RISEPRO UPGRADED OUTDOOR CAMPING CHAIR

SCORE: 40/60

FIRST off the ranks is the Risepro Upgraded Outdoor Camping Chair available from Amazon. Straight out of the box the Risepro impresses with its size and weight. At 1.33kg and packed dimensions of only 41cm H x 14cm W x 14cm D, the Risepro is the smallest and lightest of the high-backed camp chairs we tested (we also tested a ridiculously compact Moonlight low-back chair). Arriving in a small, zippered bag, the Risepro impresses with a nice, simple hook-and-loop tab to hold all the poles together in a compact bundle.

Set-up of the chair is straightforward, and immediately noticeable is the smaller diameter of the poles compared to some of the other chairs on test. Minimising diameter does reduce weight, but theoretically also reduces rigidity and strength. The Risepro opens to 104cm H x 45cm W x 45cm D and is noted to have a maximum weight capacity of 145kg.

The chair is compiled of aluminium poles, plastic joints and what is promoted as ‘waterproof’ denim fabric. The Risepro comes with a headrest cushion that attaches to the chair via a simple elastic strap. For a cheap offering, it is nice to see smart design features like sculpted plastic feet to reduce the legs sinking in to the ground. Unfortunately, the smart design does not extend as far as the pole sleeves that are sewn quite narrowly and have no thumb/finger tabs to assist with chair assembly.

Upon use of the chair we found that it was the least comfortable on test, in part due to the narrow cut of the seat’s back, and after some use we noted stress and stretching of the fabric along some seams. While there was no catastrophic failure, we wonder how long the fabric and stitching will last with constant use in exposed Australian weather.

Overall, the Risepro wins on price, but loses points for quality and comfort. RRP $59