Would You Use This as a Cragpack? + Giveaway

I recently stumbled upon this pack called the Chameleon that holds ~32 L and unfolds into a camp chair, which I thought was a pretty cool design. It's launching on kickstarter soon, and I'm interested to see how it goes. They are currently running a giveaway/contest for the pack, REI giftcards, T-shirts and hats, so check it out at my link here to sign up.

Would you bring this to the crag? Do you think it's just a gimmick, or a cool design? It looks big enough to fit all the gear I typically bring for sport climbing, but I'm interested to hear what the MP community thinks.

Heads up: I'll get a referral if you sign up through my link. You definitely don't have to use my link. I just wanted to see what others thought of this design.

I think it's more for soccer moms

If the chair is comfy, then yes.  Also, ... camo?? 

Only so i can sit down while belaying

Mike Womack wrote:

If the chair is comfy, then yes.  Also, ... camo?? 

I'm pretty sure they will have other colors too. They had a snazzy green one on the website. It looks a little bit less redneck. (no offense to rednecks...)

Honestly, for sport crags with relatively short approaches this seems like a perfect belay chair.

n00b wrote:
You should disclose when you're promoting your own product instead of lying about it.

apoet wrote:

Honestly, for sport crags with relatively short approaches this seems like a perfect belay chair.

No.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

 &.     

 No,

 not even close ~ no beer cozy. .  .  . or Lill'bong-slot

You should disclose when you're promoting your own product instead of lying about it.

n00b wrote:

You should disclose when you're promoting your own product instead of lying about it.

This actually isn't my product. I just thought it looked like a neat product. I like to keep my eye on cool kickstarter products, and I stumbled upon this one last week and thought I'd share it. I always divulge my conflicts of interest, which probably comes from being steeped in academia.

I have a small potable chair that I strap to my pack and bring to the crag when appropriate.  There are plenty of crags where I have no room or need to set up a chair, so I would not want to deal with the extra weight of a chair built into a pack.

No. I wouldn't. 

Can you set up the chair without removing items from the pack (when full)? Is the chair sturdy? Can one assemble the chair quickly (e.g., less than 30 s)? 

If yes to all three, then "yes", I'd use it. 

It looks about the same as a helinox chair, or the REI equivalent. Those are under 2 pounds, and you can leave them behind if you want... Not sure I'd want a pack with it built in.

I just watched the video on the kickstarter page. You can deploy the chair without unpacking it, but this is because it has 2 internal bags that hold your gear, and remain attached. The frame looks the same as a helinox chair.

The only way this would possibly make sense to me is if the chair feature of this pack added less weight than an ultralight camp chair would add to a similarly sized pack.. You already have the same frame as a helinox chair, so it comes down to the amount of fabric used. The fabric for a helinox is light weight, and would appear to be much lighter than the 2 extra internal bags that this pack uses, so I'd have a hard time believing that this could possibly be lighter. 

I'd chalk this one up as "not worth the hype". If I wanted to bring a chair along I'd much rather toss a chair zero into my crag pack, and be done with it.

dumb

Cabela's/Basspro Shop will sell one million units.

What is the estimated cost? If it's cheaper than a helinox strapped to a crag bag, then it may sell. 

Unfortunately, it looks like it will be pretty expensive. They estimated the "value" of the chameleon bag, the two internal bags, a T-shirt, and a hat at 287, which seems really steep to me.

I haven't had a chance to try out those Helinox chairs, but that does seem more versatile than this pack.

The site does say that the kickstarter will offer a 42% discount on retail pricing, which would likely make the pack ~$140. Not too bad, but if you already have a pack, the Helinox zero would likely make more sense, as Andrew said.

Gimmick: yes.  Will I buy one: no.  Would I use it if I was given one? YES!

Nick Sweeney wrote:

Gimmick: yes.  Will I buy one: no.  Would I use it if I was given one? YES!

Yeah, that's a given, I think. Hell, if you can get it for $140, that's only 20 more than a retail chair zero, so it the weight doesn't bother you, it's not a bad deal.