Therm-a-rest NeoAir XLite NXT Review
The XLite NXT is the three-season air pad most others are measured against, and the NXT update set out to fix the old one's noise.
The verdictThe pad the others are measured against for warmth per gram. Narrow, slippery and expensive, and still the one to beat on a bike.
Therm-a-Rest rates the XLite NXT at R 4.5 and cites the ASTM F3340 standard, at 370 g and 7.6 cm thick in the Regular size. That ratio is why it sits at the top of most three-season lists. It is just under the R 4.8 mat that ISO sleeping bag ratings are measured on, so a bag's comfort figure roughly holds on it.
The NXT version claims to be 83 percent quieter than the previous XLite, whose crinkle was its best-known complaint. It packs to 23 x 10 cm in a stuff sack, which shares a seatpack with a quilt rather than taking a bar roll of its own. The WingLock valve inflates with the included pump sack and deflates quickly.
The trade-offs are physical. Both faces are 30D fabric, so it wants a groundsheet on gravel or thorny ground, and the tapered mummy cut is narrow for restless sleepers. Owner reports on Amazon US include seam leaks inside the first year, complaints that it is too narrow and too loud, and a slippery surface that lets a sleeping bag slide off. At about $200 list, it is a premium buy.
What works
- R 4.5 for 370 g, Regular
- Packs to 23 x 10 cm
- Therm-a-Rest claims 83% quieter than before
What doesn't
- Tapered cut is narrow at the feet
- 30D fabric needs care on rough ground
- Slippery surface, owners report sliding off
Buy it if
Riders who want the best warmth per gram and packed size for three-season nights, and will pay for it
Skip it if
You sleep restlessly on a narrow pad, camp on rough ground without a groundsheet, or need winter warmth
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