Flatterware Collapsible Cup - Outdoor Gear Review

The Flatterware collapsible cup is aimed towards the light gear carrying hiker/biker looking to have a fully functional cup taking up less space with minimal weight. A single, molded piece of ABS and certified food grade TPE flexible plastic with a lid makes this a versatile, easy to carry item. Being pocket sized, this takes out the trouble of packing cups in your gear.

Compared to its predecessor, the telescopic cup, this single piece design is infallible! The telescopic cup has to be opened perfectly, or you develop leaks. There is no leakage with the Flatterware design. As an Avid hiker/biker I tend to hit the trails on my bike until reaching an impassible point and continue on foot from there. I find the less gear I have to pack in and out the more enjoyable a time I will have. I don’t like to spend too much time putting gear together so while trying out this collapsible cup, I cut a lot of time that I had normally taken making sure the telescopic variety was put together ‘just so’.

Upon first opening, the smell of plastic was overwhelming. As the instructions included stated it is dishwasher safe, unlike other collapsible cups (as well as microwave and freezer safe) I ran it through the dishwasher. This effectively removed the smell so as to not make my water taste like plastic.

The rim of the cup is very rigid, keeping any spills from happening. The helix design gives two benefits, one being it twists back down into the base with a smooth feel and clicks shut easily, the other being it stabilizes the cup so you do not have to grip it gently to avoid spills. I found in the Flatterware design a simple, single, smooth motion to open or close.

The amount it holds is a lot more than any other travel cup I have ever had, 12 oz. This was great as I did not have to keep refilling the cup to get a decent drink while taking a break. It seems to hold almost twice the amount of any collapsible cup I have had yet to date.

The case is smooth, with a nice rounding to the edge. With several hours of hard riding, followed by several more hours of uphill hiking I did not even notice the slightest discomfort having the Flatterware collapsible cup in my pocket. The case seems to be very tough and designed to take abuse as I did take a couple of spills and did land on it and caused no damage. The edge of the case has a nice ridging to it, not to small so it is easy to open/close wearing gloves.