Trying to decide if the Coleman Sundome 4-Person tent is right for you?
Well you’re in luck. In this review, we’ll be looking at the pros and cons of the Coleman Sundome, one of the most popular tents on the market.
Coleman are a well-respected brand with products that are generally high-quality and affordable to most campers. This reputation is shown to be well-earned with the Sundome.
Without further ado, let’s get started.
Specs
- Size: 4-Person
- Rating: 3-season
- Weight: 9.3lb
- Center height: 59”
- Base Size: 9ft x 7ft
- Packed size: 13″ x 33″ x 8″
- Fabric: Polyester
- Floor: 1000D Polyethylene
Who Is the Coleman Sundome for?
In short, the Coleman Sundome 4 is a dome tent that’s ideal for couples and small groups of friends who want a reliable tent for summer camping. It can manage four people, but it will be a tight fit, especially when you consider the lack of storage space.
As an affordable tent, the Sundome is great for those who don’t have a large budget or occasional campers who can’t justify shelling out a lot for a tent that’ll only get used a couple times a year or less. It’s a reliable tent that will serve you well and won’t break the bank.
The tent weighs 9.7 lb (4.4 kg) which means it can be taken with you on short journeys. It is not a mountaineering or backpacking tent, but it is light enough to be portable. The duffel-style carry bag helps with portability as well.
Pitching
One of the biggest benefits of the Sundome is the quick-set up. In fact, it takes me less than 10 minutes to get it set-up fully. Although it will take you longer the first time you attempt it. The quick set-up is thanks to the patented pin-and-spring system, snag-free continuous pole sleeves, and Insta-Clip pole attachments.
The tent packs away in a short time too. Just pack it down, and then store it inside the zipped storage bag.
Materials & Durability
The Coleman Sundome incorporates Coleman’s patented WeatherTec System. But what does that mean? Well, Coleman WeatherTec tents have a few features that help them stand up to bad weather:
- Weather-resistant fabric – The tent’s walls and rainfly are made from coated polyester material and use anti-wicking thread.
- Waterproof floors – The tent floor is made from durable, waterproof polyethylene material and has welded corners to keep water out. It’s a tub style floor, which means the floor material continues several inches up the sides of the tent. This helps prevent water from entering the tent in the event of flooding.
- Inverted seams and zipper protection – Seams are on the inside of the tent to insure that water can’t get inside via the needle holes. At the same time, the tent’s zippers are covered in a cuff made from the same weather-resistant fabric as the walls and fly to prevent water from entering the tent that way either.
- Wind-resistant frame – Fiberglass tent poles make up a wind-responsive frame that won’t break in high winds. Guy lines provide further support for the frame in high winds.
Even though this WeatherTec system sounds impressive, it’s not the most heavy duty waterproofing and there are far better tents for dealing with heavy rain. With that said, the Sundome will keep you dry during those sudden summer downpours and is plenty sufficient for standard camping weather.
In addition, while the Sundome 4 doesn’t have a vestibule, an awning over the front door shields it from rain as you go in and out or if you want to leave the windows open for airflow. It also comes with a one year limited warranty in case of defects.
Size
The 4-person Sundome has a total floor area of 63 square feet, which technically allows for four sleeping bags to squeeze inside.
With that said, it would be a tight squeeze for four people, especially once you factor in space for gear. The Sundome 4 would be more comfortable with 2-3 people, depending on how much gear you take with you. It fits a queen size airbed inside with a couple of feet on either side (or four feet on one side, if you put the airbed against a wall) for camping gear.
The 4’11” center height means there’s not enough headroom for most campers to walk upright, but does allow you to comfortably sit inside the tent.
If you want a bit more space, we suggest going with the larger 6-person Sundome. With a 100 square foot area and enough room for two queen size air mattresses, the Sundome 6 provides plenty of room for a small family.
Other Features
With no vestibule or gear loft, there won’t be much space for you to store your large gear if there are four of you. The tent has small built-in mesh pockets for you to store small items off the ground and conveniently located, but they don’t do much to add gear storage.
On the other hand, Coleman made sure to include an E-Port which allows you to run an extension cord into your tent so you can charge your devices or power things like heaters, air conditioners, or fans.
And speaking of temperature regulation, the Coleman Sundome 4 also has large windows and a ground vent for airflow. The vent allows cool air to enter the tent, forcing warmer air up and out the mesh windows.
While Dark Room Technology isn’t a feature of the standard Coleman Sundome 4, the Sundome 4 (as well as the larger Sundome 6) is also available in a Dark Room version. Coleman’s Dark Room tents block 90% of light to allow you to sleep in after the sun rises, as well as reduce the interior temperature of the tent, making Dark Room tents great for summer camping.
The standard Coleman Sundome 4 is available in two color options, green/white and navy/grey.
Final Verdict
Hopefully this Coleman Sundome 4 Person Tent review has helped you to gain a better perspective of the Coleman Sundome 4.
To summarize what we’ve discussed so far, let’s take a look at a quick list of pros and cons before diving into our overall impressions:
Pros
- Easy setup
- Strong and durable
- Large built-in windows
- Waterproof
Cons
- Lack of vestibule means this tent is more suited to 2-3 people
- Not suited to extreme weather conditions like rain storms or very cold winter weather
All in all, if you’re looking for a 3-season, fair weather camping tent for your next camping trip, the Coleman Sundome 4 is a quality tent that’s hard to beat, especially for the price. Although it has a capacity of 4 people, it would be better suited for 2-3 people.
You’ll be protected from mild wind and rain thanks to the Coleman WeatherTec system that features welded flooring and inverted seams for rain protection, though you’ll want to look elsewhere if you need a tent that will perform well in very bad weather. Extra features like the mesh gear pockets, ventilation system, and E-Port add comfort.
For more similarly-sized tents, be sure to check out The Best 4-Person Tents for Camping. And if you’re in the market for a dome tent, be sure to check out The Best Dome Tents for Camping as well.
