Exped  MegaMat Max 15 Duo Sleeping Pad

I auditioned all the big pads in my living room for a couple days. I tried the REI Camp Dreamer, the Nemo Roamer, Exped Megamat 10, and this one, the 15 MAX. The Nemo Roamer crushes the Camp Dreamer (which had decent comfort but sub-par quality and no warranty/part support beyond the 1yr REI return policy. Shame on you REI) and the Exped Megamat 10 (nearly the same comfort as the Nemo but with inflate/deflate hasles). The Nemo is just as comfortable as any 4" pad and waaaay easier to inflate/deflate -- especially deflate. It's not has comfy has the Max 15 but it's so easy to live with. If I was always sleeping on hard but flat/level surfaces (or a Rooftop Tent or 15 years younger), the Nemo is the one I'd buy. It's the only one of the bunch that I could inflate, and then deflate to factory "shipped" size. All the others "grew" after the first use, and though I could put them all in the included storage bags no problem, they were definitely larger (10-15%?) than how they left the store. This one -- the MegaMat Max 15 Duo -- is an especially large, beer-keg-sized pig. But wow, is the Max 15 comfortable. Like nearly as comfortable as my King-size latex bed at home. Assuming you have the space to carry such a giant pad, the extra inches of cush and added R-value does indeed provide real comfort when you're on lumpy ground (like roots or pasture that's been churned up, frozen, then thawed) night after night. Plus it's warm. That said, the Max 15 deflation is a major hassle. Hey Exped? Why on earth did you build such a giant pad and only put in a single, small deflate valve? Deflating this pad takes a good 5-10 minutes of sweat-inducing, sumo-like work. (for the record the Exped 10 is just as bad and only slightly faster as it's smaller. I can't actually remember how fast the REI pad was because after a quick examination, I decided it wasn't even worth considering). In contrast, the Nemo is fast, easy and leaves you with a nice compact pad, no sumo-wrestling required. So what's the difference? Without cutting them open, I'm going to say it's because Nemo uses three valves (one is convertible) allowing use of two valves during each the inflate/deflate process. Exped just gives you one valve each way and they seem very restrictive, possibly tuned more for self-inflation rather than expelling it quickly (with a better pump, self-inflation wouldn't matter as much). The Nemo valve system makes inflate/deflate so much faster, easier, and I think it allows the finished product to be more compact because you get ALL the air out. Sure, I wouldn't be surprised if there's more to it (like I said, I'm not cutting this open), such as a foam density difference that keep the Max 15 from squishing back down to the compressed "factory size". And I'd be OK with that, if I didn't have to fight that one tiny valve during the deflation process. I could even live without an extra Nemo-style inflate valve  -- we're usually in no hurry for inflation. We toss the deflated pad in the tent, open the valves, go make dinner/drink a bottle of wine, then come back and pump about 150 little hand-pumps worth of air into the bed to firm it up. (Yes, a better/bigger pump would be nice, too). But as I've said about 10 times now, the single-valve deflate process is tedious and the leftover bulk is discouraging (once you've seen how it comes from the factory -- where yes, they probably sucked the air out with a vacuum pump -- you want it that small *again*). In case you're wondering, the Max 15 deflation works like this -- you must open the valve, struggle to roll it up part way, lay on it, roll some more, lay on it, fold in half (lay on it), fold some more, lay on it (by now, you're sweaty and tired), and then finally roll it to completion, close the valve and strap it up, knowing your hard work still left you with more bulk than necessary. In contrast, the NEMO, with that magic extra valve, is a snap -- open both valves, lay on it once and fold it, close one valve, roll it up. Done. The finished product fits in the small factory stuff sack with room to spare. Don't get me wrong. I LOVE the comfort of this thing. As over-50 campers who often spend 5+ nights in a row in the tent, it's worth the price AND the bulk. But dang, I can't help but think (and you have a lot of time to think while wrestling this pad) that another $5, 50gram valve would have made this thing so much better. EXPED! If you're listening, your tiny valves are holding back the potential of your giant, comfy mattress. Add more and better. And while you're at it, upgrade the stupid little p3nis-shaped pump into one of air-bag pumps like Nemo and Sea to Summit use, too. Your customers are paying a lot for this product -- they deserve better.

Takes forever to blow up and it’s really not that comfortable. Definitely not worth the price.