Under Armour Cooler Review – A Close Look into UA’s Ice Chest & Cooler Bags

The New Sideline Series

The New Sideline Series of soft cooler bags has 3 main size options: 12 cans, 24 cans, and 36 cans, all available here. It also has 4 color options: black, royal blue, white, and freedom. Freedom is basically gray but with Elements of the American Flag worked into the design for patriots.

This bag really is built for the job and has classic Under Armour features that ensure it does that job well.

The outer fabric is quite durable and resistant to water and dust due to its hydrophobic coating. On the inside, it has an LDPE construction with a PEVA lining for the insulation, helping it to keep beverages cold for at least a day.

The lid isn’t what you might be used to with soft coolers. Where other soft cooler designs opt for a zipper, Under Armour’s New Sideline Series has opted for a magnetic lid, which ensures a perfect seal while being hassle-free to open.

On the outside, there are 2 exterior zip pockets in case you have any extra stuff to store that doesn’t need to be kept cold.

The bag comes with an adjustable shoulder strap for easy carrying, as well as a fence-hook and Molle webbing to act as attachment points in case you want to hang it up or tie it down to your vehicle or boat.

It’s manufactured by Thermos under an Under Armour License, and is imported, but considering the high quality, that should be okay.

Check all sizes and prices at Amazon >>

The Original Under Armour Coolers

The Original Under Armour soft coolers are the ones Under Armour is best known for, having sold them for quite a while.

They also come with some of the widest color variety of any Under Armour products on the market. You can choose from any of 14 colors, including Crystal, Faux Abe Twist, and Sprocket Camo, among others.

The bag is pretty strong and durable on the outside as it is constructed out of 420D polyester that is resistant to punctures, scratches, and tears.

On the inside is IsoTec foam insulation that keeps things cold for many hours on end. It also comes with Flex-A-Guard liner, which is strong and crush-resistant, meaning your bag will maintain its shape even after you fold it up or put it under heavy objects for a while. The liner is also pretty easy to clean.

On the outside, there are 3 zip pockets for extra storage, a molded rubber handle for easy lifting, and an adjustable shoulder strap for easy carrying over long distances.

The bag comes in two size options: the 12-can option and the 24-can option, which you can check out right here.

The Dual Compartment Insulated Lunch Bag

The Dual Compartment Insulated Lunch Bag is a relatively new offering with limited capacity as of now. However, it still does the job pretty well.

The bag has 4 color options and just one size, which is basically large enough for a plate. But that’s only the lunch compartment.

Since the bag is dual compartment, there are two storage compartments you can take advantage of. On top is a clippable roll top where you can put your training gear when you go out for exercise, competitions, or hikes. That’s the compartment where you put stuff whose temperature you don’t really have to keep constant.

It also has a space that fits the Under Armour water bottle perfectly (you have to buy the bottle separately). On the bottom is the lunch compartment, which has IsoTec foam insulation to keep your food fresh for several hours.

The liner is especially strong and crush resistant, meaning it will maintain its shape no matter what. Overall, the bag is PVC free, with durable 420D polyester on the outside and LDPE liner on the inside.

View more pictures at Amazon >>

The Scrimmage Lunch Box

The Scrimmage Lunch Box beats the original Under Armor cooler when it comes to color variety. The original Under Armor cooler has 14 color options. The Scrimmage has more than twice that at 31 color options to choose from!

Some of their exotic colors and designs include Americana Stars, Bandit Martian Red, Jagger Wordmark, Windstream, among others.

I really loved these color options as some of them were really cool and creative. It’s the kind of bag you wouldn’t have second thoughts about going out with and definitely the kind that gets you a second look with the people you walk past on the streets.

On the other hand, the lunch box only comes in one size, which is roughly enough for a single lunch. It does, however, have all the hallmarks of a high quality Under Armour product, with high-quality materials and a strong and durable build.

The outside is constructed of the usual 420D PVC free polyester, while the liner has LDPE and IsoTec foam insulation to ensure ice retention is at a maximum.

The liner, in particular, is strong and resistant to crushing, meaning it will retain its shape no matter what. It also has an exterior zipper pocket for extra storage as well as a mesh pocket on the inside.

For easy carrying, there’s an adjustable molded rubber handle on top. The bag also comes with a clip, in case you want to attach it to a backpack and carry it on your back.

Under Armour Sideline 20-Quart Hard Cooler

Size

For starters, the Under Armour's hard cooler has a capacity of 20 quarts. That’s the only capacity being offered by the brand at the moment. It’s large enough to fit about 28 cans of beer or about 24 pounds of ice.

That’s not much unless you’re looking to carry something for just one or two people. Three would be stretching it a little.

20 quarts is quite a small capacity in the world of hard coolers and it’s a shame that Under Armour isn’t offering any other cooler sizes; something that a lot of cooler manufacturers do.

However, if you’re looking for something that small, this ice chest is definitely worth considering because it is well made.

Colors

The cooler comes in 3 color options: black, red and white. All options have a black lid. It’s the color of the body that changes from one cooler to the next.

Design

That said, the design of the cooler is something else that’s very interesting. It certainly doesn’t look a lot like other coolers in the market.

Cooler brands have acquired a habit over the years of making knock-offs of each other, with the result being that coolers tend to look the same (or at least similar to market leader – YETI)

On the other hand, it does give some customers the comfort of familiarity when they see a cooler design they’re used to.

Under Armour, neither tries to copy nor cares for giving you something you’re used to. This cooler is built like a tank, with an abundance of straight lines and rugged grooves to make it look almost like an armored cooler.

Construction and Ice Retention

The ice chest itself is rotomolded with a strong BPA free PP construction. The lid has a commercial-grade gasket and a molded carry handle attached to it.

On the underside of the lid is a metal bottle opener so you don’t have to separately carry your own. Something unique about this carry handle is that, when you turn it down to the side of the cooler, it locks down the lid extra tight so no air escapes or gets in, further improving ice retention times.

Speaking of ice retention times, we did a test with our model and we noticed that it seems to retain ice for a maximum of 4 days in mild weather and just over half of that in extremely hot weather.

This is, of course, less ice retention time than what you would get with industry leaders like YETI Tundra. If you want something that will retain ice for a week or more, then I would advise you to look for a different brand. However, if you don’t mind the 2-4 day ice retention time in a cooler, Under Armour should be excellent.

Features

On the corners of the lid are lockplates, in case you want to lock your cooler with a padlock and prevent unauthorized entry. It’s also compatible with tie-downs in case you want to tie your cooler down to a boat or car.

On the inside is 2.4-inch foam insulation for better ice retention. I should note, however, that the thickness of the insulation varies from the walls to the lid and corners, which is probably part of the reason why the ice retention times aren’t as long as you would expect.

And even then, 2.4 inches is still less than the ~3-inch thick uniform insulation Yeti has on their coolers.

This cooler is, as usual, manufactured by Thermos under an Under Armour license. However, it is manufactured in the US, making it a great buy for patriots.

Check reviews from actual customers at Amazon >>

Under Armour Sideline Cooler 20 Quart

Under Armour cooler vs Yeti Roadie

The Yeti Roadie is certainly more expensive than the Under Armour ice chest, though it also comes with 6 more color options than the Under Armour ice chest and longer ice retention.

In terms of the overall design, I still think the Under Armour ice chest looks more rugged than the Roadie. However, the Roadie is also just as strong and armored, thanks to the rotomolded design.

Overall, the Roadie has more brand recognition and better performance, but is also pricier, so it mainly depends on your budget and brand loyalty.

We wrote an extensive review of the Yeti Roadie 20, so be sure to check it out when making your decision. There's also a newer Roadie 24 cooler, released this year, which is slightly taller than its predecessor and has a strap instead of a handle.

K2 Summit 20QT

The K2 Summit 20QT is only slightly more expensive than the Under Armour ice chest but has just as unique design. It also has a rugged armored tank look and comes in 3 color options: gray, green, and white.

The K2 is a roto-molded cooler, meaning it’s virtually indestructible and has 2.5-inch thick insulation for extra ice retention (better than the Under Armour).

Other features include POSITRAC lid latches, an integrated hinge system, a padded shoulder strap for easy carrying, and an ice vault lid. The smoking gun for me, however, was the 7-year warranty, which you hardly get anywhere else.

We wrote an extensive review of the K2 Summit 20QT, so be sure to check it out when making your decision.

Igloo IMX 24QT

Now, one thing we should note about the Igloo is that, not only is it a better-known brand in the cooler space, but it is also almost half the price of the Under Armour ice chest and 4 quarts larger. That means you’re paying for a better known cooler brand, you’re paying less money, and you’re getting a larger size.

If that’s not a steal then I don’t know what is! The igloo includes features like lock plates for the lid, self-draining cup holders, self-stopping integrated lid hinges so your cooler lid can stay open when you want it to, a built-in bottle opener, and a dry foods basket on the inside.

We wrote an extensive review of the Igloo IMX, so be sure to check it out when making your decision.

Under Armour are also offering a water cooler/jug for athletes who want a container that keeps their beverages hot or cold while holding lots of it. With a 64-ounce capacity, this water jug should carry enough water or any other beverage to last you through the day.

The jug has the standard double-wall insulation, though it features foam for the actual insulation, making it a little unique from other water bottles in the market. At any rate, the insulation manages to keep your drinks cold for up to 12 hours, which is pretty decent.

The lid is a flip-top leak-resistant lid with push-button operation. There’s also a carrying handle on top that you can fold down when not using. It also comes with fence hooks for easy hanging.

The water cooler comes in 12 color options.