The RTIC offers a similarly simple interior that’s spacious enough to bring a ton of food with you on your hunting trip or camping adventure. Its dual drains make cleaning it a breeze, and the flexibility of this model’s rubber latches means it’s easier to open and close with a single hand than other rubber-latched models. A cooler’s latch or closure system is coleman ice chest one of the defining characteristics of a premium model and plays a significant role in overall cooling performance. Among high-end hard-sided coolers, you’ll commonly find two rubber T-handles along the front that keep the lid locked securely in place. These handles are fairly user-friendly, extremely strong, and minimize any openings for cold air to escape.
The RovR’s dry storage goes above and beyond since it has a large dry bin that extends to the bottom of the interior. It also attaches to the side of the interior with a simple hand screw, which means it won’t move during transit like all the other baskets are wont to do. The Coleman Xtreme, Cabela Polar Cap, and Pelican coolers have leashes attaching their drain plugs to the body of the chest. Both Pelican models, the Igloo IMX 70qt, the Engel, and the Xspec all have built-in bottle openers hidden in various spots.
For longer trips or events where more storage space is needed, look for Coleman Xtreme coolers. You can find coolers in this line that offer anywhere from 28- to 120-quart capacity, guaranteeing you have plenty of room for all kinds of food and drink. These options also ensure that ice inside the cooler remains frozen for 3-5 days, depending on conditions.
This latest version of the Roadie includes numerous upgrades we love, including redesigned latches that let you easily open the lid one-handed and a flexible, webbing top handle. The Roadie 24 is just over 13 inches tall inside, which allows standard wine and 2L bottles to stand upright. The Roadie also outlasted all other personal-sized models in our insulation testing.
We also like the unique assortment of multi-toned colorways that add a nice dose of flair. The RTIC Ultralight and RovR RollR are two more of our favorites among the crowd for their ease of use. The RovR has a sizable dry bin and tall interior with nearly vertical walls. This feat is made even more impressive by all the bouncing you’ll be doing with the enormous wheels over debris on your way to the party. It also boasts one of the tallest internal heights of any cooler we tested, so you can rest assured that your chilled Pinot Grigio will stay that way all day.
For this test, I placed each cooler in direct sunlight for approximately half of each day and then in shade for the other half. I wanted to test how these two coolers I already owned stacked up head ot head. This test is just a practical, real-world test of how people actually use similar coolers. In theory, the Coleman Xtreme is meant to compete on the cooling side of the equation while still maintaining an affordable price. Other high-end coolers are becoming more popular as well, such as those from Engel, RTIC, and Grizzly as well as the Igloo Yukon and Coleman Xtreme. We’ve seen people start to think of their cooler as an investment that will last a lifetime rather than just a few years.
The Xspec strikes a very happy medium, narrow enough for simple solo carrying, tall enough to fit an upright bottle of wine, yet shallow enough to find whatever you’re looking for easily. If you’re interested in a smaller capacity option, we’re big fans of the exceptionally useful 40-quart volume and compact shape of the Orca 40. Though these won’t last you coleman ice chest an entire week in the desert (unless you chill the cooler and its contents beforehand combined with mostly ice), it is an excellent option for weekend trips or day excursions. Both models are rotomolded with freezer-style gaskets designed to keep cold air in and hot air out. We ran and re-ran insulation tests under controlled but harsh laboratory conditions.