Coleman Instant 4 Person Cabin Tent Review

When we prepared this review of the Instant 4, we looked at data against one hundred and seventy other four person cabin tents, analyzing more than sixty different data points. We also checked the total price including shipping & discounts from thirteen various retailers shops, to source the best price for you.

The Instant Fly Open
Coleman's Instant 4 With the Fly Open
In the review, we will show you:
  • An outline of the reviews we found.
  • A detailed analysis of the features, materials and dimensions.
  • The Pros and Cons of the shelter.
  • Where you can save $53.88

At optimumtents.com all our reports are produced from our individual dataset of over one thousand tents and shelters, that are sold in America. Our aim is to provide you an honest review and our own exclusive rating based on the data, along with the lowest price and best value we found.

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  • Coleman Logo
  • Manufacturer: Coleman
  • Model: Instant
  • Year Introduced: 2010
  • MPN: 2157801
  • Sleeping Capacity: 4 Persons
  • Designed For: 3 Seasons
  • Best Use: Car Camping
  • Type: Cabin Tent
  • Available in: Other Sizes
  • MSRP: $184.99
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Instant 4 Pictures and Videos

Click on an image or video to enlarge them!


The Instant With the Fly Off

Coleman Instant 4 With the Fly Off
Fly Closed on the Instant 4

Fly Closed Instant 4

A video about the Instant 4 tent.

Another video about Coleman's tents.

QUICK OVERVIEW

Logo Representing the Features Section

Features


  • Freestanding: Yes
  • Color: Navy, Gray
  • Number of Rooms: 1
  • Number of Windows: 5
  • Number of Doors: 1
  • Zippers: Zipper Cuff
  • Storage Pockets & Gear Loft: Yes, N/A
  • Mesh Roof & Walls: N/A, N/A
  • Footprint: Not Included
Logo Representing the Materials Section

Materials and Extras


  • Inner Walls: Polyster Taffeta 150D
  • Half Fly: WeatherTec Systems Patented Welded
  • Floor Materials: WeatherTec Systems Patented Welded
  • Pole Material: Steel & Fiberglass
  • Number Of Poles: 6
  • Pole Dimensions: 16mm And 22mm
  • Guy Lines & Guy Outs: Yes, Yes
  • Stakes: Yes
Logo Representing the Dimensions Section

Dimensions


  • Floor Area: 56 sq. ft.
  • Center Height: 4 foot. 11 inches.
  • Packed Weight: 16 Lbs 12 Oz
  • Packed Size: 39.95 x 8.38 x 9.38 inches.
  • Number of Vestibules: None
  • Screened Areas: None
  • Awnings: None

Tent Set Up

Instant setup in about 60 seconds

Green Thumbs Up Logo

Summary: Favorable Reviews

People who used the tent said that: Lots of space; even fits a queen sized mattress. Can be set up very quickly in about two minutes. Stays in place even in strong winds. Good value for money.


Teal Thumbs Down Logo

Summary: Unfavorable Reviews

Campers who bought the tent said that: Not enough ventilation with only one vent up top. Seams (especially the corners) can leak when it's raining. Zippers tend to get stuck in the fabric.


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SPECS AND CONFIGURATIONS

The Instant 4 has five windows and one door and a peak center height of 4' 11, which is a tiny bit smaller than the average height of the 164 different 4 person tents we have studied. With 56 square feet of space inside, it is considerably smaller than some other 4-person tents, and it would be quite tight for you and, up to three other campers during the whole of the 3-seasons, this tent is suggested for use in, smaller tents like this one generally make a great choice for people that love spending lots of time outside their tent getting some air.

A nice thing about cabin tents is, that the sides of the tent are near vertical making for a generous interior, this allows for much more headroom at the sides of the tent, making it feel much bigger than other types of tents, also, they tend to have wider floor areas, so they are great for families. In general cabin tents most often used by groups going on a camping trip in a car or a truck as they are quite heavy when compared to dome tents. That dose though make them better suited to colder nights.

Below you can check out an account of the tent's pros and cons.

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PROS

  1. Freestanding. The Instant can support its own weight on any terrain. It does not need to be staked down in most cases. But in case of strong winds, it is always best to secure it to the ground with the included steel stakes and guylines.
  2. Internal storage. It is good to see Coleman has added a gear loft and pockets in the interior to store some of your things.
  3. More than one window. With 5 openings it is easier to keep the tent ventilated on a hot summers night.
  4. Lots of Positive Reviews The Instant 4 has Tons of very good Reviews
  5. Impressive Ratings The Instant 4 has some of the best ratings of all the tents on optimumtents.com
  6. Available in other sizes. Coleman has also made this model available in Other Sizes.
  7. Low price. It is a great purchase for a 4 person cabin tent providing this much space. Not many tents available on the market give this level of quality for only $131.11 info_outline

CONS

  1. Not spacious. With a floor area of 56 square feet, the Instant 4 is smaller than quite a few of the 165 other 4 person tents we have looked at.
  2. Only one door. With just one door to get outside in the middle of the night, it may wake other campers that are sleeping.
  3. No Vestibules. If you want to keep your dirty shoes, clothes, and backpacks protected from the elements, you must keep them inside the tent.
  4. Rainfly does not completely cover the tent body. The rainfly only covers the ceiling and part of the tent body from the top. Meaning it might not protect against heavy downpours.
  5. Footprint not Included. There is no included footprint, The floor may be made of WeatherTec systems patented welded but it is still best to protect it further with a footprint, more so on rough terrain.
  6. A tad heavy for backpacking. Even though the Instant 4, looks like a small tent, it is not ideal for backpacking as it weighs 16 pounds. This is quite a lot more than many other backpacking tents
  7. Storage Space. Due to the size of the tent, one cannot store a lot of stuff inside..

CONCLUSION

4.8 Stars Logo

Our Ratings: 4.8 STARS

Coleman's Instant 4 tent is ideal for car camping. There are a couple of other things not noted above which, we noticed and liked, while researching the model: The included rainfly and the WeatherTec system with its patented welded floors and inverted seams will help you stay dry., Storage pockets to keep your gear organized and Integrated rainfly doesn’t require separate assembly.

With awesome ratings, lots of reviews and a center height of 4' and 56 square feet of space to play with, this tent is like your own modest flat. This will enable you together with 2 other campers to spend some delightful time in the outdoors together. We found a decent amount of positive points about the tent that you can read through above.

If you found this website looking for an endorsement on this particular tent, we consider, it will make for an awesome buy. If you simply happened to arrive on this page while browsing for a new tent having never heard of this manufacture or this model before, it is probably a good idea to check out some more comparable tents also.

Value for money: When contemplating value for money, this tent is unquestionably more competitive than the normal price of all the one hundred and sixty-four, four-person tents we have taken a look at, this itself does not make it remarkable value for money. We also need to take a look at other things in detail, as we do for each tent.

When we determine the valuation of a single tent, we scrutinize loads of areas, searching for areas where the tent could shine against other near-identical tents and where it is lacking. In this case, with an overall rating of 4.8 and the price statistics above, one can conclude that with a ticket price of $131.11 info_outline Coleman's Instant 4 is an awesome purchase and incredibly cheap when compared with comparable tents.

Its ratings show that the quality and capacity the tent offers were not in any way skimped on to get a price tag unquestionably beneath the average price for comparable tents. It is also worth thinking about the fact that it is discounted by 29% from the manufactures MSRP. It could make an excellent choice for most campers looking for a comfortable three-season cabin tent to camp with, that will serve you well for years to come.

Best Value & Low Price

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$131.11 info_outline
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COMPARE WITH OTHER SIMILAR TENTS

COLEMAN TENT MODELS

CABIN TENTS || 4 PERSON TENTS

Other Sizes and Variations of the Coleman Instant Model

Model Headroom Sleeping Area

Coleman Instant 10
Instant 10 Dark Room

6' 7"140 sq ft

Coleman Instant 4
Instant 4

4' 11"56 sq ft

Coleman Instant 6
Instant 6

5' 11"90 sq ft

Coleman Instant 8
Instant 8

6' 7"140 sq ft
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