This Gobi Heat review covers the key features, pros and cons of Gobi Heat’s Terrain chair, including what it’s like to use, how comfortable it is to sit in, how effective the heating and warming features work (including battery life and charging time), and where’s best to buy it if you decide to get one.
In case you haven’t heard of it, the Gobi Heat Terrain Chair is a heated outdoor chair designed for use anywhere you may want help keeping warm.
Types of places you may want to take it include camping, on the lawn in your backyard, stargazing on a cold, clear night, or where you’ll need or want to be sitting outdoors in colder weather, such as fishing, watching sports games, festivals and tailgating.
Camping chairs are one of the most important items of camping furniture to consider when packing your camping supplies ready for your next camping trip. Also think about camping stuff like a good insulated blanket, a camping lantern, a portable power station, a tent, and sleeping bag.
Check out our full camping essentials checklist after this post to ensure you’re ready for your next camping trip.
If you’re short on time and are just here for details on the best place to buy one, then visit Gobi Heat’s website, which is the best place to get the chair as well as other cool heated camping equipment they make, such as heated blankets, jackets, and gloves!
This Gobi Heat chair is one of our top rated camping chairs and also features on our camping chairs buyer’s guide, which I recommend checking out if you’re shopping for high-end camp chairs like this one.
If you’re looking to buy some camping gifts this holiday season read our Camping Gifts List for Outdoorsy People.
About Gobi Heat
Gobi Heat is a US-based, women-founded company that specializes in heated apparel and accessories.
As well as their bestselling heated camp chair featured in this review, Gobi Heat also offers a range of innovative heating apparel, including jackets, socks and other accessories such as heated blankets.
Their range of heated apparel are definitely worth checking out if you (or a loved one) feel the cold and don’t want that to spoil your time outdoors in winter and cold weather – read my Gobi heated jacket review to learn more.
Gobi Heat Chair – Key Features
The Terrain heated outdoor chair is a collapsible, folding chair, that comes with two built-in heated panels that are powered by a rechargeable battery to help keep you warm.
Heating panels
The heating panels are located in the lower back and seat base area, meaning you should have a toasty lower back and rear end after using it for a short period of time.
Battery
The battery fits in your hand and stores in a pocket at the side of the chair, which is where you connect it to the chair to let it power the heat.
It’s easily controlled using a button that can be used to switch between low, medium, and high heat.
The battery will last up to nine hours if the chair is used on the low heat setting – it will be less, down to around 4.5 hours if used continuously on high heat – but that’s still pretty impressive, as outputting heat is a very intensive use of battery power!
It’s also worth noting that the battery has a USB port which you can use to charge small devices, such as your phone, with.
Of course, that will take up some battery juice that could be used for your chair but is great in a pinch if you need to top up a phone or headlamp, for example.
Other features of the Gobi heated chair
Aside from the heating features, it’s worth noting that the Gobi Heat chair:
- Is made using a durable steel alloy
- Weighs 11lb
- Has a relatively high back compared to many other camp chairs
- Features a cup holder
- Has a maximum weight capacity of 325lb and is one of the most heavy duty camping chairs we have tested. It’s probably the best backpacking chair for big guys due to this maximum capacity.
- Is made from wind and water-resistant polyester material
- Has a side pocket for storing the battery which you can also stow small essentials in
- Comes with a carrying bag, making it more portable when folded.
This heavy duty camping chair is not designed to be particularly small or lightweight, but it’s definitely pretty portable and very durable. There are better backpacking chairs available if you’re looking for a super lightweight and packable option.
If you’re carrying it to/from a lake, campsite (from your car), or playing field it’s easy enough to carry when it’s in its included carrying bag, and the weight, 11lb, is pretty typical for a sturdy, steel-construction folding camp chair.
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When it comes to color options, there are a few to choose from, including a camo option and the bright red, which I have and as shown in the photos throughout this review. Click here to see current available color options on their website.
Using the Gobi Heated Chair
First up, before we get into the heating features, this is a great all-round outdoor seat, whether it’s heated or not.
It’s solid, has a deep seat, padded arms, and back, and has a high back, which is way more comfortable than those chairs that only go halfway up your back.
The cup holder is a useful feature, whether you choose to put a drink or something such as your phone in there.
Opening and folding the chair away is just as quick and easy as most camping chairs, and it’s easy for one person to slide it into the carrying / storage bag that comes with it.
If you store the chair in a shed or a cold garage, I would suggest you store the battery somewhere warmer, such as in your house, to care for it as lithium batteries are not supposed to be stored in extreme hot or cold temperatures.
Just – don’t forget to pack the battery next time you take the chair somewhere… and make sure it’s charged up!
Right, now on to the heating features…
Once the battery is turned on and you’ve selected one of the three heat settings, it takes less than a minute to start feeling the heat.
You need to remember to turn the battery itself on, using a button on the side, and then select your heat setting on the chair.
Depending on your preference as well as how cold it is where you are, you can choose between the low, medium or high heat settings by clicking through them on the button on the left side of the chair.
Personally, I found the medium heat to be plenty for my use, although if you are using it in a much colder climate then I can definitely see the advantage of kicking up the heat to the maximum setting.
I imagine most people are going to find the middle setting a happy ‘medium’, so to speak.
The higher the heat, the quicker the battery runs down, so that is worth bearing in mind.
The battery should, however, still last up to 4.5 hours on the high setting, which is pretty long for such a small battery. The medium setting should get you around six hours of heating.
Honestly, when your camping buddies or fellow soccer-watchers learn that your chair is heated and you have a cozy warm back and butt, your chair will be highly coveted and you’ll be the envy of them all, haha!
As the chair only heats your back, you’ll still want a warm layer on your front.
Definitely still wear warm clothes, and consider an insulating lightweight blanket such as a Rumpl or one of these other camping blankets, or perhaps even one of Gobi Heat’s popular heated hoodies and jackets (which are available in Men’s and Women’s styles).
Battery life and charging the battery
I’ve found the battery life to be as stated in the product details, no complaints here.
It’s easy to recharge, which takes around three to four hours to do so fully from empty or nearly-empty.
It has a battery fullness indicator on the side, so you can use that to check how much charge the battery has, and that it’s actually on before you go to connect it to the chair.
You can also buy spare batteries on Gobi Heat’s website.
Getting a spare battery may be a good idea if you expect to need continuous use out of the chair for more than 4.5+ hours without time to charge in between, as you can just switch out the second battery when the first one gets low.
Cost and Where to Buy
If you’re looking for a sturdy new camping chair with a 300lb+ max weight but don’t want to go with the uncomfortable, cheap chairs you can find at big box stores then you’re going to be shopping for camp chairs in the $100+ price point to start with.
Combine that with the fact that the Gobi Heat is definitely one of the sturdiest camping chairs we’ve tested, comfortable to sit on, has a high back and a cup holder then it’s already looking pretty great.
Then, add on it being a HEATED chair, and it’s easy to see why for $200, it’s one of Gobi Heat’s top-rated camping chairs and one of the most popular out there when it comes to heated outdoor seating.
If you’re looking to get yourself one (or two) after reading this review, visit their website, which is the best place to shop to ensure you have the latest version of the product and can also browse their other heated outdoor apparel, which includes jackets, vests and – my favorite – heated socks!
You may also be able to find these nice camping chairs on other online stores, such as on Amazon.
Gobi Heat Review Summary
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Image Gallery – Gobi Heated Camping Chair
