Eezi-Awn Sabre Lite vs RoofBunk Roamer
The Eezi-Awn Sabre Lite and the RoofBunk Roamer are both hardshell tents in the same part of the market, which makes them a genuine head-to-head rather than a comparison across categories. Eezi-Awn and RoofBunk take noticeably different approaches to the same problem.
By the numbers, the Eezi-Awn Sabre Lite brings 70 kg and sleeps 2. The RoofBunk Roamer counters with 60 kg, 2.94 m² of floor, 100 cm of headroom and sleeps 3.
The Roamer is 10 kg lighter at 60 kg against 70 kg, which on a factory roof rated for 68 to 75 kg is often the difference between a legal fit and a rack upgrade. Setup is not close. The Roamer opens as a pop-up in 60 seconds; the Sabre Lite takes 5 minutes. Over a trip with a new campsite every night, that gap compounds. Their list prices are within a few percent of each other, so price is unlikely to decide this one.
They open differently: the Sabre Lite is a clamshell and the Roamer a pop-up. That is not cosmetic — it decides whether headroom is even across the tent or tapers towards one end, and how much of the roof the tent occupies when closed. The Sabre Lite uses aluminium hard-shell with one-piece hinge system; the Roamer uses high-quality ABS. Closed, the Roamer sits 10 cm lower on the roof — 27 cm against 37 cm — which is drag you carry on every mile you are not camping.
Eezi-Awn
Sabre Lite
The Sabre Lite is one of Eezi-Awn's aluminium hard-shell tents, rated by the maker as a two-person tent that one person can open and close in under five minutes. It carries a 70mm high-density laminated mattress, internal LED lighting and a K9 track on the shell for mounting load bars or a solar-panel bracket. Packed dimensions are 1450 x 1400mm, 370mm high at the back tapering to 270mm at the front.
- Manufacturer states two-person capacity and under-five-minute single-person setup
- K9 track on the shell for load bars or a solar bracket
- Internal LED lighting and USB/USB-C charging
- Eezi-Awn does not publish erected height or open floor dimensions
RoofBunk
Roamer
The Roamer is RoofBunk's ABS hard-shell tent, a gas-strut pop-up that the maker says opens in 30-60 seconds and sleeps 2-3. RoofBunk lists open dimensions of 210 x 140cm, a closed height of 27cm, a 7cm memory-foam mattress and a 60kg weight excluding the ladder. The high-quality ABS shell tops a 320gsm poly-cotton ripstop canvas body rated to 3000mm HH and 4-season.
- Quick 30-60 second gas-strut pop-up setup per the manufacturer
- Thicker 7cm memory-foam mattress than the soft-shell Explorer range
- Bedding can be left inside when the ABS shell is closed
- Weight (60kg) is published excluding the ladder
Which one to pick
Take the Roamer if you move camp most days. Take the Roamer if your roof load limit is the binding constraint. Beyond that the feature rows below — heater port, skylight, annex, cargo rails — are where the remaining difference lies.
Every specification, side by side
| Specification | ||
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Type | Hardshell | Hardshell |
| Opening style | Clamshell | Pop-up |
| Sleeps | 2— worst of the tents compared | 3— best of the tents compared |
| Season rating | — | 4-season |
| List price | $2,260— best of the tents compared | $2,320— worst of the tents compared |
| Weight and size | ||
| Weight | 154 lb— worst of the tents compared | 132 lb— best of the tents compared |
| Packed length | 4 ft 9 in— best of the tents compared | 6 ft 11 in— worst of the tents compared |
| Packed width | 4 ft 7 in | 4 ft 7 in |
| Packed height | 14.6 in— worst of the tents compared | 10.6 in— best of the tents compared |
| Living space | ||
| Sleeping length | — | 6 ft 11 in |
| Sleeping width | — | 4 ft 7 in |
| Floor area | — | 31.6 sq ft |
| Interior height | — | 3 ft 3 in |
| Mattress thickness | 2.8 in | 2.8 in |
| Setup and build | ||
| Setup timeManufacturer's claim where published; otherwise estimated from tent type. Expect longer in practice. | 5 min— worst of the tents compared | 60 sec— best of the tents compared |
| Shell material | Aluminium hard-shell with one-piece hinge system | High-quality ABS |
| Fabric | — | 320gsm poly-cotton blend ripstop canvas |
| Warranty | — | 2years |
| Features | ||
| Integrated LED lighting | Yes | — |
| Heater / HVAC port | — | — |
| Roof skylight | — | — |
| Annex available | — | — |
| Solar ready | Yes | — |
| Carries cargo on top | Yes | — |
| Sources | ||
| Last verified | Eezi-Awn product page | RoofBunk product page |
Related comparisons
- Sabre LitevsOrthFrame
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- Sabre LitevsKabari Superfly
- RoamervsOrthFrame
Or read the full spec sheets for the Eezi-Awn Sabre Lite and the RoofBunk Roamer.