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MSR Nook Review

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MSR Nook Review
MSR Nook
Credit: MSR
Price:  $400 List
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Manufacturer:   Cascade Designs
By Chris McNamara and Max Neale  ⋅  May 10, 2015
46
OVERALL
SCORE
  • Livability - 20% 5.0
  • Ease of Set-up - 10% 6.0
  • Weather Resistance - 20% 5.0
  • Durability - 10% 6.0
  • Adaptability - 10% 1.0
  • Weight - 20% 4.0
  • Packed Size - 10% 5.0

Our Verdict

The Nook is our highest rated tent from MSR. It's comfortable, reasonably strong, made of good quality materials, and has a series of well-designed features. Although the Nook does above average in our ratings we don't believe this type of tent delivers top performance for either car camping (it has a tiny vestibule) or for backpacking (it weighs 3.5 lb). Other pole designs offer either more space or lower weight, and a few are lighter and more comfortable. Even so, the tent performs well; one our testers slept in it for three straight months while building trails in remote high elevation areas of Yosemite National Park.
REASONS TO BUY
Reasonably lightweight
Space to sit up inside
Two supportive pockets
Above average static strength
REASONS TO AVOID
Heavy for the amount of space
Small vestibule

Our Analysis and Test Results

Hands-On Review



Livability


The MSR Nook makes the traditional Y-shaped pole design more comfortable. It uses a unique design that has two cross poles that run perpendicular to the primary pole and serve to increase interior volume. The Nook has a 38-inch peak height, which is about average for the 24 tents tested, but the beauty of the second pole is it maintains that peak height farther into the tent, creating more space for sitting upright. After the Hilleberg Anjan, this is the second most comfortable single entrance tent we've tested.

msr nook - comparing the size of the therm-a-rest neoair xlite regular (left)...
Comparing the size of the Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XLite Regular (left) and XLite Women's (right). Both of these products are remarkably light, with the women's version beating out the regular by a few ounces. The XLite Regular won a Top Pick for Ultralight use in this review and the women's version won an Editors' Choice in our women's specific review.
Credit: Max Neale

Weather Resistance


We believe the Nook is MSR's strongest three-season tent. Unlike the Hubba Hubba, Carbon Reflex 2, and Hoop, the Nook has a smaller and more aerodynamic design and many more guy points that help to support the tent in high winds. It's the company's only tent that we feel secure in during serious three-season storms. The waterproof floor extends up the walls enough to stop splashback and solid nylon panels extend four inches up from there to block additional splashback or spindrift, and make the tent warmer. The rest of the walls are mesh, which, when combined with two side vents, help to combat condensation better than the average tent tested here.

msr nook - the msr nook. note the slim, aerodynamic design and the numerous...
The MSR Nook. Note the slim, aerodynamic design and the numerous guypoints. We believe this is MSR's strongest three-season tent. None of the guypoints are guyed out in this photo.
Credit: Max Neale

Weight and Packed Size


The Nook weighs 52 ounces or 3 lb. 8 oz. It's on the heavier side for serious backpacking but is light enough for many shorter duration trips.

Limitations


The Nook walks the thin and sometimes awkward line between a backpacking tent and a car camping tent. Its features are well designed, but it suffers from “category drawback.” That is, this type of tent excels at neither car camping nor backpacking. In general our testers prefer to use a much lighter and smaller tent for backpacking and a much larger and heavier tent for car camping. The Nook's vestibule is a tiny six-square-foot pointy bit that's much smaller than the average tent we've tested. The tent performs poorly at car camping or basecamping; a slightly heavier tent offers more comfort. And for backpacking, other tents are more spacious for their weight. Nonetheless, the tent is very good compared to the global market and does reasonably well in our ratings, which pit the best tents on the market against each other.

Adaptability


The Nook can be fast-pitched with the fly, poles, and an optional footprint. But, for reasons stated in our Backpacking Tent Buying Advice, we don't recommend fast-pitching. The tent is not adaptable to environmental variation. It much be pitched in the same way every time regardless of the weather or the campsite.

Best Application


Semi-spacious backpacking.

Value


At $400 the Nook ranks among the more expensive tents we've tested. Check out our Price versus Value Chart to see how it compares to other tents performance and price.

— Chris McNamara and Max Neale
 
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