors will make coolers with 6 to 8 inches of XPS insulation. High end roto cooler have about 2" side/3" top
For car camping, 12 volt Fridges, ie Dometic / ARB, sip electricity. Not much more than a roto cooler and you have much more capacity with out ice and no soggy food.
Hey guys, I’m between the Rtic SoftPak 30 and the Engel HD30. Any reason to go one way or the other? I haven’t seen a comparison video yet.
MrBossCav I would love an answer to this as well!
Any idea how long till the Engel TPU is available and what the price will be?
Bruh, if they only made that large 40can Engel in a BACKPACK model like the Engel Prym1 camo, it would dominate all the other "large" softsides like RTIC40, ORCA Pod & Yeti hopper imo.
Any suggestions for a smaller backpack? Going to an amusement park and need to keep meds cool...
The Engel backpack is probably the most compact that we've tested: amzn.to/2LJMuwR And the Polar bear here: amzn.to/2JtPf8O is a little bit cheaper and feels more like a backpack.
Coolers On Sale Thanks! I’ll check them out 😊
But it's not a real test with 2 drink. Realistically for a true test there has to be drinks (their capacity) to test this because it means less ice to start with.
Try the fatboy coolers