Titan by Arctic Zone 30 Can Zipperless HardBody Cooler Review

The Titan by Arctic Zone 30 Can Zipperless HardBody Cooler is designed for quick access and everyday adventures without the premium cooler price tag. It has a zipperless lid, plenty of exterior storage, and clever interior organization. We’ll see how it holds up in the real world and, most importantly, how well it keeps things cold. Let’s check it out!

External Components

The exterior is made of ripstop material with TPE and has proven durable during our testing. We haven’t run into any issues with the materials, and we dig the available colorways, too. It’s not trying to look like a high-end soft cooler, but it gets the job done.

There are zippers on the secondary compartments, though they’re unbranded. They seem to work fine, and we haven’t had any issues with them. Honestly, we don’t care much about the zipper brand here, since the main compartment doesn’t use one. If it did, we might have stronger feelings about it. For these smaller pockets, the unbranded zippers are perfectly adequate.

The hardware is unbranded, too, and we haven’t had any issues with it. We’re generally less concerned about unbranded hardware than unbranded zippers, and everything here works as expected.

A metal bottle opener is attached to the cooler, which is a nice touch. It feels durable and has come in handy during testing. It’s one of those small features that you might not think about until you actually need it, and then you’re glad it’s there.

There’s also a bungee system on top of the cooler. It’s handy for stuffing a picnic blanket, sweatshirt, or other lightweight items you want to bring along. We dig it, though there’s one thing to keep in mind. If you try to open the cooler while something is secured here, the extra weight can cause the lid to open quickly or slam shut. It’s not really a problem, but it’s worth noting if you’ve loaded up the bungee.

Fit Notes

The Titan 30 Can Zipperless HardBody Cooler has two carrying options: handles and a shoulder strap.

The cooler has handles on both sides, and they’re reasonably well-padded. The padding is pretty malleable rather than dense, though, so it folds over when the cooler gets heavy. That makes it less comfortable when you’re carrying a fully loaded cooler for any meaningful distance. For a quick trip from the car to a picnic table, they work fine.

There’s also an adjustable shoulder strap, which is the better option for longer carries. It’s wide, with an even wider, rubberized section. There’s no real padding here, but the rubberized section does a good job of keeping the strap from sliding around on your shoulder. It doesn’t necessarily make the cooler any more comfortable to carry, but at least you won’t have to readjust it constantly.

Neither option is particularly luxurious, but that’s pretty normal for a cooler. If you’re taking this to a soccer game, picnic, or the beach, the carrying options are perfectly serviceable. We just wouldn’t choose it for a multi-mile trek to a campsite.

Inside The Cooler

There are two zippered pockets on the front of the cooler. One is smaller, while the other is larger and insulated. We didn’t use these pockets much during testing, but they’re handy for small items you want easy access to. The smaller pocket works well for a phone, while the larger insulated pocket provides another spot for food or drinks.

If you’re heading to the beach or going swimming, these pockets can also be useful for holding things you don’t want to take into the water. Just remember that the smaller pocket isn’t padded or insulated, so it won’t provide much protection beyond keeping your items separated from the rest of the cooler.

There are also mesh pockets on both sides underneath the handles. They have elastic openings and can accommodate surprisingly large items. They’re useful for clothing, snacks, or other food that doesn’t need to stay cold. Or you can simply leave them empty. Either way, it’s nice to have the extra storage.

The main compartment is where things get interesting. Instead of a zipper, the cooler uses a zipperless, flip-open lid. A hook-and-loop fastener holds the lid shut, though the cooler can technically close without it. It works fine in normal use, but if the cooler gets tipped over or ends up on its side, you’re putting a lot of faith in that hook-and-loop fastener to keep everything inside.

Inside, there’s a removable SmartShelf that creates two levels of storage. It’s a cool design because you can keep harder items, like cans and bottles, underneath while putting softer foods on top. That helps prevent sandwiches and other soft foods from getting crushed.

The top section is also useful for snacks or foods you want to keep out of the ice. Things like unwrapped food, candy, or snacks you want quick access to can go here without digging through the main compartment. Just remember that there are holes in the tray, so if the cooler gets flipped upside down, water and melted ice can still get into this area.

If you don’t want the shelf, it’s removable, allowing you to use the entire liner as one large compartment. We didn’t find much reason to remove it during our testing, but having the option is nice if you’re packing larger items.

The rest of the main compartment is simply open storage. There’s plenty of room to pack drinks, food, and ice, and we don’t have anything bad to report here. The entire plastic tub that makes up the main compartment is also removable, though we never found a reason to take it out.

As for cooling performance, the Titan 30 Can Zipperless HardBody Cooler doesn’t perform particularly well when it isn’t fully packed. After 24 hours with ice inside, we found mostly water with just a few pieces of ice remaining. Everything was still cold, but this isn’t the kind of performance that’s going to impress us.

It performs better when it’s fully packed, which makes sense. Just like your refrigerator, a packed cooler has less space for warm air to circulate. If you fill it up with food, drinks, and plenty of ice, it does a much better job of keeping everything cold.

That said, this cooler is much more compelling given its price. At around $70, it’s significantly cheaper than many of the premium alternatives. For comparison, a YETI cooler in a similar size can cost around $300. You’re giving up some cooling performance to get there, but that may be a perfectly reasonable tradeoff if you’re using this for single-day adventures, picnics, soccer games, beach trips, or similar outings.

The Titan by Arctic Zone 30 Can Zipperless HardBody Cooler isn’t the best-performing cooler we’ve tested, but it doesn’t need to be. The zipperless lid makes it easy to access your food and drinks, the SmartShelf adds useful organization, and the exterior storage gives you spots for other gear. At this price, it’s a solid option for anyone who doesn’t need their cooler to keep ice frozen for multiple days.