Backside Line
The Trekology Aluft Professional would be the least expensive tenting pillow on our checklist, but it surely’s a possible luxurious for each the backcountry and the campground. This pillow held its personal throughout our side-by-side pillow testing, and its detachable pad strap saved it secured to our sleeping pads in a single day. Most price range tenting pillows are too cumbersome for backpacking, however we’ve no qualms about carrying this cheap pillow in our pack for our backcountry escapes.
Whereas this can be a implausible price range purchase, it’s not the top-ranked pillow on our checklist. Nonetheless, we prefer it higher than some premium tenting and backpacking pillows that price 2-3 occasions as a lot. If you happen to’re searching for a budget-friendly pillow that’s applicable for automobile tenting and backpacking, we are able to’t consider a greater tenting pillow than the Trekology Aluft Professional. It scored common to above common in every of the metrics we examined to find out the finest tenting pillows.
How We Examined
We examined this pillow on the Arizona Path and Continental Divide Path. Evaluating its consolation, weight, packability, assist, and ease of use with different tenting pillows, the Aluft Professional – particularly given its worth, significantly bought us and earned itself a spot on our greatest tenting pillow checklist.
Fast Specs
Trekology Aluft Professional
Finest Finances Backpacking Pillow
CleverHiker Score:
4.5/5.0
Worth:
$22
Weight:
6.3 oz.
Pillow Kind:
Air
Execs
- Very comfy
- Inexpensive
- Detachable cowl is mechanically cleanable
- Top offers wonderful assist
- Strap retains pillow in place
Cons
- Agency really feel not for everyone
- Heavy
- Restricted packability
Consolation
We now have no qualms concerning the consolation of Trekology’s Aluft Professional Pillow. Sleeping on it a number of nights within the southwest desert, each Casey Handley and Jory Brass discovered this to be a snug tenting and backpacking pillow. The pillow’s face cloth feels comfortable towards the face and its refined padding makes it barely softer than the everyday pool toy feeling of some inflatable pillows.
With a 5-inch depth, the Aluft Professional has sufficient heft to assist all sleeper’s heads and necks – even facet sleepers. Formed like a cartoon canine bone, the Aluft Professional’s curved contours comfortable up properly towards our shoulders to assist our necks. We discover this ergonomic form extra comfy than a easy rectangular tenting pillow.
Simply needless to say most individuals discover air pillows most comfy after they’re not totally inflated. The Aluft Professional has a push button within the valve that makes it straightforward to launch air till the pillow deflates right down to your Goldilocks level – the place the steadiness between softness and assist is excellent.
Lastly, the pillow features a detachable strap to safe it to your sleeping pad. That got here in useful on a frigid night time of tossing and turning within the Gila Wilderness. The strap saved the pillow in place, so he didn’t have to achieve exterior of the nice and cozy cocoon of his mummy bag to place it again on the sleeping pad. That’s one other plus within the consolation column.
General, this is without doubt one of the extra comfy inflatable pillows we’ve reviewed. The Aluft Professional’s cheaper worth actually didn’t cheapen our sleeping expertise.
Weight & Packability
One other plus of the Trekology Aluft Professional Pillow is that it’s mild and packable sufficient for backpacking. Weighing 6.2 ounces packed on our gear analyst’s scale, it’s about common for a backpacking pillow – which is sweet for its worth. For comparability, the Aluft Professional is about twice as heavy as our favourite ultralight air pillows however lighter than others which price 2-3 occasions as a lot. Weight smart, that is the uncommon price range tenting pillow that’s really an affordable choice for backpackers.
This pillow’s packability can be on par with different pillows we examined. The Aluft Professional’s packed measurement is barely stouter than a 20-ounce can. That’s in the identical ballpark as two far more costly inflatable pillows we additionally examined. Once more, this isn’t a premium, ultralight backpacking pillow, however we don’t hesitate to advocate the Trekology Aluft Professional for backpacking. It’s surprisingly packable at such a budget-friendly worth.
Help
As an inflatable pillow, the Trekology Aluft Professional additionally offers loads of assist for campers and backpackers. Its air bladder inflates to supply loads of air resistance to assist sleepers’ heads and necks. With a listed top of 5 inches, the Aluft Professional has greater than sufficient loft for facet sleepers, who usually desire a thicker, firmer pillow to take strain off their necks. Gear analyst, Jory Brass, discovered this pillow loads supportive as he slept on his facet within the Gila Wilderness. That’s a very good signal since he has broad shoulders and a temperamental neck that wants some TLC. The pillow’s ergonomic form additionally cradles the bottom of your head and neck to maximise its assist.
General, this pillow’s assist is what we’d count on from an inflatable tenting pillow. Our side-by-side testing confirmed that its assist was consistent with the premium inflatable camp pillows we examined within the Southwest.
Ease of Use
Some tenting pillows have little quirks to determine, however the Trekology Aluft Professional is easy to make use of. It’s a easy air pillow bought with a separate stuff sack that’s clearly labeled and branded. The comfortable cowl could be eliminated and machine-washed to scrub snot, drool, stains, and particles. The valve isn’t notably complicated, however we used the pillow a number of occasions earlier than realizing that it has an inside black button that you simply click on and unclick to lock in its inflate or deflate place.
As soon as we found that locking mechanism, it was even simpler to inflate and deflate the pillow and shut the outer valve cowl with out dropping any air strain. The pillow totally inflates in 3-4 breaths and totally deflates in 6-7 seconds when you open the valve and squeeze the pillow right down to its packable measurement.
Ought to You Purchase the Trekology Aluft Professional Tenting Pillow?
We’re followers of the Trekology Aluft Professional – which is why it’s a finest purchase in our information to one of the best tenting pillows. Priced within the $20 vary, this inflatable pillow is suitable for automobile tenting and backpacking. It constantly scored alongside dearer tenting pillows in our side-by-side testing within the backcountry and frontcountry.
It’s comparatively comfy, packable, supportive, and straightforward to make use of. We didn’t uncover any purple flags whereas testing it on iconic backpacking trails or typical roadside campgrounds. Though the Aluft Professional isn’t essentially the most packable pillow, it’s a very good purchase for anybody searching for a budget-friendly tenting and backpacking pillow.
What Different Tenting Pillows Ought to You Take into account?
The Trekology Aluft Professional isn’t the one tenting pillow we advocate. Our full information to the finest tenting pillows offers evaluations of the complete lineup we examined.
REI Trailmade Mummy Bag Pillow Evaluate: Are you not a fan of inflatable tenting pillows? The REI Trailmade is a budget-friendly different that’s made with compressible foam blocks, which can be extra comfy for some sleepers.
Therm-a-rest Compressible Pillow Evaluate: If packability isn’t as vital to you, the Therm-a-rest Compressible is without doubt one of the most comfy camp pillows round, and it solely prices barely greater than the Trekology Aluft Professional.
Sea to Summit Aeros Premium Pillow Evaluate: Do you wish to evaluate the Trekology pillow to a premium backpacking pillow? The Aeros is our favourite ultralight backpacking pillow, weighing lower than half of the Aluft Professional and packing right down to the dimensions of a big lime.