Backpacking Gear
Lightweight Spring Backpacking Gear: 10 Essentials for an Overnight Trip
A practical spring backpacking loadout covering shelter, sleep, cooking, water, safety, and camp comfort, with the strengths and trade-offs of each pick.
Independent reviews
Product Reviews and Buying Guides – 537 / 805
From everyday tech and home products to lifestyle and specialist gear, each review focuses on practical use, strengths, limitations, and who the product suits.
Sleeping Pads
Littour Sleeping Pad Review: A Sub-500g Winter Mat With an R Value of 5.8
A lightweight insulated sleeping pad with a 5.8 R value, a tiny packed size, and a price that undercuts the premium winter mats it competes with.
Backpacking Gear
Long-Distance Backpacking Gear: 10 Thru-Hike Picks Worth Carrying
Ten pieces of backpacking gear that held up over a full Appalachian Trail thru-hike, with the upgrades worth making today and the trade-offs to weigh first.
Cycling Gear
Long-Distance Cycling Kit on a Budget: 10 Practical Picks
A realistic long-distance cycling kit built on budget brands, repurposed hiking layers, and a few electronics that have earned their place over 1,000 miles.
Backpacking Packs
Lowe Alpine Chilozzi 47L Rucksack Review: A Flexible All-Season Mountain Pack
A close look at the Lowe Alpine Chilozzi 47L, a 42 plus 5 litre all-season rucksack with a reinforced adjustable frame, deep pocket organisation, and a removable floating lid.
Camping Gear
Luxada Trangia Pot Support Review: A Light, Low-Cost Base for Trangia Cooking
A 60g folding pot support that lifts a Trangia stove off the ground and gives a frying pan a wider, steadier base for around £8.
Camping Chairs
M Snail Ultralight Chair Review: Carbon Fiber and Dyneema for Around $60
A 1.6 lb camp chair built from carbon fiber and Dyneema at a fraction of the usual price, plus what one frame failure revealed about its bonded joints.
Backpacking Gear
Mainstream vs Ultralight Backpacking Gear: 13 Picks Compared
A category-by-category look at mainstream and cottage-brand ultralight backpacking gear, from packs and shelters to water treatment, stoves, headlamps, and sleep systems.
Backpacking Gear
Maker-Designed Backpacking Gear: Nine Products Tested in the Arizona Desert
Nine maker-designed backpacking products tested over an overnight in the Arizona desert, with what stood out and what to check before buying.
Backpacks
Mardingtop 28L Tactical Backpack Review: An Inexpensive Day Pack With Clear Limits
A $42 tactical-style day pack with genuine YKK hardware and a light duty build. Here is what it handles well, and what to check before you buy.
Hiking Backpacks
Martin Top 65L MOLLE Hiking Backpack Review: Big Volume, Real Compromises
A close look at the Martin Top 65L MOLLE internal frame backpack, including what works, where the frame and hardware fall short, and who should consider it.
Backpacks
Maxpedition Gear Falcon 36L Backpack Review: Tactical Looks, Civilian Comfort
A decade-old design with heavy-duty materials, a full clamshell opening, and a removable lumbar pouch. Here is who the Maxpedition Gear Falcon 36L actually suits.
Backpacks
Maxpedition Typhoon Review: A Compact Modular Daypack Built to Ride High
A close look at the Maxpedition Typhoon, a 13 litre modular daypack with 1,000 denier ballistic nylon, YKK zippers and a high-ride carry design.
Camping Shelters
MC2 Mount Bivvy Tent Review: Great Build, Unusable Interior
A close look at the MC2 Mount bivvy tent, from its excellent materials and fly-first pitch to an interior most adults cannot lie down in, plus how the Snugpak Ionosphere compares.
Camping Shelters
MC2 Mount Bivy Tent Version 2 Review: A Packable Three-Season Shelter
A close look at the MC2 Mount Bivy Tent version 2, a light double-wall bivy shelter with a long interior, a 3,000 mm fly, and a $110 price.
Hiking Boots
Merrell Moab Speed 2 Thermo Mid Waterproof Review: A Winter Hiking Boot for Sub-Zero Days
A practical look at the Merrell Moab Speed 2 Thermo Mid Waterproof, covering Vibram Ice Trek grip, PrimaLoft warmth, comfort, and the temperature limits to know before buying.
Base Layers
Mesh vs Wool Base Layers: Comparing Brynje, WoolX, and Arc'teryx for Cold Weather
Three cold-weather base layers compared on warmth, water retention, wet comfort, and drying time, from an open Norwegian mesh knit to lightweight merino and a heavier synthetic zip neck.
Base Layers
Mesh vs Wool Base Layers: Brynje, WoolX, and Arc'teryx Compared
Three base layers, two very different approaches to staying warm and dry. A close look at warmth, water retention, drying time, weight, and price.
Outdoor Gear
Modern Hiking Essentials: 8 Pieces of Gear Worth Carrying
A practical look at eight pieces of modern hiking gear covering comfort, navigation, and safety, with notes on what each item does well and what to check before buying.
Camera Backpacks
Moment Strohl Mountain Light Backpack Review: A 45 Liter Pack Built for Photographers Who Hike
A 45 liter backpack designed around camera gear and trail loads, with strong carrying comfort, hip-mounted camera access, and a few trade-offs worth knowing before you buy.
Insect Protection
Mosquito and Tick Protection for Hiking: Sawyer Picaridin, Sawyer Permethrin and Thermacell Compared
Three practical insect protection options for hikers and campers, with what controlled testing showed about picaridin lotion, permethrin clothing treatment and a portable Thermacell device.
Camping Gear
Most Overrated Camping Gear: Seven Items That Still Earn Their Place
Seven camping products that attract the overrated label, what each one actually does well, and who should spend their money elsewhere.
Backpacking Gear
Most Popular Backpacking Gear 2026: 16 Picks Backed by Through-Hiker Data
A data-led roundup of the backpacking gear that keeps appearing in long-distance hiker surveys and specialist ultralight sales data, from quilts and shelters to stoves, filters, and trail tools.
Backpacking Gear
Five Most Versatile Backpacking Gear Picks for Ultralight Trips
A practical look at five ultralight pieces that adapt across shelter, sleep, tools, and wool coverage, plus how to decide what earns pack space.
Outdoor Clothing
Mountain Equipment Stoneware Range Review: Trousers, Burren Tee and Lava Tee
A close look at the revived Mountain Equipment Stoneware range, covering the heavyweight organic cotton canvas trousers and the hemp-blend Burren and Lava tees.
Outdoor Heating
Mr. Heater Buddy and Kova Cupid Heater: Portable Propane Heaters for Cold Weather
A long-running portable propane heater and the compact alternative for small tents and vehicles, with real-world runtime, safety features, and trade-offs to weigh before winter.
Backpacking Tents
MSR Access 2 Review: A Light Two-Person Tent With a Four-Season Question Mark
A roomy, well-ventilated 1.86 kg two-person backpacking tent that shines in spring and autumn, but falls short of a true four-season shelter.
Outdoor Gear
MSR Gear Guide: Zoic Tent and PocketRocket Stoves Explained
A practical look at MSR tents and stoves, covering the Zoic and three generations of the PocketRocket, plus how to buy with a return policy in place.
Camping Stoves
MSR Pocket Rocket Deluxe Review: A Light, Compact Backpacking Stove
An 83 gram canister stove with a pressure regulator, wind-shielding burner lip and piezo ignition, plus the trade-offs worth weighing before you buy.
Camping Stoves
MSR Reactor Review: A One Litre Expedition Stove Built for Sub-Zero Water Boiling
A close look at the MSR Reactor, a one litre stove system with an integrated heat exchanger and radiant burner that boils water fast in wind and deep cold.