Review: Titan by Arctic Zone 30 Can Collapsible Backpack Cooler With Ice Walls

Portable coolers are not new, but the collapsible backpack variety is starting to make a more noticeable dent into this category. That’s where the Titan line of soft-sided coolers by Arctic Zone comes in. Arctic Zone was founded in 1986 and have been “driven by one mission: build insulated gear that outperforms expectations.” We road tested their 30 Can Collapsible Backpack Cooler With Ice Walls, the latest in their robust line of insulated gear made for being on the move. 

There needs a framing of the use case of the Titan around this particular small-framed 5’3″ Drinkhacker writer, which puts a higher bar on weight and shape for “portability.” I will lead my review with the double spoiler alert that the 5-pound weight at empty is a bit of a drag (literally) and is the only relevant ding to expect in my once-over. 

A cooler has literally one job — which is to keep things cold for as long as possible. That was my primary angle for my review which led me to conclude that tossing in 3 lbs of frozen ground beef that I needed defrosted eventually would be a very instructive approach (and self-serving). In went the bricks of vacuum sealed meat into the cavernous pouch, zipped up and perched on a window where it was guaranteed to be beaten down by direct sunlight for a few hours. 

The findings: After 6 hours, the ground beef was still solidly frozen to its very edges. (That pasta bolognese will need to be saved for another night). And this was without the ice packs inserted into the ice walls. After 24 hours, some of the edges softened. After 30 hours, it was pliable enough, and there was proof enough of the Titan’s chilling performance, and half-frozen was defrosted enough, to cease the experiment and start on that bolognese. 

Now that I’d had my makeshift way with putting the Titan to the test, it was time to turn to the bold claims outlined on the company’s their website: 

30 Can Capacity: Large main compartment holds drinks, food, and ice for group outings or long days.
Deep Freeze Performance Insulation with Therma-Flect radiant barrier interior keeps ice for up to 2 days.
Leak proof, easy clean lining with Microban protection. Spills stay inside the cooler.
Smart Storage & Extras. Insulated front pocket for snacks, 2 mesh accessory pockets, plus a removable bottle opener.
Comfortable & Durable Design. Adjustable padded backpack straps and a water and stain repellent exterior built for everyday adventures.

The compartment is indeed large and with the material’s flexibility, it can accommodate all kinds of shapes and sizes of items, packed inside like misshapen Jenga bricks. Two full days of keeping ice might be a slight stretch but the 3 lbs of beef in my experiment took up only 20% of the available space — and cooled itself without additional frozen items. Add in the ice packs, and it’s credible to me that if the compartment was even at 80%, that contents would stay at near original temperature for 2 days. 

The backpack itself is very smartly designed and very cool in all the ways. It fits comfortably on the back and has a clasp on the straps that help steady the pack against your body. However, reverting to this particular reviewer’s idiosyncrasies, I would have preferred a strap at the base of the bag so that it secured at the hip and not across the chest. As mentioned, the bag already comes in at 5 lbs empty which means if I were to go on at least a two-day excursion where cold beverages would be the chef’s kiss at a summit, I’d make sure there was a sturdier companion to volunteer to be my sherpa. Because that sunset view over the canyon with an icy cold one with chilled charcuterie would actually be nice. 

A / $90 [BUY IT NOW FROM AMAZON]

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