Sleeping mats
Is a published R-value worth carrying 1.85 kg instead of 690 g?
One of these mats publishes the figure a mat is chosen on, and the other publishes almost everything else. The Naturehike self-inflating mat states an R-value of 4.8 and a 19 × 19 × 33 cm packed size at 1.85 kg; the Yuzonc weighs 690 g, is 10 cm thick and gives no insulation figure of any kind. That is the whole decision.
| Compared on | self-inflating foam mat, 5 cm, R-value 4.8 | air mat with foot pump, 195 × 68 × 10 cm |
|---|---|---|
| R-value | 4.8, stated in the title and in the bullets | Not published — no insulation figure appears in the listing |
| Standard quoted | None named — the 4.8 is published without an ASTM F3340 reference | None named — no ASTM F3340 reference appears |
| Thickness | About 5 cm inflated | 10 cm, from a 195 × 68 × 10 cm inflated size |
| Length | 200 cm | 195 cm |
| Width | 63 cm | 68 cm |
| Stated weight | 1.85 kg, with no label saying what is counted | 690 g, with no label saying what is counted |
| Packed size | 19 × 19 × 33 cm | Not published — described only as about the size of a water bottle when folded |
| Fabric | Not published as a denier — the fabric is given as 190T polyester, a thread count | 40D nylon with an inner TPU sealing coating |
| Inflation method | Self-inflating through two valves, to about 80 % on its own, then topped up by mouth | Integrated foot pump, given as 30 to 60 seconds of pedalling and one second to deflate |
Each tick belongs to its own line and nothing more. The row of ticks is not a score: the two verdicts underneath settle the page, because these two answer different questions on the trail.
The Naturehike is the one to take when the ground is the problem. It is the only mat in this hub with an R-value on the listing at all — 4.8, published without a standard beside it — and it is 200 cm long with a stated packed size, so you know what it costs you in the bag. That cost is 1.85 kg, and its foam core is the reason.
The Yuzonc is the mat for a light bag in mild ground conditions: 690 g, 10 cm of loft, 68 cm wide and a 40D nylon skin, inflated by foot pump in under a minute. Nothing in its listing describes how much it slows heat leaving you for the ground, and it never measures its own packed size, which is a lot of unpublished on the two things that matter most.
R-value measures resistance to heat passing through the mat, so a higher figure means more of your warmth stays with you rather than going into the ground. ASTM F3340 is the procedure that makes such figures comparable between brands; the 4.8 here is published without it, so it is the maker's own number.
Not on its own. Thickness sets comfort over stones and roots, but a tall air chamber can circulate air inside it, which moves heat rather than trapping it. Foam and internal baffling are what turn thickness into insulation, and only one of these two listings publishes any insulation figure.
Self-inflating · R-value 4.8 stated · 200 × 63 × 5 cm · 19 × 19 × 33 cm packed · 1.85 kg · 190T polyester
The only mat in this group to publish an R-value — 4.8, with no standard named beside it — on a self-inflating foam core at 1.85 kg.
Best for: Cold-ground camping where an R-value on the page matters more than 1.85 kg in the pack.
≈ £46 / 45 €
195 × 68 × 10 cm · 690 g · 40D nylon with TPU · foot pump, 30 to 60 s · packed size not published · no R-value
A 690 g air mat that publishes its inflated box, its fabric and its inflation time, and compares its packed size to a water bottle instead of measuring it.
Best for: Backpacking where 10 cm of thickness at 690 g is the target and the ground is not the cold part.
≈ £34 / 25 €
Prices in these summaries were read on the dates each review gives. The live figure sits beside every product.
