Friday, January 24, 2025
Tents: Compare
Price
Report Card Grade
Pros
relatively inexpensive family tent with 160 ft² of space; vertical walls offer more interior space; interior door offers privacy and great ventilation; ability to block windows in the screen room for additional privacy/weather protection; good water resistance; E! Power port
one of the most spacious 3-person tents on the market; good ceiling height and storage space for its category; easy to set up with DAC® Jake's Feet system; good ventilation; good weather/water resistance; multi-pocket organizer panel is a step up from just normal tent pockets; reflective guy lines for nighttime visibility; NEMO Equipment, Inc. makes a huge effort to be a green company
relatively inexpensive family tent; lots of interior space and room to stand; good ventilation; very easy for 1 person to set up; tent color easy to spot in crowded campgrounds; skylight window provides light during the day and the opportunity to star gazing at night; reflective guy lines for nighttime visibility; lightweight compared to other tents in the family camping category
Cons
screen room doesn't have a floor and the sod cloth didn't protect a few reviewers from insects (and even a small animal) from getting into the tent; cabin style tents are very unstable in windy conditions because of their high walls; flat top means water can pool on the fly if you don't use guylines to change the slope; pretty heavy
relatively expensive; it's on the heavier side for tents in this category; some reviewers thought it was really difficult to get the poles to release during takedown
some complaints about the tent's water resistance and the fly not fully protecting it during heavy rain; tent body is polyester mesh, which isn't ideal if you want privacy or plan on camping in cooler weather; some customers didn't feel there were enough stakes and guy lines on the tent and had to buy more separately; welcome mat is cute but necessary and hard to clean; high cost of necessary accessories for the tent
Seasonality
3-season
3-season
3-season
Ideal Activities
Family, car, or base camping
Backpacking
Family, car, or base camping
Capacity
5-person
3-person
6-person
Price
$419.90
$381.95 -$449.95
$279.99 - $359.95
Warranty
Limited lifetime warranty
Limited lifetime warranty
Limited lifetime warranty
Interior and/or Vestibule Space
It has 160 ft² of interior space that is divided equally between the sleeping room (80 ft²) and the screen room (80 ft²).
It has a 50 ft² sleeping room and two 12 ft² vestibules.
It has 90 ft² of interior space.
Interior Height (max.)
7'
4'
6' 3"
Weight
35 lbs and 6 oz
6 lbs and 13 oz
13 lbs and 15 oz
Design Type
Freestanding, cabin style tent
Freestanding, dome style tent
Freestanding, dome style tent
Frame
Nine 12.7 mm & 16 mm fiberglass and 19.5 mm steel poles
Four DAC 9/9.6 mm Featherlite Aluminum Poles
Three DAC Combi Shockcorded lightweight aluminum poles with PressFit connectors.
Tent Body Materials
75D 190T polyester taffeta, 1200 mm coated
30D nylon rip-stop with 1500 mm waterproof polyurethane coating
Polyester rip-stop
Rainfly Material
75D 190T polyester taffeta, 1200 mm coated
30D nylon rip-stop with 1500 mm waterproof polyurethane coating
Polyester rip-stop with 1500 mm waterproof polyurethane coating
Floor Material/Design
75D 190T polyester taffeta, 1200 mm coated (one-piece bathtub style design)
30D nylon rip-stop with 5000 mm waterproof polyurethane coating (one-piece bathtub style design)
Polyester with 1500 mm waterproof polyurethane coating (one-piece bathtub style design)
Mesh Material
68D polyester no-see-um mesh
Lightweight no-see-um mesh
Lightweight polyester mesh
Ventilation
Features 6 large mesh windows, 3 mesh doors and a full panel mesh roof, all of which can be opened/closed based on the amount of ventilation needed.
Fly can be opened on both ends for cross ventilation. In warm, dry conditions, you can remove the outer fly and just use the mesh inner tent.
Tent body is almost entirely mesh.
Doors
3 doors (2 exterior and 1 interior)
2 doors (protected by vestibules)
2 doors
Packed Dimensions
29" x 10" dia.
22" x 6.5" dia.
4" x 14" x 26" (briefcase style carry bag)
Vestibule/Storage
In addition to the 80 ft² screen room, the tent is designed with interior storage pockets and comes with 2 gear lofts.
Tent is designed with two 12 ft² vestibules and it also has a multi-pocket organizer panel ("Gear Caddy"). A Gear Loft is available and sold separately ($25).
It is designed with 12 interior mesh floor pockets and has gear loft loops if you want to purchase the Big Agnes Trapezoid Loft that is sold separately ($22). A 64 ft² vestibule is also sold separately ($110).
Set Up
Two people can easily set up the tent in about 20 minutes thanks to its shockcorded steel and fiberglass frame, clip attachments, and ring and pin assembly. You won't need to use stakes or guy lines except in case of severe weather.
One person can quickly and easily set up the tent in under 10 minutes because it features the DAC® Jake's Feet corner anchor system. Basically, it uses ball and socket attachments that lock in the main poles and then act as levers to keep the tent corners grounded while the rainfly is pulled over the top of the tent. DAC® J-Stakes are also available if extra stability is required in windy conditions.
One person can easily set up the tent in 10-15 minutes because it has color-coded webbing and buckles. It is a freestanding tent, but Big Agnes includes 14 superlight aluminum stakes that you can use if it is particularly windy.
Extras
Designed to accommodate the Eureka! rope light if you want to purchase one ($20).
Tent features the LightPocket™, which holds your headlamp and has a diffusing fabric to provide even lighting in the tent.
Attached welcome mat helps keeps dirt outside of the tent.
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