CamelBak Better Bottle Review

By Court Rye | in Gear | Tags: Hydration

CamelBak Better Bottle with straw and valve, classic colors.

CamelBak is well known for their light packs and inserts that put a drinking reservoir onto your back with a straw and bite valve for easy access. In recent years the company has expanded their offering to include plastic bottles much like those made popular by Nalgene. The Better Bottle is their standard .75L wide mouth product that comes with either a screw on top or straw plus bite valve combo.

Aside from the great selection of colors and designs offered on the Better Bottle I was first attracted to it by it’s overall shape. Nalgene bottles have always had a wider diameter and were thus clunkier looking and harder to use in bottle holders for me. As a proud owner of a traditional CamelBak backpack, I thought the bite valve on the bottles was a pretty neat idea. Now that I’ve purchased more than five of these bottles and tried them out on the trail and in my day to day life I can say they’re great!

All new CamelBak bottles are BPA free and just as strong and sturdy as ever. They don’t leak and the caps hold up very well. Between the cap only option and the straw+bite valve I prefer the cap only with the addition of a splash guard, but the straw isn’t too bad, it really doesn’t fall off too often and is often superior do use while driving so you don’t have to tip the bottle up into your field of vision. I love tossing my bottles around and this particular model is great for spinning because of it’s long semetrical-ish shape and easy to grip width/diameter. Some of the newest designs come in metal, have smaller diameter bottom sections for use in cup holders and are built at the 1L size. One metal design is even insulated much like a thermos for use with coffee and other hot beverages.

PS. I know in the video review below I called it a “super bottle” but that’s just a mistake, it’s called the “Better Bottle”.

: CamelBak Better Bottle with straw and valve, classic colors.

1 Comments

Court
2010-09-07
13:25:21
This comment was recently sent in and I thought I'd answer it here so everyone could chime in and benefit:

I recently read your recommendation for the CamelBak product line of bottles, stating that they are "BPA free." What exactly does "BPA free" mean? It seems to be applied rather loosely in some circumstances. Is there any agreed upon scientific definition, or is it a qualification required (by FDA for example) for using this phrase to market a product?

According to Wikipedia and other sources Bisphenol A (commonly abbreviated as BPA) is an organic compound with two phenol functional groups used to make polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins, along with other applications. BPA is known to be estrogenic and is an endocrine disruptor, which can mimic the body's own hormones and may lead to negative health effects (young people are most vulnerable). Concerns about the use of bisphenol A in consumer products were regularly reported in the news media in 2008 after several governments issued reports questioning its safety, thus prompting some retailers to remove products containing it from their shelves. A 2010 report from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) raised further concerns regarding exposure of fetuses, infants, and young children.

In the US less than 5% of the BPA produced is used in food contact applications but it seems to be in everything non food related. In 2008 a study on people found that higher Bisphenol A levels were significantly associated with heart disease, diabetes, and abnormally high levels of certain liver enzymes. Other associations include recurrent miscarriage, decreased sexual function in males and behavioral changes in children.

Bisphenol A has been known to be leached from the plastic lining of canned foods. While most human exposure is through diet, exposure can also occur through air and through skin absorption. So... by purchasing a CamelBak bottle that is not lined with BPA you are taking a step towards avoidance but may still be exposed through your environment.

CamelBak CEO Sally McCoy had this to say about BPA "I want to be very clear about what we mean when we say “BPA-Free” – it means there is no BPA in our materials, and thus no BPA in the liquids that people drink from our bottles. We back this claim with continuous testing of our materials conducted by an internationally-recognized independent lab." full message at http://www.camelbak.com/en/camelbak-101/ceo-letter-bpa-metal-bottles.aspx