G'day Yonni,

In my personal opinion air pole tents have a massive advantage over instant up-framed tents in terms of stability/durability in a range of weather conditions.
Air poles, whilst incredibly strong and rigid, can flex without damage which makes them the superior option in any coastal camping situation or winter storms where you can expect decent wind.
The 'poles' are 10cm diameter columns that are manufactured to the same standards as inflatable boats used by lifesavers/water police, etc so they're incredibly robust.

Instant Up tent frames tend to be on the thinner side.  Its a balance between having a frame engineered for the 'instant up' function, but also needing it to be light enough to be portable.  Whilst the Instant Up tents are an awesome option for many campers, they do have limitations in certain weather conditions.  You can better support these style tents with trace springs and heavy duty pegs, which increases their versatility.

In terms of set up time, its much of a muchness once you've pegged out all the guy ropes, etc, and they both have similar waterhead ratings.

The primary difference in materials is that the Coleman Northstar is a darkroom tent, meaning the fly block out light and creates a very dark space.
The Zempire Pronto is darker in colour, so does have some light limiting, but not to the same extent.
For the most part, people have been camping for generations without light blocking tents - its primarily a factor for campers with younger children to assist with sleep.

Hope that helps.

G'day Dave,

Overall the 4P is on the smaller end of tents that can be used with a stretcher.
Your best options for success are:
Oztrail Low Rise Single stretcher
Oztent Gecko Stretcher series II
Oztent Goanna Stretcher series II

G'day Jan,

Either will work, but the Seam Grip SIL Silicone Tent Sealant would be the better choice of the two, as it will give a slighty thinner and more flexible finish.

Heya Ryan, this is probably best described by pointing you to the video we made for this tent, check it out at 3:50 (click here to go straight to that timestamp - https://youtu.be/dsLWec7vr8c?t=230) where I describe the dimensions and stand in the vestibule. It comes out about 1.3 metres and tapers from the 240cm width of the tent to the width of the door which is about 150cm, and I'm 185cm tall. ~ Ben.

G'day Kasey,

Its definitely fine to use your tent without one, but they can be a great addition down the track.  Especially if you're camping places with rough ground, or very dusty/muddy spaces.
Check out our blog The Benefits of a tent Groundsheet for more info.

G'day Chris,

It doesn't, no.  The tent is not insulated at all, so it won't make it warmer, and doesn't technically make the tent cooler in summer.  The darkroom technology can reflect sunlight & therefore potentially some heat, but there's no insulative properties.  It's worth mentioning that without some natural shade and effective ventilation, a darkroom tent will likely perform similarly to a standard tent on a hot summer's day.

Any steel will rust in the right conditions, John, and while you may still get a bit of surface rust here and there as long as you store your tent dry then it really isn't a concern.

As for comparison to Turbo Tents, theColeman Instant Up Tents are arguably more livablen as they have more features, but the Turbo Tents are superior when it comes to stability.

If you need something that will withstand bad weather all the time then the Turbo is a better choice. For mild weather family camping with the occasional bout of bad weather, then the Coleman Instant Up tents will be more manageable and livable. 

G'day Choo,

The tent inner on the Northstar 4P does not have a waterproof rating.
If you are camping in the rain you must use the fly.

G'day Ines,

They're both great options, with similar build quality and materials. I find the Coleman frame seems to be slightly heavier duty and have a better overall support structure, but having said that alot of people love their Lumos tents. It might be a good option to have a read of some reviews on either, and get some real-life feedback from Campers to help with your decision.

G'day Gavin,

We'd recommend the 300mm Supa Peg Polyproylene or Polycarbonate Sand Pegs, as they're a good option for a tent of this size.
You may need to grab a few extras for your awning guy ropes, etc aswell.

G'day Chris,

You can just fit the Easy Fold Single Jumbo Stretcher in the 4P Lighted Tent, however, it will press up against the end walls, so it's not an ideal fit. We'd recommend a slightly shorter stretcher, or going up to the 6P Lighted Tent.

G'day Janelle,

The 4P Lighted Darkroom Tents have a velcro strip on the front awning wall/door that can be attached to the Coleman Deluxe Gazebo 3x3 if you're looking to increase your undercover area. Aside from this there aren't any other gazebos that will directly attach, but you could set other shelters up adjacent to the tent and use the corner eyelets on the tent awning to tie the awning wall/door to other models.

G'day Emma,

We wouldn't recommend using a wood-burning stove with stove jack inside this tent. Generally the stove jack should only be used with canvas tents.

G'day Lisa,

Yes, Coleman does use flame retardants in their tents. Unfortunately, as this is fairly standard practice in the industry, you might find it difficult to get a tent not treated with a flame retardant.

G'day Damian,

The model we're selling is from the Coleman "Gold" range. It has a 3000mm waterhead rating on the fly fabric, and a heavy-duty poly oxford floor. It also has an extra front vestibule area for gear storage and ground-based side vents. The model Anaconda are selling is from the Coleman "Silver" range, it has a 1500mm waterhead rating, a lighter weight polyester floor, and no extra front vestibule area or ground vents. 

G'day Peter,

Yes, the poles of the Instant Up tents can be replaced if they break. We generally carry replacement pole stock, so if you're needing to get your hands on a pole please send an email (service@snowys.com.au) to us and attention it "Special Order".

G'day Eugenio,

You should just be able to fit a double and a single bed into the 4P Lighted Tent, however, it will largely depend on the mattresses you chose. Most double mattresses are around 135-140cm wide, which will leave you with about 80cm of useable width for a single mattress. 

G'day Euan,

The mesh Coleman uses is fairly fine, however, it isn't "No-See-Um" mesh which is the only approved midge proof mesh.

G'day Victor,

At this point in time there are no accessories specifically made for these tents other than the Mesh Footprint.

G'day Shiree,

Unfortunately, there are no sidewall accessories designed to attach the 4P Lighted Darkroom Tent. You could possible retrofit some extra shade to the awning, but there isn't anything designed to attach to it sorry. We've done the best job we can to try and represent the size of the awning in the floor plan image on the product page. Internally the vestibule area is about 80cm deep when closed, opening up the front and using it as an awning will add about 70cm to that, so the total awning length from the tent attachment to the edge is about 150cm.

G'day James,

You might be able to try and retro-fit these walls to the front of the tent, but there isn't any way to attach them without alterations. We tend to find that people looking for some extra shade/weather protection will go for a separate gazebo or shelter to attach or abutt with the front of the tent.

G'day Jason,

The Coleman Instant Up 4PV is the old darkroom version.  The 4P Northstar is the new version with built-in lights.  Other than the lights they are the same.

G'day Arthur,

There is a fairly generous amount of headspace in the front vestibule area, Ben who stars in our videos can stand up in there and he's 185cm, so I think you should be fine to use it as a changing area if needed.

G'day Amme,

The Coleman Instant Up 4P Lighted Northstar Darkroom Tents have a 3000mm waterhead rating on the fly, so they'll keep you nice and dry in almost all weather. You can read more about waterhead ratings here on our handy blog.

This doesn't specifically insulate, Kelly, but it maintains the heat as well as any dual skin tent. If you close all the vents it keeps more warmth in.

There is a downside to not ventilating the tent though, and that is condensation. If you stop airflow, there is nowhere for moisture to escape, and each person can exhale a fair bit of moisture overnight. This moisture ends up on the inside of your fly and can make for a soggy morning inside your tent if not ventilated.

You can read more on this here - https://www.snowys.com.au/blog/how-to-manage-condensation-in-your-tent/.

I'd say the bag is water-resistant, Chris. The fabric itself is waterproof, but you may find some limitations to just how waterproof it is when travelling at 100kph in heavy rain. You'll also find that the seams and zipper let water inside.

I'd suggest wrapping it in a lightweight tarp before tying it to the roof if you're expecting wet weather, this should keep it pretty dry.

G'day Sandra,

Coleman include all the pegs you'll need for a standard pitch but we always recommend keeping a few extra on hand in case the wind picks up and you need to add extra guy ropes.  It's always worthwhile upgrading some of your pegs to heavy duty - especially for securing your guys ropes.  Cheers

Apologies Sandra, just realised I only answered your first question!  Re the darkroom coating:  this feature is extremely popular and under normal circumstances, no it doesn't scratch off but certainly if anything like that happened, we hope you'd get in touch with us so our warranty team could take a look. 

The Oxley is a sturdier tent, Robert, but the Instant Up has more features, so it depends on what you are using it for.

For heavier duty use such as 4WD touring or for use in windier conditions such as coastal areas, I'd suggest the Oxley. If it is just for general camping in a caravan park or sheltered campground then the Instant Up is very liveable.

I hope that helps.

G'day Kyden,

It's not something we'd really recommend trying, but if you've got your heart set on it you could try it. I've measured the distance from the corner to the door and there is just under 40cm, so unfortunately I think your AC unit will be a little too large.

G'day Nathan,

We don't sell specific USB powerpacks for these tents, but any USB powerpack will work with the system, the larger the capacity the longer the lights will work. Generally, a USB powerpack will have a 5V, 2.1A output, we'd probably suggest at least a 10000mAh capacity.

G'day Adil,

We tend to recommend the Oztrail Ultramesh Tarps for use as a groundsheet under the Instant Up tents. The 2.4m x 2.4m or 2.4m x 3.65m tend to be the most popular options for the 4P Lighted Northstar Darkroom Model, depending on whether you want the groundsheet to extend under the front awning or not.

G'day Hannah,

The power pack is included with the tent and takes 4 - D Cell batteries. Or alternatively, you can provide your own powerpack which will also power the lighting system. In the Snowys video, Bens makes reference to the powerpack at the 6 minute, 20 second mark.

G'day Tony,

The clearance model Gold 4PV Dark Room and the new model 4P Lighted Northstar are the same apart from the integrated lighting system. If you're not fazed by the lighting then we'd say jump on the clearance model before we sell out!

G'day Tony,

This is the Lighted Northstar Darkroom, it was previously known as the Gold Darkroom.