Last Updated on July 9, 2023
EDITOR’S NOTE: Updated for 2022.
This post is an open thread and contains affiliate links.
Half the battle of getting to a party is getting the food to the party. We’ve all been there: we’re going to someplace hot with cold drinks … all while the cold drinks are warming up in the greenhouse heat of the car. Or, we’re going to someplace cold and bringing hot food … all while the hot food is cooling off in the frigid trunk of a car in the middle of winter.
For a number of years now, Aldi has sold a gadget that claims to be able to solve these problems. In years past, it was sold under the Adventuridge product label; now it’s sold under a different Aldi house brand, Auto XS.
What We Know:
The Auto XS Electric Travel Cooler (Product Code: 805098) is an Aldi Find, which means it’s only in stores for a short time. In 2022, it cost $59.99. That’s $10 more than it cost in previous years, both when this model sold in 2021 as well as what the Adventuridge Iceless Electric Cooler went for in the years before. Even with the price increase, it’s much less than electric coolers I can find on Amazon.
It comes with a 2-year warranty, serviced by a company with an address at h-u-p.com. A visit to that site indicates it’s a German company, but I don’t know much about it beyond that.
According to Aldi, the cooler measures 15.2″ wide, 11.6″ high, and 18.9“ deep — enough for thirty-six 12-ounce cans, 10 1-liter bottles, or six 2-liter bottles. It can be used either in the car accessory socket (commonly called the cigarette lighter adapter) or plugged into a standard 2-prong wall outlet, both of which are stored in a cable storage compartment.
Aldi claims that this can cool to 36 degrees Fahrenheit below room temperature or heat up to 131 degrees Fahrenheit. The lid can be propped halfway open with the handle, or the lid can be removed entirely.
What We Don’t Know:
We haven’t reviewed this specific model, so we can’t speak to how well it performs compared to what it claims to do, or how long it lasts.
Do you have experience with this item? Let us know in the comments.
Purchased this week and connected electrically in house to see performance. It took about 10 hours to cool sufficiently my beers. Purchased to keep in my SUV. a bit bigger than I thought. Works well but a bit noisy. It’s a keeper. If not connected it’s still a good travel cooler/ Price is right
I purchased and tested this cooler/warmer. Both functions were as documented. Reviews for similar coolers always suggest that you pre-chill everything before loading into the cooler. If you have extra space, it will also help to put in frozen water bottles or frozen ice packs.
When did you get your coolers. I’ve been waiting for two weeks for our store to get them in. Every morning I have been to our store and I the same answer. The supplier has is behind on shipping to our location
A lot of retailers, including Aldi, have been experiencing shipping delays lately. Hopefully you find a cooler soon! https://www.aldireviewer.com/whats-up-with-aldi-find-product-shipping-delays/
Just bought my XS cooler and plugged it in. The fan seems a little noisy, but I won;t give it a thoubs up or down until I have tried it a week. Watch this space.
I have this cooler but the 12v does not plug into my car. Is there an adapter of some kind to make it fit?
Look in the power cord compartment. The DV “cigarette lighter” should be tucked back in there.
Found it. Removed the red cap!!! Now it fits. Thanks Daniel for making me look again.
It did work for us this weekend using the regular plug. Next time we are fully prepared!!!
I decided to return my cooler. There is nothing wrong with it; it seems sturdily built. No complaints. I just realized I wanted fridge that cools, not a cooler that keeps cool. This product does that well enough.
Mine keeps freezing up- I have to unplug and defrost every couple days😳😳🤷♀️
It’s freezing up because there is liquid in the bottom of the cooler like water from melted ice. Remove all the water at the bottom and the icing up will stop. I speak from experience.
Also if the lid is not completely closed icing up will occur due to humidity entering the cabinet.
I own a different brand, but it says it is not designed to be used as a refrigerator. I find that I need to unplug it for about an hour each day if I want to use for a few days in a row.
I loved mine until 2 weeks ago when it stopped working with the DV plug. I brought it in the house and it works on DC. I found a fuse for it in the storage compartment, but don’t know where it goes. Any ideas?
For the record, I use it to put my cold groceries in after visiting stores a distance away, and for taking both hot and cold dishes to different locations.
Quite possibly the fuse, extras are provided in the cord compartment.
* Instructions are in the manual! *
Most of the time to replace the fuse in a cig lighter plug, there would be a way to unscrew either the tip or the whole case and where you would see the old fuse to insert a different one.
where is the location of the fuse
in the plug itself,in the part that conects to 12v socket
Does this cooler come with a manual?
Yes.