CamelBak Podium® Chill™, Water Bottle, 21 oz, Black

Replaced my old Podium Chill bottles with the new ones. The biggest positive is that they better fit a variety of cages. Of the five varieties of cages that I use, they fit them all well. The shape works well in that the bottles sits straight in the cage. As always, they keep drinks cool nicely.

The bottles are great. I have used these for several years but needed a new set. The box the two bottle were shipped in could have fit 20 bottles. I wish Camelbak would be more mindful of packaging waste.

The bottle definitely keeps water colder longer than a standard bottle with no insulation. Will it keep ice for hours? No, it won't, but it isn't designed to function like this. It's not a vacuum insulated bottle. They advertise twice as long as a standard bottle and I'd say that's about right. What I like about it the most is that it seals. On long rides, I mix powder with my water. I have never had a standard water bottle that didn't seep at least a little. The seepage causes the bottle to get all stick and sometimes if roads are really bumpy it dribbles down the side of my bike. Not the end of the world, but annoying nonetheless. The Camelbak bottles seal nice - both the cap and the nozzle.

Many people here have complained that they could not find cleaning info. I just bought my bottle yesterday so don't have an informed review, but complete cleaning instructions are on the site. Go to the Help Center, Care and Cleaning. There is a section for each product, with text and a video. Could the highlights be on the tag or bottle? Yes, there is definitely room for improvement in communication. And yes, it is upper rack dishwasher safe.

The clear plastic part at the mouth ripped immediately. This bottle also has an annoying small inner part that separates from the cap in order to wash, which is easily lost.

As another has commented, please put the instructions on the bottles or on your web site! A simple thing really :-( If there is an easy way to clean these bottles, it should be available for users to view.

I bought these bottles because the redesign was supposed to be easier to use and clean. While yes, the parts do come apart and are easier to clean once disassembled, the process actually hurts my fingers. I am not making a mountain out of a molehill here--turning the valve via the small wing arms hurts because the edges are too sharp, and the fit is too tight. The old version could be unlocked with one hand or with the bottle in the cage, but the new one is so tight that you have to hold the top in place so it does not come unscrewed while opening the valve. Taking the top apart to clean is even worse. Pushing the valve through the top requires you to again press your fingers against sharp plastic edges to force it through, and popping the retaining ring back in place when reassembling is equally painful. It would be one thing if this was just due to initial tight fit, but I have disassembled these bottles after every use to stay on top of keeping them clean, and they have continued to be a challenge. I would also chalk it up to an outlier with tight manufacturing tolerance, but I bought six of these bottles (two insulated 21oz, three standard 24oz, and one 21oz with dirt cap), and they are all terrible.

Have to agree with another reviewer that there are no instructions with a bottle that works differently from the typical water bottle. The info that says there will be instructions on the website is just untrue. There are none! Please correct this oversite and provide the info needed. Until you do I will never buy another product from this company again. There are too many other good ones to bother with this one again.

This is my first CamelBak product. Can I put it in the dishwasher? It's got a big tag with no real useful information. It says to go to the website for care instructions. This is irritating. I don't want to have to do more work to find out information that every other plastic food container I have ever bought has imprinted on it. Anyway, I go to the site and what do I find? Nothing about what I was told to come here for. I find the product (this one, of course) and does it tell me if I can put in the dishwasher? Nope. I wasted 15 minutes rereading the description over and over. Don't think I did.

I've used the Camelbak podium chill for Ironman races. The old version was as perfect as can be. When I saw that they changed the bottle, I purchased the coveted black version. Horrible difference! Bottle was super had to hold while riding and had a difficult time working with it. Seems like a step backwards for this product. Bring the old bottle back!