Overall Score
- Ease of Use 65%
- Durability 40%
- Seal 60%
- Maintenance 40%
- Insulation 30%
Key Takeaways
Holds Enough Water for the Entire Day
The 128oz capacity provides enough water that the user does not need to refill it throughout the day.
Helpful Motivational Reminders on the Bottle
The bottle has printed motivational statements on the side.Â
Handle Provides Good Leverage and is Well Designed
The handle allows the bottle to be easily picked up and carried when full.
replaceable parts
changeable tops
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Overview
The Vmini bottle is among the new reusable bottle offerings that are designed to carry a day’s worth of water in one container. In the case of Vmini, you’ll have a maximum capacity of one gallon of water (128oz). Our Optimal Hydration research found that the average man needs ~15 cups/day and female ~12 cups/day. No need to refill throughout the day with the Vmini!
Reviewers found that keeping a day’s worth of water by their side had the intended effect: they all reported drinking more water. Some of these individuals knew they were chronically dehydrated throughout the day prior to using the Vmini because they did not have the right habits. The benefits of staying properly hydrated are massive and this was a real win for them.
There are some tradeoffs to using a bottle with so much capacity, namely the weight and difficulty of carrying it. When full, the Vmini weighs 9.3 pounds. A full bottle is challenging to carry around for more than a couple of minutes and commuting with a full bottle in your backpack is not advised.
Our full review covers the pros and cons of the Vmini bottle if you are still on the fence.
Ease of Use
The Vmini was tested in several real world circumstances including working remotely and at the office. This is not a bottle that we see accompanying you on a jog or bike ride. That’s why we always recommend multiple bottles to cover the different lifestyle requirements.
The biggest takeaway is that the bottle encourages hydration. Users reported drinking more water when using the Vmini, even compared to using other, smaller, reusable water bottles. The handle allows for a firm grip which is very important when the bottle is full. The straw is also easy to operate and wide enough to allow for big sips. And if you are going to finish the full bottle in one day then you will likely need to take some big sips.
While we liked the handle, it does have the potential to get slippery when wet because it’s made of the same plastic as the rest of the bottle. This is usually only a problem shortly after filling it up but if you find yourself spilling water on it, then it may make sense to wrap some tape around the handle for extra grip.Â
Even with a good grip on the handle, the Vmini will likely require two hands if you try to lift it when it’s more than half full. For the more petite users, we recommend trying to keep it stationary on your desk as opposed to bringing the bottle to you. Users should exercise caution when handling a full bottle. At 9.3 pounds dropping it could be dangerous, to your feet and the objects around you.Â
Thinking outside of the box, this bottle could also be used as a dumbbell for home workouts or as a doorstop when not required for drinking.Â
Durability
The Vmini uses a light plastic construction (plastic #7) throughout the whole bottle and handle. Two small rubber strips are found around the circumference of the base and top of the water bottle, potentially offering light protection. We understand that the manufacturer was probably trying to keep weight down but dropping the Vimini could be problematic. If the bottle is dropped while full onto a hard surface it has the potential to break and spray water everywhere. The plastic is somewhat brittle and does not have the strength of a Nalgene or Camelbak Eddy.Â
Seal
The Vmini did not leak at all during testing and it was straightforward to close completely. The folding mouthpiece on the top does not have any locking mechanism, so there is potential for it to get knocked open and start leaking. It is unlikely that anyone will carry the Vmini in a backpack or bag but we still want to discourage it due to the loose mouthpiece on top and the potential to spill an entire gallon of water into your bag.
Maintenance
Taking care of your Vmini does not require too much effort if some precautions are followed, but overall it is not the friendliest of bottles to clean. Vmini is not dishwasher safe so it will require handwashing. Given liquid is also stored in the handle which is nearly impossible to reach, we recommend only using water in this bottle. The narrow mouth also makes it slightly challenging to scrub so we recommend investing in a big bottle brush to handle the task.
The manufacturer cautions against using hot liquids so this is not the bottle to carry coffee or hot tea around. The instructions also recommend using baking soda and vinegar to clean but standard dish soap will also do the trick.
Drying this bottle will take some additional time given the narrow mouth so it’s necessary to have some extra patience between washing it and putting it into storage.
Insulation
As we expected the water in the Vmini bottle quickly came to room temperature during the insulation test. There are no surprises here, but it is something to keep in mind. If having access to cold water is very important to you, a double insulated bottle such as the Yeti or HydroCell may be a better option.
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Go Deeper
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