Campart Travel CB-8691BS Cool Box, Portable Fridge/Freezer, 41L, Thermoelectric & Compressor System, Adjustable Thermostat, 230V UK & 12V Plug, Fixed Lid

This campart travel cool box is 47 x 54 x 47cm inside and holds 41l. It is advertised as a cool box but the size and working of it makes it more of a portable fridge. It isn’t light either- 20kg and that is without contents inside of it.It is though a very well made and sturdy item that works fantastically. It works quite quickly at cooling items- although to save battery power I would suggest putting already cold items in if possible.It is rather an expensive item, so this is definitely designed for those that travel or go camping a lot, or for the fancy campers! However if the size of it ticks the right boxes then I would definitely recommend.

I obtained this item as part of the Amazon Vine programme when it was priced at £299.99, a whopping price to compliment a whopping size; by far the biggest cooler of this type that I could find in the Amazon store. it arrived today and is already preparing for a 5 day trip starting tomorrow.So I have awarded this item four stars initially and I haven't fully tested it. Well first off, in a competitive market, I found slightly smaller fridges of this nature available at far lower prices. I would add that not all will be manufactured as well, but allowing for that comment they seem durable enough and are supplied by brand name companies. This Campart model is probably at the maximum size you would want to purchase, as the unit itself is not light (20kg) and full, it is very heavy and will be a challenge to carry despite having two strong handles. We placed 6 large bottles of carbonated soft drinks, a pre-frozen cooling pack (reduces reliance on the compressor) and a host of other items including cold meats into ours and are presently chilling it and them down using mains power to 3-5C, ahead of a trip to Cornwall tomorrow (we will decant and refill the unit before installing in the car). It does seem to cool food and drink quickly and efficiently and whilst a little noisy (around 40bB) , I do not expect it to be too noisy when in transit tomorrow. In order to save drain on our car battery, I would strongly recommend cooling the items first whilst on mains power and if possible, adding cooling packs to reduce the pull on power even more. In a similar manner, whilst in transit, if leaving the car for anything other than a short stop, I would be loathe to leave the cool box, particularly on a hot day, without the engine running for more than 30 minutes. The manufacturer states it consumes power at 61W, which whilst not huge on mains power, will place a strain on a 12v car battery, particularly if used as the sole source of power for a long period. I have tried to determine how long the car battery could support the Cool box in isolation and I believe on my Skoda it should be 4 hours - (400mah battery) based upon reducing a fully charged battery down to 50% - anything more could damage the battery.What sets this item apart from many other coolers is that it can cool food items down to -15C; I would suggest once again that it would be better to freeze them first in a standard freezer and use this item for themperature maintenance during transportation. Once connected to the mains, I have no doubt that it will be able to keep food frozen in all but the highest ambient temperature. I will see how well it performs, particularly in a warm car and whether it can cool to 37C lower than the ambient temperature on long term test.In terms of size, it is pretty big, but fits nicely into the boot of our Skoda Karoq and Dacia Duster. In a smaller vehicle, I see it providing a bit more of a challenge as It does take up quite a bit of boot space and with medium sized SUV,we are likely to have to split the seats and lower one seat to fit our luggage into the boot.So far so good. A larger than average portable fridge/freezer with adjustable temperature range down to -15. It can be carried in a car, or camper van and provided there is mains power on site, I would have no hesitation in using this item when camping. It is more expensive than some alternatives, but bearing in mind the fact that it can be used to cool over a temperature range from -15 to +10C, the quality of construction and the capacity, for some people it might offer a solution, particularly for a large family. Certainly for a two week Camping holiday with the average size family, stocking it with ice creams alone from one of the two German supermarkets will probably allow it to pay for itself during the course of the holiday, particularly if compared with buying them individually from the camp shop!

Disclosure: I was offered this item without charge as part of Amazon's Vine Programme. I have not been solicited by the seller for a review; the words and opinions given here are mine.I'm not a fan of camping. I do not camp, at least, not so in the last 10 years. However I do enjoy a nice cold beer and/or glass of wine when on a day trip out or at a party, and a good supply of chilled drinks whilst working in my workshop/garden office. My review is therefore given in that context. To further context set, this item is described as being a "coolbox". To me "coolbox" conveys two things; the ability to keep cold items chilled, and portability. By that measure, I don't consider this to be a coolbox but a portable fridge and my review is given in that context; your mileage my vary. I have deducted one star from an otherwise 5 star review, on that basis.The "coolbox" is nicely presented, in a stylish contemporary black and grey finish. The plastics used in construction seem of good quality and up to the job at hand, and the overall finishing implies a quality product . Where corners do seem to have been cut are with the power leads. Both the mains and 12v leads are fixed connections to the unit; I 'd have preferred to have seen detachable cables, allowing the use of leads of alternative length without resorting to extension leads. The overall impression in that area is a bit cheap 'n cheerful but no so much as to warranty dropping another star from the rating.With 41 litres of capacity, it's not small and there's clearly ample room for a good supply of bottled products, alcoholic or otherwise. However that is also part of the problem for me when it comes to "coolbox"; this is both a large and heavy item for one person to transport even when empty. I don't see many people, certainly not children, attempting to lift this into a car or carrying it any distance therefrom, when loaded. Total weight of the unit aside (17Kg), the placement of the compressor towards its rear means that this mass is also somewhat imbalanced, adding to the 'struggle' to move it around.To me then, this is a portable fridge capable of mains and battery operation, not a coolbox.[Performance]Running on mains (i.e. using the compressor), with the thermostat set half-way between min. and max. settings, at a surrounding temperature of 20c, and with two 300ml bottles within, the unit chilled down to 3c within 2Hrs. With all power removed, the internal temperate rose at a rate of around 2.5c per hour, over a four hour period, which I think is quite reasonable given the low thermal mass of the items placed within it.Starting out from 3c internal temp (chilled down again using the compressor/mains), I switched over the power source to 12v, supplied by a Noko battery charger. The manual states that the current drain can be up to 8A, so be aware that a car battery isn't going to last that long at such a rate of discharge. However in my test case here, the mains powered 12v supply meant that it could be run in 'Peltier mode' indefinitely. 8 hours after switching over from mains to 'battery', the internal temperature was now 6c (outside temp ~22c), with which I was very impressed. Again, be aware that 8 hours is more than your car's battery is going to be able to supply it for without being at least very heavily discharged (and possibly damaged, depending on its capacity and chemistry).Noise levels were generally good; the compressor (mains use) is surprisingly quiet as compared to a regular domestic fridge however in Peltier mode (12v) it is noticeably louder and not something you'd want to try to sleep in the proximity of. The noise and sound level on 12v is similar to a loud PC fan, which isn't surprising given that this is in effect exactly what is being used inside to cool the hot side of the Peltier effect heat pump.All together, I rate this as a good attempt to produce a small portable fridge of decent quality and good performance, and I expect to get good use from it albeit as more a of static item than a coolbox in the traditional sense.