Therm-a-Rest - ProLite Plus

Honestly, I have "regressed" since 2021. Tried many brands, size, length, baffle style iterations of inflatables out there at huge expense and disliked every one.  In 2021, I started exclusively using CCF (Exped, GG thinlight, but my fave Nemo Switchback).  Doing some more winter trips this coming season- southern hemisphere- and stacking pads takes too much space.  I just bought a short size Thermarest Prolite Plus on sale. I am such a gram counter in many ways, but can live with the 450g plus a CCF for Winter trips.

I had the exact same thought also brought on by Extra and I have purchased one. It should be here tomorrow. Thanks for the write up. Looks like you did it right. The width, the lack of height and the r value are all I need to know. The durability is a total bonus.

Don't do it. Bought a cheap pad with air cells like that for my first backpacking trip, absolutely miserable sleeping experience and I have a very high tolerance to sleeping in uncomfortable situations. Laying directly on the ground was better, and whatever r rating was claimed was absolute bs. We were in a small canyon next to running water and an absolutely wicked wind storm kicked up, I froze my ass off that night, spent most of awake trying to get warm and willing the sun to come up. Second pad was a Klymit with an allegedly good r rating, same air cell style shown in the photo you attached. Did three days at 8000 feet in early March in Southwest Utah, froze my absolute ass off. I had Bought a 15 degree Big Agnes bad to match my fancy new Klymit pad in an attempt to avoid being cold again. was in a two person ultralight tent less than a foot away from one of my companions, and still woke up COLD. I'm talking laying in your bag scared to move and hit a cold spot, praying for the sun to rise, dreading going to sleep the following night cold Finally forked over the cash for a quality Thermarest Prolite Plus and I'm here to tell you for 150 bucks the difference in sleep quality but more importantly WARMTH is insane. Did three days at 9,500-10,000 feet also in Southwest Utah and slept like a baby every night. Spent a week in star valley Wyoming sleeping on a cot in a field about 15 feet away from the very cold Flat Creek with the Thermarest pad and a 15 Degree Big Agnes bag. would wake up in the morning with my bag completely iced over with frozen morning dew as well as the entire field, I was warm as could be in that bag, like I was in bed at home. Sleeping on a wack pad is something I would never wish on anybody. I would be more willing to roll the dice on my bag than my pad. If temperature isn't a concern whatsoever then go for it I guess but that air cell style is more uncomfortable than sleeping on the ground, I'd rather have a fourteen dollar foam pad than that air cell dogshit. Spend the money, sleep comfortably, enjoy your time. There are corners that can be cut to save you money, but your sleep system is absolutely not the place to do it. At best you could be uncomfortable when you're trying to recover so you can go have fun and walk a bunch with your friends, at worst your life could be in danger.

I have an Exped Synmat and it's quite comfortable. It's more "air mattress" than my Thermarest Prolite Plus but more comfortable. So much so I'm insisting my wife use my Synmat mattress instead of her existing Thermarest on our next trip. I can handle the lesser one (I hope). I think basically if you're spending some money it's always going to be more complicated than "air mattress". I think OP means a classic vinyl sack filled with air. They tend to have poor support, zero vapor management, and are cold (because air convection inside the mattress takes all your heat and moves it to the ground).

I recently cut down a ProLite Plus to torso size, about 36in. Rolled up in stuff sack it weighs 11oz, and initial review is that it’s more comfortable inch for inch than a xlite for me. At 1.5” height, it’s not too bad of a drop off to the legs and packs about the same size volume as a regular xlite. Quite a bit more durable too with both foam inside so I would expect a bad leak to be less devastating, and also 50d fabric. 

the prolite is my favorite sleeping pad, just so damn comfortable. gets left behind a lot though, heavy, as you point out

Really depends on your budget, how heavy would be too heavy, and how compact you need the packed pad to be. Something with an R-value around 4 or 5 should be fine if the temps will not dip below freezing. Good brands include Therm-a-Rest, Big Agnes, Nemo, Sea to Summit, Exped. If you are dead set on the self-inflating type (foam in an airtight cover) the Therm-a-Rest Prolight Plus series are a burly older design that is not quite as comfortable nor packs as small or light as the newer inflatables, but is a step up from a simple foam pad. Price is not too bad, either.

No experience with the new one. I much prefer my small prolite plus to my xlite. I find it alot more comfortable. It also makes a great frame sheet for a frameless pack.

I personally prefer a more durable sleeping pad for the weight penalty. Self inflating pads make the perfect frame for frameless packs. I’ve had great success with the old prolite that wasn’t as warm or thick.

If you want more comfort than ccf but more durability than an inflatable, a self inflating is the way to go. Something like the thermarest prolight or similar. They aren’t the lightest, but if you avoid the super huge car camping style ones they aren’t too bad. They can still technically be popped but the outer material is much beefier than an inflatable. Often they’ll feel more like vinyl. I still have my original thermarest trail. It’s not as cushy as modern ones but it’s a tank and still hasn’t gotten a leak after 17 or 18 years. Got it sometime as a teenager. I think it was my first mat I had when I upgraded from a crappy blue Walmart ccf.