Gear Review websites

[Bill in Roswell]

<p style=”text-align: left;”>Ive been on the web a minute, yet there seems a distinct lack of QUALITY reviews. Some good ones on Youtube, which is fine at home, at night. But I recall details much better when I read. BPL and Sectionhiker stand out. Most, not to judge, seem to be making a viable case for income. But  for real world scenarios (ex: west coast backpacking doesn’t really have much crossover with  Appalachia trips), who has consistent gear reviews for that environment?</p>

[Rex Sanders]

My OPINIONS and letter grades on gear review web sites I read at least monthly, minus YouTube channels.

A-  MaxNeale.blogspot.com
Excellent but infrequent reviews. Knocked down a notch because his more extreme requirements and Alaska test conditions rarely match mine.

B+  AdventureAlan.com
Good reviews without shoving his opinions in your face. I often find his YouTube videos better than the written reviews, but I’m visually oriented.

B+  AndrewSkurka.com
Andrew’s reviews move markets, and he’s a great source of techniques. You definitely understand the pros and cons of a product after his infrequent reviews.

B+  TGOMagazine.co.uk
Good for the British take on products, many not available in USA, and Chris Townsend is another legend.

B   TreelineReview.com
Definitely playing the SEO (search engine optimization) and affiliate link games, but decent reviews anyway. Treeline doesn’t cover every good option in the market when they declare the “best.”

B   HalfwayAnywhere.com
Home of the famous thru-hiker surveys, plus the occasional review. Thru-hikers are not necessarily backpacking experts, and popularity doesn’t equal goodness.

B-  OutdoorGearLab.com
Everything I said about Treeline, except I usually have a major beef with their “best” choices. Plus too much variability from reviewer to reviewer. What was #1 last year might be bottom of the pile this year, and not because the other products got that much better. On the other hand, I often find product gems, and sometimes I just want “good enough.”

B-  SectionHiker.com
What works or doesn’t work for the reviewer (usually Philip in the US Northeast) mostly doesn’t match my needs, but it took me a while to realize that. Still contains the occasional gem.

C+  CleverHiker.com
Like Treeline and OutdoorGearLab: SEO and affiliate link optimized, with fewer gems.

C   TheTrek.co
I read it for the thru-hiker stories, not for the gear reviews. Too many loquacious thru-hikers have almost no backpacking experience EXCEPT on this year’s trek. A very limited perspective, which can be entertaining in its own way.

In general, my opinion of a reviewer goes down a notch for:

– Gear given to them by companies. Want to keep that gear coming? Don’t post too many negative reviews, but run up the followers with SEO.

– Too much search engine optimization (SEO). You start recognizing the patterns after a while: “the best”, listicles, “top 10”, search phrase repetition, etc.

– Affiliate links as far as the eye can see, coupled with virtually no reviews of good products from sources that don’t have affiliate programs. Leads to a skewed perspective on the market and “the best” (see above).

– Limited or no descriptions of review conditions, including how many days & nights the reviewer actually used the product versus “box opening.” A much bigger YouTube problem.

– Limited range of reviewer experience, or experience not described. Have they ever used a different sleeping bag, tent, backpack, stove, etc. and under what conditions?

Before the titanium stakes and flaming Esbit torches come out: Yes, I’m guilty of the last two problems sometimes.

Again, just my opinions. Others will differ.

— Rex

[John S.]

One of the early review sites is/was backpack gear test. I am not sure how active they are now, but check it out.

http://www.backpackgeartest.org/

[Bonzo]

I like Adventure Alan and find the reviews there to be useful, and although I read Outdoor Gear Lab from time to time, I find that the latter is consistently inconsistent in how they seem to favor or disapprove of certain things, as Rex said.  I don’t really use the review section on BPL, unfortunately.

[BlackHatGuy]

One of the best, if not the best, review site for tech stuff (though very bike oriented) is DC Rainmaker.

[Monte Masterson]

backpackinglight.com is the best gear review website of them all and I know it isn’t a designated “gear review” site per se, but when you methodically sift through all of the gear threads and read what backpackers who have used different items extensively in the field have to say, you are getting the best real world evaluations possible. They are also more apt to be honest and not tainted by ulterior motives. I don’t trust the gear review websites because to begin with most don’t use the stuff they are reviewing long enough to even get a thorough understanding of what it is they’re talking about. It’s more about consistently cranking out reviews of items they barely use in order to get residuals from gear sellers whose links they hope you’ll click onto. The money and a need for attention motivates most of them. Some are the real deal when it comes to actually spending many days and nights out in the backcountry evaluating gear, but more are full of #&%@ if you ask me. Call me cynical, I plead guilty.

As for gear that applies to the Appalachians, I’d simply pay attention to backpackers who spend most of their time east of the 100th meridian, where rain, thunderstorms, moisture and insects come into play far more than in the west.

[John S.]

Links for gear reviews on BPL

https://backpackinglight.com/category/gear-reviews/

https://backpackinglight.com/member-gear-reviews/

https://backpackinglight.com/forums/forum/commerce/reviews/

 

[Bonzo]

I should clarify: I do use the more freelance member reviews on this site.  The curated section: not so much.

[JCH]

Everything Monty said.  BPL’ers will argue about a particular piece of gear down to absolute minutiae.  While sometimes tedious or even infuriating when the thread goes off the rails, or worst of all when it becomes personal, it also surfaces all the different viewpoints/use cases/conditions that lead to those hard fought opinions.

When I want to know about a particular piece of gear, I’ll turn to gear geeks arguing about it every time.

Please understand, I have used the term “argue” lovingly :)

[Bill in Roswell]

Thank you everyone. Rex you had a few new to me.  I forget about TGO but some good stuff there. Alan is good but gear is totally mainstream. Clever Hiker much the same. Outdoorgearlab and Switchback Travel are good for comparison, moreso for camping gear.

[Rex Sanders]

Too many review web sites say something like:

Product Alpha is better than Product Beta, because Alpha adds features X, Y, and Z. So we’re calling Product Alpha “Best.”

Two problems:

– I almost always don’t care about or even want X, Y, and Z, so Product Beta is good enough.

– Adding unnecessary features usually complicates design and use, increases weight, and increases cost. And, not coincidentally, increases profit margins and affiliate returns.

I want the RIGHT features, not the MOST features. BPL reviews usually get that correct.

— Rex

[Rex Sanders]

Should cut some slack for mainstream gear review web sites. Their target audience is probably going to buy from REI, Amazon, or other retailers, not directly from cottage gear makers or somewhat larger companies like Zpacks and TarpTent that don’t play the wholesale-retail game.

Even more reason to seek out sites like BPL and other reviewers that look wider and dig deeper.

— Rex

[Monte Masterson]

trek-lite,com in the UK has far less members than backpackinglight, but pound for pound I’d say they are even more savvy about gear than the average BPL’er. I notice a lot of MLD fans on their site. Probably a little more discerning and not as apt to be influenced by hype or what’s trendy at the moment. Just an opinion mind you (from an American). And if wind and rain are something that concerns you UK backpackers are very familiar with such conditions. https://www.trek-lite.com/index.php

I can’t remember what Briton said it to Eisenhower upon America’s entry into WWII, but the quote went: “with our brains and your resources we can win this war”. Sounds like something Montgomery would say though.

[Paul S]

I have notices that many some review sites (especially for tents) haven’t even used the gear, they just rate them based on features and weight.

[Roger Caffin]

Sneer. Also known as advertorials or desk reviews. They are usually paid ones too.

BPL does not and will not do anything like that.

Cheers

[Monte Masterson]

The gear reviews on seller websites such as campsaver, backcountry, moosejaw, REI, etc. can give a little better insight into items than “gear review” sites. However, keep in mind that many of the reviews you see are manufacturer puff pieces that are posted by people who work for the company. The seller sites will claim the gear assessments are submitted by “verified buyers” (lol) but even that’s easy to get around because the manufacturers can simply buy from the gear site. Remember, they are raking in millions, so spending $50 to $500 is very little to fork out in order to post glowing reviews of their products. It’s simply part of their advertising budget. And besides, they can wholesale the item again meaning they only spend about half of retail for the whole exercise.

Nevertheless, I find that if you see over about 1/3 of the reviews are unfavorable out of a large sample size you’d better beware. When you subtract the puff pieces it’s really about 1/2 that are negative.

[JCH]

I will listen to the gear opinions of Monty, Rex, Bill, Bonzo, Roger, Ryan and many other BPLers long before I give credence to “user reviews” on manufacturer websites or (gasp) Amazon.

Knowing a reviewer’s history of reviews, current gear list and hiking style is what makes their opinions useful.  Some yahoo posting “this brand new X is freaking great!” is worthless.

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