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Photo by Andy Miller, UK, Taking a rest, Jokulsarlon, Iceland

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Photo by Andy Miller, UK,
Taking a rest,
Jokulsarlon, Iceland



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  #1  
Old 2 Jan 2008
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Argos inflatable sleeping mattress
After doing a lot of research on here about sleeping mats and visiting the local camping store I decided on the Argos backpacker inflatable mattress.

I have only used it once inside so will keep you posted on how it does but is is very compact and quite light compared to every other mattress i've seen and does not need a pump to inflate. It is divided into 6 long tubes and each tube takes 2 puffs to inflate so quite easy. Also if it should puncture I think yo can still sleep confortably on 5 tubes. It is quite thick when inflated compared to thermarests so is more comfy particularly for me as I sleep on my side also the tubed design means you wont slide off sideways at least and seemed to add a bit to the comfort.

I can't comment on how warm it keeps you yet but since it's quite thick i would imagine it does a good job.

So I recommend it so far - also nice it the price about a tenner and while not much use for round the worlders if it punctures by the seam breaking, argos are very good at replacing stuff.
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Old 2 Jan 2008
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cool thanks :-)

Funnily enough I've just done a review of the new EXPED Downmat (wayyyyy more expensive than the Argos jobbie!) compared to what I was using before (the Argos inflatable matress).

You may find it interesting.

YouTube - EXPED Downmat 7dlx
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  #3  
Old 2 Jan 2008
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Quote:
Originally Posted by men8ifr View Post
After doing a lot of research on here about sleeping mats and visiting the local camping store I decided on the Argos backpacker inflatable mattress.

I have only used it once inside so will keep you posted on how it does but is is very compact and quite light compared to every other mattress i've seen and does not need a pump to inflate. It is divided into 6 long tubes and each tube takes 2 puffs to inflate so quite easy. Also if it should puncture I think yo can still sleep confortably on 5 tubes. It is quite thick when inflated compared to thermarests so is more comfy particularly for me as I sleep on my side also the tubed design means you wont slide off sideways at least and seemed to add a bit to the comfort.

I can't comment on how warm it keeps you yet but since it's quite thick i would imagine it does a good job.

So I recommend it so far - also nice it the price about a tenner and while not much use for round the worlders if it punctures by the seam breaking, argos are very good at replacing stuff.

Going by that description, I had a similar item bought via ebay a few years ago - I agree that they do work well; actually it must be good because my son took it for his camping trips and it is still working (I think!).

Don't blow them up too hard and you "settle" into the airbed = even less chance of rolling off in the night. Also, I agree, even if one tube is punctured (including say on a seam or somewhere else that is difficult to patch) the other 5 will continue to be better than lying directly on the ground.
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Old 2 Jan 2008
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tip;
blow up the two outside reeds harder than the inside four, then you dont roll off the mat in the night
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Old 2 Jan 2008
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For the perfect nights sleep the best way to get the right 'firmness' (advice given to me by Les at Travel-dri Plus) is to kneel on the mat, your knees should touch the ground and then bend over and place your hands and weight on the mat, your hands shouldn't touch the ground.

Does that makes sense? I do it in the video above if you need to see how it's done - but it works perfectly and even I (I'm quite a large fella) don't roll off.

m
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Old 10 Jan 2008
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Matt you sound just like my old Jim teacher, nice review
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  #7  
Old 5 Apr 2008
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£7.19 at present
Early days for the performance, but I just bought one today - a replacement for the one that my son has kept.
So far it has blown up OK (takes more than 2 puffs per tube however) and it is holding air OK.
There is no puncture repair kit with it (I recall there may have been with my last one) but there is a set of tube thingies to assist in deflating the bed.

Now priced at £7.19 with some sort of discount sale going on at present.
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Old 5 Apr 2008
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Thanks Matt for your video review. Good job ! looking forward the next reviews.
Cheers,
Fredo.


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  #9  
Old 20 Apr 2008
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Bought one too
On your recommendation, I nipped to Argos and got one for £7.19. Takes a lot more than two puffs to inflate each tube and it looks a bit narrow but I was pleasantly surprised that when I deflated it, I was able to fold it right back up into the little carry bag it came in.

At this price, it's as cheap as (or cheaper than) a foam sleeping mat, should be more comfortable, and less bulky when packed.

Thanks!
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  #10  
Old 22 Apr 2008
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Used mine a bit while in morocco - didn't do too much camping but it was comfy and suffered no problems so ***** (5 star) rating from me.
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