I usually drink beer from a glass, except when working in the garage, in which case I prefer the smaller opening of a can/bottle - less stuff falls/crawls in, and less liquid spills when I inevitably knock it over. For thermal and shock insulation, I'd been using some foam beer coolies for... ever. They keep the beer cold enough, and cushion the bottom when I set the drink on the concrete floor so it doesn't foam up and overflow. They're also long-since covered in various petroleum products, dirt, and other things I'd prefer to pretend aren't embedded in the foam when raising it to my lips for a sip.
After a long period of considering "upgrading" to a Yeti, I decided to purchase one. My experience so far is:
POSITIVE
+ Easy to clean - After a few oil changes, tire rotations, lawn mowings, etc. the cooler is spotless. I can clean it with soap and water or, if needed, stronger solvents.
+ Bare metal - I love the fact that the stainless color is actually bare stainless on the outside, with no clearcoat. It's better for the environment, easier to clean, and will look better over time because there's no superfluous paint layer to yellow or flake.
+ Works for 12 oz cans and some bottles - Standard 12 oz beer/soda cans are a perfect fit. Some bottles fit, and others rattle around; it depends on the shape of the bottle. I mostly drink canned beer when using the Yeti, so it meets my needs.
+ Easy to remove cans - Unlike the foam coolies, cans slide out easily. I don't have to bend my fingernails back trying to pry them out, or blow through a hole in the bottom to try to pop them out.
NEUTRAL
o Cold enough - It keeps my drink cold, but not substantially differently than a foam coolie. Maybe I'd find a difference if I measured the temperature with a thermometer over time but, in practice, given the time it takes me to drink a beer and the fact that I tend to enjoy warm-ish beer anyway, this is a draw for me.
o Heavy bottom - My can always feels half-full because of the weight of the bottom-heavy Yeti, so I end up drinking it faster than I realize. I expect I'll get used to this over time.
o No bottom cushion - I like the fact that the bottom is bare, smooth steel because it's easy to clean, but dislike the fact that I know I'm going to dent it by putting it down on hard surfaces, and it tends to slide around. I'll probably stick some Sugru on the bottom the first time it rattles off of my workbench when I'm sawing.
o Touches my lip - The lock ring is high enough that my lip touches it when I take a sip. It feels like I'm going to dribble liquid down my chin, but that's never happened. I think it's just different than what I'm used to, and I'll probably adapt.
NEGATIVE
- Expensive - This device works well enough, but it's not a good value because of the exorbitant price. I mean, it's a can coolie. I rationalize it because 1) its clean, 2) I'll probably have it for the rest of my life, and 3) most of it is recyclable, none of which are true of my foam coolies.
- Fit - While it fits standard 12 oz cans perfectly, it only fits some bottles, no slim cans, and no 16 oz cans. Yeti makes other coolies for most of these, but you'll be approaching a three-figure cost to outfit yourself with all of them. (Note that I did buy a 16 oz can adapter, which works well.)
Overall, I'd neither recommend for or against this Yeti can coolie; it depends on your use case (and available cash). The positives and negatives compared to a foam coolie are pretty much the inverse of one another. So, if this meets your needs and you want to splurge, you'll be the happy owner of a well-built, simple product that does its job admirably. If you intend to use it for something other than exactly what it was designed for, you'll have wasted your money. Choose wisely.