Sawyer Mini vs. MSR Autoflow: what's going on?

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Does anyone know why the Sawyer Mini is rated to filter 100,000 gallons with a pore size of 0.1 micron...

Because they damn well know that no purchasers are going to practically test one of their filters to that limit. That's a (theoretical) 5 gallons filtered per day...365 days per year... for 54.8 years. With the Mini's slow flow rate of 1 liter per 5.5 minutes, you'd be spending over two hours each day just filtering (to include time spent filling).

Sawyers are great little filters and the best bang for the buck out there. I own several (both Mini and Squeeze). But if you believe that one will actually filter 100k gallons of contaminated water in the field... I've got a bridge to sell you.

In reality, they get clogged up with particulates pretty easily and exhibit much reduced flow. Just like most other filters... and despite best efforts at cleaning and backwash.

In that respect, the slightly larger/heavier Squeeze model is a better choice. It has a vastly better flow rate and more resistance to clogging. Filters have to be judged by their practical performance at filtering dirty water full of sediment, inorganic particulates, chemical contaminants, and organic matter. Not at how well they mechanically process already clean tap water inside of a lab.

The MSR figure is a more accurate one for planning purposes.

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Sawyer Mini vs. MSR Autoflow: what's going on?