Igloo Marine Ultra 70 Review

The Igloo Marine Ultra 70 is a part of Igloo's Marine Cooler Collection that has some new durability-focused upgrades to address common points of failure in previous models. The hinges are from Riteflex resin, which they describe as “An impact-resistant, highly flexible, temperature and chemical-resistant material.” The lid is fully insulated, and stainless steel hardware is used throughout the cooler.

Insulation

When it comes to meeting those expectations, the Igloo Marine Ultra kept things below 40 degrees for just over four days. Once that threshold was passed, the 50-degree point came and went fairly quickly, less than half a day later. Overall, this performance was just slightly below the average of all the tested coolers.

Durability

Carrying the Igloo in our slosh test was okay for a few small steps, but as soon as we started a normal stride, water splashed out the sides with each step.

The Marine Ultra 70 is part of Igloo's Marine Collection, so it's disappointing that this cooler does not have non-slip feet or a textured/grippy lid. It could become quite slippery if the plastic got wet, as often happens when using a marine cooler in its intended environment. The handles are the best we've seen from Igloo, made of a grippy textured plastic, which makes it easy to yank and pull the cooler around. Our tester, Gena Bradshaw, mentioned, “I would like to see some reinforcement for the handle attachment points.” The attachments did not break during testing, but it isn't hard to picture them snapping off after carrying one too many heavy loads. It seems Igloo is headed in the right direction with this model, featuring some longevity-focused features like stainless steel hardware in the hinges and latch, and constructing it with UV-protected material to help shield the cooler from sun damage.

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Ease of Use

In the past, from Igloo, we've seen slippery, untextured plastic used on the handles, so our review of the Marine Ultra 70 was a pleasant surprise. We love the texturized grip that is somewhat soft and squishy to the touch on the new handles on the Igloo, even if we are sorry to say these are the only handles on the entire cooler. The manufacturer claims a capacity of 102 cans. Our test team fit 114 12-ounce cans. The simple design of this cooler makes it easy to pack, and we like the detent in the lid's hinges that enables it to stay open on its own, too. The drain plug is threaded to hook up a water hose if you'd like, which is nice, but we wish it had more grip on it, as it can be quite difficult to remove, especially when wet.

Portability

The Igloo Marine Ultra claims a whopping 70-quart capacity. In our measurement, we came up with 76 quarts. Either way, this is a formidable storage space for a cooler and puts the Marine Ultra well into “potentially very heavy” territory when fully loaded. The empty Igloo weighs 13.6 lbs, and while that's significantly lighter than most other coolers of this capacity, it still is pretty large and, when loaded up, is likely to become cumbersome to carry on your own. Our tester Gena said, “The handles don't feel terribly robust, but I appreciate that they flip out when you use them, thus protecting your hands from hitting the sides of the cooler when you walk.”

Additional Features

Featuring a fish ruler and four self-draining cup holders molded into the lid, the Igloo Marine Ultra has a few tricks up its sleeve, but nothing we haven't seen before. This particular cooler is only available in one size, although within the Igloo Marine Cooler Collection, an array of bigger and smaller-sized coolers is available. The only accessory for this model available from Igloo at the time of purchase is ice packs, which aren't specialized in any way specifically for this cooler. The Igloo comes with a one-year warranty, which is better than some but falls short in our minds, as most other models we reviewed offer 3 years coverage or more.

Should You Buy the Igloo Marine Ultra 70?

The Igloo Marine Ultra 70 offers large capacity, decent insulation performance, and a great price. Igloo has stepped up its game with this cooler, delivering much-needed upgrades to improve critical components prone to failure, like the hinges, lid latch, and handles. Considering that, we think the Marine Ultra is a great buy for those looking for a high-capacity cooler on a budget. Still, we feel it falls short for marine-specific users, particularly given the lack of non-slip feet and grippy textured material in key locations. We also still have some durability concerns.

What Other Coolers Should You Consider?