In terms of aeration a simple old pot with overhead watering will aerate the soil much, much better than either a smart pot or SWC.

I've tried several methods. I've built earthtainers, used 18 gallon totes and tried various flavors of grow bags. The grow bags were by far the worst. No matter what brand, they fall apart in about a year here in the Texas sun. Even with a well blended potting mix and mulch the bags dry out very quickly and deteriorate. They require frequent watering. I do like the earthtainers, as they have an 8 gallon reservoir. I've grown everything from vegetables to small dwarf fruit trees with great success. I do use an auto watering system to keep them full. This year I picked up some ideas from Larry Hall who has a youtube channel. I built several of the self watering rain gutters and purchased 50 of the walmart shopping bags and kiddie pools. I've already gotten my first round of tomatoes and cucumbers from this system and it's only early May. I have zucchini, corn and okra on the way The walmart bags perform the same function as the grow bags but only cost .50 each. They hold about 6.5 gallons of potting mix, have handles and seem to be more durable than the grow bags. You just need to keep about an inch of water in the kiddle pools and they wick up the water as needed. I know Larry has already gotten multiple seasons from his. The south Texas sun can be brutal so well see how well they hold up. But at a cost of .50 not a big deal to replace. .

Thanks for the info gwrace!- I checked out some of Larry Hall's videos- I want to try the gutter method!!- if that works that would take the material cost way down, plus the kiddie pool looks interesting but dont think it would hold up to heavy wind since the cages arent really mounted to anything from what I see

Aeration depends more on the composition of your potting mix than on the composition of your container. SWPs require a different potting mix than fabric containers. In SWPs you need a mix that wicks moisture into the container, with a good portion of peat moss. I use 5-1-1 mix (with 70% bark) in Smart Pots, and there is little risk of over saturated soil because moisture is wicked out of the container. 5-1-1 doesn't wick well enough to work in SWPs.

The key feature of smart pots is that they air prune roots. The root tips reach the fabric and try to grow through instead of turning to the side and circling like they would in a hard container. When the root tips encounter air outside the container, they die and new branches form on the roots inside the container. I don't see how you could combine the two container types. The fabric in smart pots, unlike grow bags, is polypropylene. Mine have held up well for four years.

Ohiofem- I was thinking of lining the inside of the bucket with a smart pot- then drilling holes on the sidewalls of the bucket- perhaps I would have to drill a ton of holes to guarantee the roots would encounter outside oxygen and die like if there were no bucket outer shell. im guessing it would take more water- it the side holes increase evaporation- but a better root formation may be worth the added work. I like the sturdiness of an EarthTainer or Global Bucket- makes the cage sturdy when you mount it to the container properly