Gordigear Hapuku vs Roofnest Falcon 3 EVO Air

The Gordigear Hapuku and the Roofnest Falcon 3 EVO Air 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. Gordigear and Roofnest take noticeably different approaches to the same problem.

The Falcon 3 EVO Air is 36 kg lighter at 59 kg against 95 kg, which on a factory roof rated for 68 to 75 kg is often the difference between a legal fit and a rack upgrade. Inside, the Hapuku gives 3.01 m² of sleeping floor against 2.42 m², about 24 percent more, and it sleeps 3 to the Falcon 3 EVO Air's 2. Setup is not close. The Hapuku opens as a pop-up in 30 seconds; the Falcon 3 EVO Air takes 1 minutes. Over a trip with a new campsite every night, that gap compounds. List prices are within $82 of each other, so price is unlikely to decide this one.

They open differently: the Hapuku is a pop-up and the Falcon 3 EVO Air a clamshell. 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 Hapuku uses aluminium 18 mm honeycomb core with aluminium planking; the Falcon 3 EVO Air uses rooftex ABS shell with aluminum frame and side rails. Canvas differs too: 320 gr/m2 ripstop polyester-cotton blend, polyurethane impregnated and UV resistant; flysheet 150 gr/m2 600D Oxford (UV 50+) against 280gsm poly-cotton canvas with blackout coating. The Hapuku adds the ability to carry cargo on the shell, which the Falcon 3 EVO Air does not offer. Closed, the Hapuku sits 5 cm lower on the roof — 15 cm against 20 cm — which is drag you carry on every mile you are not camping.