I find that the air style pads (especially a NeoAir) are a full 20* off the rating I would achieve if used on the ground.
Shug and others could probably give better feedback on down filled mats but I suspect those do much better.
The exped insulated pads do a bit better- but looks like woodswalker is coming up with about the same with the Q-core which is similar construction. The STS pads have pretty large un-insulated swaths at the edges. If you blow yours up and look at it against the light (like a patio door) you'll see what I mean. The Exped and Big Agnes have a better insulation and insulate further. Also- some disagree but for me (5'10, 220lbs, and size L or XL shirt) I need a wide pad (25") or I have too much exposure in my shoulders. So unless you are a careful sidesleeper or smaller shouldered person you will end up chilled.
An R-5 pad is zero on the ground all day and matches the chart Shug posted... but I wouldn't push it much past 20 in the air as WoodsWalker observed.
http://www.exped.com/usa/en/product-...t-hyperlite-lw This is the pad I use most often and find 40ish degrees about right though on the ground I could easily get to the 20's.
This is the winter version... debating between this and the Q-core for my next purchase.
http://www.exped.com/usa/en/product-...-winterlite-lw
This is opposed to my NeoAir Xlite and Xtherm which I find can easily loose 20-35 degrees as they rely purely on air chambers to function. The best I've done with the Xtherm is freezing, but I have gone to zero and under on the ground with it.
The bonus though (IMO) with a good pad is that if you find yourself pushing things you can easily go to ground and pick back up quite a bit of warmth if you're not pushing temps often enough to justify the costs of an upgrade. I've simply loosened my whoopies before to drop the whole rig to the ground if needed when I wake up chilled. I don't personally do enough hanging at zero to justify purchasing a down filled pad... and if I did I'd just get an UQ and be done with it. But for 20's and up I think pads have their place (especially if you own one already.)
That said- even an 1/8" Gossamer Gear style pad can do wonders for pushing an air pad if you don't want to invest in something newer. I think there is just too much convection losses for the air pad to cope. They are designed for ground use (conduction losses) so it's a bit unfair to judge them too harsh as they do that job very well and most brands are accurate to Shug's scale.
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