Best of the lightweight pads that I've tried

By J. Troxell Ranked #89 - Lightweight Sleep Pads October 27, 2011

My wife complained after sleeping on my NeoAir pad one night, so for her birthday I ordered this pad and a NeoAir All Season pad for her to try as well. We both independently arrived at the conclusion that we like the Exped Synmat UL 7 the best of the pads - we both liked the baffles running lengthwise as well as the extra thickness (0.3") and the extra width (approx 1") when compaired to the NeoAir bags. Since we likely won't be sleeping below freezing anytime soon (young children with us), the R-value of the UL7 is more than sufficient for our needs. I like the flap valves that Exped uses on their bags, although I will definitely be investing in a shrink bag and shnozzle for inflating the pad in the future.

If you go on Exped's website, they explain that they use an actual synthetic insulator inside the pad (as opposed to the reflective barrier to capture radiant heat like the NeoAir bags), and Exped went the extra yard and laminates the insulation to both the top and the bottom of the bag so that it won't degrade over time from being compressed repeatedly. Whether this actually turns out to work is obviously yet to be seen, but as far as first impressions, the UL7 is a winner.

I've used this sleeping pad down to 35F paired with a Big Agnes Horse Thief bag, and the sleeping pad performed extremely well.

View Details: Exped SynMat UL 7 Sleeping Pad

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