Therm-A-Rest® NeoAir™ What do you guys think?

[ARambler]

That's because it is now occupying another of the 11 dimensions that make up the M-version of string theory. Pretty soon we'll be able to carry along all of our worldly possessions without adding any weight to a pack.

How much does "Priceless" cost in this world?

It takes me 15 to 18 breaths to fill up my Neo vs 5 to 6 for the Prolite 3. Both are shorts. Although the ratio will stay the same, I think the small Neo will appeal to the light weight crowd, less inflation than the large, very light, and slightly better (less-worse) price. After 33 years, I have just cracked the 20 lb baseweight mark.

It seems there is a completely different niche that like the extra comfort for the same weight of their old pad. These are the ones with stuff sack and cozies. I don't think you will see many covers on the small.

The jury is still out on durability, and we need to keep a discussion thread alive to get an up to date feel on this issue. Unfortunately, the good data will not arrive until the thru hikers start reporting late next summer. It seems likely the Neo will be a more reliable product than the Hyperflow filter, which is still on the market.

Rambler

[300winmag]

I like Thermarest/Cascade Designs products but... this ain't one of them. Had the very 1st Neo-Air in in Las Vegas. The store had never seen one before. Took it backpacking in the Spring Mountains. In the 9,000 ft. altitudes I "tested" it.

PROS>
1. light
2. compact

CONS>
1. Ya gotta blow the ENTIRE mattress up!
2. It loses a lot of thickness when temps go from 70 F. to 28 F. in one night
3. Too bouncy
4. too high off floor (when properly inflated at 80% of max). Try "hangin' a leg out" in summer. Not comfy.
5. A bit noisy at times.

I returned mine to REI afer that trip & went back to my 10-year-old Thermarest Lite regular at 18 oz. Love it, patches and all.

Eric

[jorgoz]

I'm in the market for a new pad, it's not that i really really need a new one, but change makes for better sleep

I've got my eye in the POE ether elite though, i've got a POE max thermo and it sleeps very comfy and the elite is less than half the price of the neo.

[kanga]

i have been interested in getting one since they came out but the price has scared me off. i finally asked a friend last weekend if i could try their's out. i laid on it for all of 5 seconds before i was extremely happy i had not spent the money.
#1: way too crinkly loud. it would drive me nuts all night long.
#2: unbelievably narrow.
#3: slid alot on the side to side air chambers. finally figured out that i like the long-ways baffles of the big agnes type pads.


once again, so so glad i didn't not spend the money.

[skinny minnie]

8-12 big breaths to fully inflate, but you probably don't want to sleep on it fully inflated. If you can lug yourself up and down mountains all day, then you can inflate this baby (but you might have to stop and rest in the middle).

Ummmmm, it took me like 40 breaths to fully inflate. Hahaha. YMMV!

[Franco]

"unbelievably narrow"...
maybe that is stretching it a bit.
The commonest width, (and by far) , with self inflating/inflatable mats is 20 "
The Neo Air is about 19.5" when fully inflated . In comparison my Prolite 4 is almost 20" at the widest but only for a few inches of length.
My 20" PO Insulmat max Thermo is in fact 18" fully inflated (at the widest point) .
Maybe you friend has the same prototype that BPL had, that one was narrower.
As for noise, my self and two mates did not find it noisy at all (both asked me "what noise") but of course that is very subjective.

And BTW, this is the R value according to the BPL tests
R-2.5 (Claimed)
R-2.6 (Measured at typical inflation)
R-3.0 (Measured at Maximum Inflation)
Franco

[ascientist]

I like it.

[kanga]

"unbelievably narrow"...
maybe that is stretching it a bit.

that is your opinion. my opinion is that it is unbelievably narrow.

[Ender]

My concern with the pad, and I haven't used it yet so I'm asking here, is about insulation. It seems to me like it would provide none from underneath. And since I chill easily at night, I'm unsure if I could comfortably use the pad. Thoughts?

[Mountain Wildman]

I have the NeoAir Large (25" X 77")
I timed myself the other day and it took 1 minute and 20 seconds to full inflation.
I don't smoke, Did not get lightheaded.
It is crinkly and the noise bothered me until I fell asleep, Didn't notice the noise after that, Slept straight to morning.
Rolling over with the weight of my knee on the mattress I did feel the floor under me until I laid flat again thus distributing my weight over the mattress. I am just under 6 feet tall and weigh 290 pounds.
I like the mattress, it weighs 19 ounces and is wide enough and the perfect length for me. Bought the fast and light repair kit in case of a puncture which I have always carried with any air mattress I have used.
I love it because I get the comfort and adjustability of an air mattress and it weighs just over a pound. It has a sticky nature to on the top and bottom it so I don't slide around on it and the mattress does not slide on the Silnylon tent floor.

[Franco]

Insulation..
That is measured as Resistance value, the R I quoted above.
It is a comparative value , so what keeps one warm will not necessarily work for you. (like sleeping bags,clothing, the temp you set on your air conditioned office...)
The other reason I posted that was to show that the mat does not have to be fully inflated to reach the claimed value.
So R2.5 is warmer than the Z Lite at 2.2 or the Prolite at also 2.2, however not as warm as the Prolite Plus at 3.8. A non insulated inflatable mat like the ones from Big Agnes,Pacific Outdoor and Exped , has an R value between 1 and 1.5 . R 3 is twice as insulated/warm as R1.5.
The ubiquitous 20" (50 cm -19.5" here) blue mat is also around R1/1.5.
Franco

[springerfever]

I second what MW said above. I tried the regular size and found it a little to narrow for my liking. Swapped up to the large and it's incredibly comfortable. Takes a while to blow it up, but what's the hurry. After turning in, open the valve slightly and find that sweet spot. The extra five inches in width makes a big difference, particularly if you like to sleep on your side.

Kind'a a pain to roll it up and fit back into its stuff sack, so I returned the sack (its sold separately) and now just fold it once, roll, and line a large stuff sack with it .Gear goes in the middle of the tube. Much easier !

[Mountain Wildman]

I second what MW said above. I tried the regular size and found it a little to narrow for my liking. Swapped up to the large and it's incredibly comfortable. Takes a while to blow it up, but what's the hurry. After turning in, open the valve slightly and find that sweet spot. The extra five inches in width makes a big difference, particularly if you like to sleep on your side.

Kind'a a pain to roll it up and fit back into its stuff sack, so I returned the sack (its sold separately) and now just fold it once, roll, and line a large stuff sack with it .Gear goes in the middle of the tube. Much easier !

I usually roll mine up 3 times.
First roll pushing the majority of air out, Unroll and roll a second time getting more air out, and the last roll is tight and gets 99% of all air out.
Then I can fit it in the small Thermarest drysack with the fitted sheet on it also. I bought the drysack thermarest offers instead of the stuff sack.

[Tinker]

I'm looking for a pad to replace my thermarest prolite. I like to fold it in a square and pack it into the bottom of my pack that is why I like the prolite. I was thinking this would be alot more compact but I'm not sure. I checked one out a couple months ago and it felt like the material wasnt to durable, plus the price was a little high, any input?

I'd put this pad in the scary light category, and add that an air mattress, once you get a leak, provides neither comfort nor insulation.
For all the weight you'd save, it would be wise to carry a small closed cell foam pad just in case, eliminating the weight savings. I would do this myself if I didn't hang a hammock, but I'm pretty much done with ground sleeping unless it's the dead of winter on top of a mountain.

[Colter]

I had one of the early ones, which, like many, leaked. I think they've got the "leaky from the factory" issues pretty well fixed.

For me, the NeoAir was really comfortable, and I plan to use my replacement a lot. I didn't have any issues with the width. It's 20" wide. I've used the Torsolite, which is 17" at the widest, tapering down to 12". To me, THAT was too narrow! I think the width may be an issue for some back-sleepers, with arms dangling off. As a side-sleeper, it wasn't an issue at all.

I used it down to about 25 degrees or so, and found it plenty warm for me. See Franco's stats on R-value. If I hadn't heard reports that it's "crinkly" I wouldn't have noticed anything remarkable at all as far as noise. If you're the type of person that notices every noise at night, you probably will. Inflating it is a non-issue to me. Compared to the effort of a hard day's hiking, it's nothing.

Bottom line for me: For the weight, the most comfort of any pad I've ever used. Truly outstanding. I think the NeoAir's biggest negative is likely durability issues.

For good sleeping pad (or other backpacking gear) reviews check this out.

[jen.sprout]

Sprang for a NeoAir last year and I'm not looking back. Best nights of sleep on the trail I've had since I thru-hiked with the old Thermarest Limited Edition (yes, way back in the dark ages, it weighed a ton, but it was 2" thick!).

Pertinent notes:
--Switched from a Thermarest Pro 4 last (3 was too thin)
--I'm a side sleeper who regularly had aching hips trying to sleep
--I've not been bothered by the noise.
--Does take a fair amount to inflate, but I think that's mostly because Thermarest users are used to partial self-inflation. I do inflate all the way because I need the padding; haven't had valve problems yet.
--Packs way smaller than a Pro4. Had to adjust my pack set up - my pro4 used to be my padding in the back, but got it sorted out. I think I may be able to go down a pack size with the volume reduction.

[SteveJ]

2 weekends on the trail with my neoair.....

1st: great night's sleep. I'm thrilled!
2nd: Sat afternoon nap..scooch around....hsssssss...damn...forgot about the stump by the tarptent....repair the hole with TR patch kit....patches won't hold...use all 4 in the $10 kit...go to bed at night, with my thumb on the patch to hold it on...wake up at 2 a.m., with air out of neo air - and patches on the first hole have held....another hole...sigh....thank God for Ambien...on the way home, i buy another patch kit....is this really what i want to take for a 10 day trip to Philmont this summer?

[Tipi Walter]

2 weekends on the trail with my neoair.....

1st: great night's sleep. I'm thrilled!
2nd: Sat afternoon nap..scooch around....hsssssss...damn...forgot about the stump by the tarptent....repair the hole with TR patch kit....patches won't hold...use all 4 in the $10 kit...go to bed at night, with my thumb on the patch to hold it on...wake up at 2 a.m., with air out of neo air - and patches on the first hole have held....another hole...sigh....thank God for Ambien...on the way home, i buy another patch kit....is this really what i want to take for a 10 day trip to Philmont this summer?

There it is. It's all about denier threadcount and fabric shell thickness if you want a durable pad. I've read so many stories about the negatives of the NeoAir that if needed I can dredge them up here. Suffice it to say it's a niche luxury item for the Ultralight-impaired. But hey, don't try telling this to the Captivated and Enraptured.

[buz]

Tipi, good one. I would love to get a neo, but seems to finiky to me. Concept is great, reality for a lot of folks seems different.

My BAIAC has lots of nights on it, and I pay attention to tent set up for nasties, but nothing has happened with like 50 nights on it.

Jen. I have 4 of those TR LE pads, they are great. Never failed, warm as toast, just wish they were 1/2 the weight and size. Still my go to base camp and winter pads. Excellent product.

[FamilyGuy]

FWIW, I had BA replace two air pads because of premature leaking. Nature of the beast with full air pads in my opinion. Comfort v.s. durability trade-off.