are these things more comfortable than the old GI cots? On a scale of 1-10, If sleeping on a boulder field was a one and sleeping on a feather bed a ten, I would rate the GI cot around 5 and my klymit air mattress a 7 or 8. What say you experienced consumers?
I will speak for the Go Kot since that's what I have (3 of them) and as I mentioned, the Go Kot has 2 additional steel spring "legs".
Comfort: IMO equal to a fully inflated air mattress of good quality. The Kot will begin to really beat an air mattress at about 2 am when your air mattress is half deflated and you feel your **** in contact with that pebble you neglected to sweep from your camp site.
Speed: Set up and take down of these units is very fast. Obviously no air pumps to deal with, no mattress deflation to contend with. Of course, your air mattress deflates itself overnight so there's that.
Tricewife and I take our Kots on RAGBRAI, a 7 day camping/cycling event in Iowa every year, in July. We've done it for 15 years. In the early days, it was air mattresses. No more. The Kot is ideal. We also moved to the Coleman Instant Tent as well for speedy camp break down. We have to be up and on the road cycling by sunrise.
IF you are static camping, and IF you want a portable bed that will fit 2 people, and inflating it and keeping it inflated is not a factor, than I'd go with an air mattress. Go Kot doesn't make a unit for more than 1 person. And these units are not for hiking the Appalachian Trail.
These Kots are what you want if you want to wake up in the morning in the same comfort you went to bed with.