We tested the Coleman 10 × 10 Instant Screened Canopy and Walmart’s Ozark Trail 10′ × 10′ Instant Screen House during our first round of testing in the winter and spring of 2016. These two shelters are the same size and shape (7-foot peak height, 17 pounds) with an almost identical design. The cap-like roofs on both models provided far less shade than we wanted, especially in the beating desert sun. The mesh walls do have a ribbon of polyester at the foot, but even carefully staked they can leave gaps at the ground; if bug protection is your main concern, these tents would likely fall short.
It’s currently low in stock, but REI tells us this chair will be widely available again over the summer. If you’re planning a car-camping trip, you’ll ozark trail canopy probably want to bring camping chairs. They’re also ideal for sporting events, field trips, outdoor concerts and movies, and picnics in the park.
The legs extend to give the top peak a height of about 8’10” which will be plenty of headroom for anyone underneath. Moon Lence released a new generation of its Portable Camping Chair; this new version has a redesigned base and more mesh ventilation than its predecessor. It comes with a five-year warranty for its frame and a two-year warranty for its fabric; this rivals the warranty for our top lightweight pick. Renetto licenses its patent to a company called Kelsyus, which makes cheaper versions of the chair.
The included carrying bag does not have wheels to aid in transportation, but at only 29 lbs. We don’t find that to be a noteworthy drawback as the nylon handles and shoulder strap work just fine in carrying the tent. Most of our testers found the REI Co-op Skyward Chair to be one of the least comfortable chairs in our testing pool. People who did like it tended to have smaller body types, so if you find that other camping chairs are too big for you, the Skyward might be a good fit. At a little over 7 pounds, it’s also the lightest traditional chair we tested—but it had the lowest weight capacity (250 pounds).
This is perfect for camping, the backyard and any outdoor socially-distanced summer events that need a little shade. Testers with knee and hip issues reported that when they were getting in and out of this chair, its armrests felt more stable than those of any other model. The Clam Quick-Set Escape weighs 34 pounds and comes in a 6-foot-long, ski-bag-shaped carry case that is too big to fit into most sedan trunks. As we pulled this monster out of its box, we were skeptical that we would erect it in anything close to the promised 45 seconds. The L.L.Bean Woodlands Screen House has a much more consistently glowing history of online reviews than does the REI tent. After eight years of consistent use by senior editor Kalee Thompson’s two young boys, the REI Co-op Camp Chair is, she reports, faded and worn but still holding up.
The Chair One has a 600-denier polyester and mesh seat and aluminum legs, which are linked with shock cord (like what you’d find inside high-end tent poles). In our tests one camper took less than 10 minutes to put it up on the first try. Two shorter aluminum poles cross to support the roof while four longer poles join to the roof poles at the top of the tent and slide into pegs at the ground. The tent roof is made of polyester taffeta treated with a DWR (durable water repellent) coating. The walls are made of fine no-see-um nylon mesh edged with polyester taffeta.
Several Wirecutter staffers have owned the Coleman chair for years, using it on camping trips, in backyards, and at sporting events. For the most part, it’s held up well, but one common quibble is that the seat bottom ozark trail chair begins to sag after several years of use. Weighing about 8 pounds, the Coleman chair is lighter than most traditional models, so it’s easier to grab from deep in a car trunk or to carry for long distances.
There are also chairs that are hybrids between categories, such as the Nemo Stargaze Reclining Camp Chair, which comes highly rated and recommended. The canopy is big enough to block most, if not all, sunlight any time of day, and the chair’s seat has a strip of breathable mesh down the middle for airflow. Senior staff writer Lauren Dragan said the Renetto is her most comfortable camping chair.