Popular Mechanics Tests Eight Camp Chairs From Yeti, Coleman, REI

Article excerpt

Not every gear review is created equal. Popular Mechanics put eight camp chairs through their paces, pulling in models from Yeti, Coleman, REI Co-op, and several other manufacturers to find out which ones actually earn the right to carry your weight after a long day outside. Camp chairs sit in a peculiar product category: they are simultaneously simple and surprisingly easy to get wrong. Too heavy and you resent hauling them to the site. Too light and you spend the evening perched on something that feels like origami. The testing covered the full spectrum of that tradeoff, from ultralight backpacker options to the kind of burly, cushioned loungers you unload from a truck bed. Yeti's entry, as with most Yeti products, carries a price premium that the brand argues is justified by materials and longevity. Coleman, the perennial everyman of outdoor gear, competed at the more accessible end of the price range. REI Co-op's house-brand chair offered a middle path between cost and quality. For anyone planning time outdoors this season, the roundup gives a useful, hands-on starting point.