And it’s good for scooping from shallower pools. It maintains a strong flow for longer than the Squeeze or the QuickDraw. Why? It’s lightweight, even with the bladder. What are they going to come out with next, iPhone chargers?!īut I think that, ultimately, I ended up preferring this one over any of the others. And the fact that the BeFree filter only fits onto their particular bladder almost just seems sadistic. It’s more expensive, and I generally don’t see the point of hiking with a bladder unless you know you’re going to have some big water carries.

The bladder comes in handy when scooping from shallow pools.

Lots of extra pieces that you don’t necessarily need.

Extremely variable flow rate, regardless of how gamey the source is.

Versatility: fits on a Platypus bladder or a Smartwater/Essentia bottle.

Probably the most durable filter on the market.

READ NEXT – Platypus QuickDraw Water Filter Review QuickDraw Pros and Cons Although, to be fair, I didn’t use any of them. The advertised weight is also low if you are going to use any of the other pieces that this filter comes with. So I don’t appreciate that number fudging.

I don’t think that the advertised “three liters per minute” is ever going to be an achievable flow for this filter though. It’s hard to get a quick flow from this thing, but it also seems more resistant to clogging, so there’s usually less time between backflushes, which can be nice. Once it started to slow, I almost felt like I was getting reps in at the gym. It slowed at about the same rate as the Sawyer and the BeFree, and it backflushes easier than the Sawyer and the same as the BeFree.Īt its maximum, this filter was going about 1.5 liters per minute with serious squeezing. This thing is definitely built to last longer than either of the other two filters, and I found the flow rate to mostly be comparable as well. The sports cap is way more heavy-duty than the Katadyn or Sawyer, and so it probably won’t break off after three open- and-closes like the others.It has the O-ring built into the screw cap instead of having it be removable.Namely, there are two features that set it apart: This filter has a lot to love about it, and certainly improves upon a few shortcomings in the very similarly constructed Sawyer Squeeze.

Platypus water filter