I'll start at the end; getting it back in its bag is no fun. Its not the worst I've had to contend with, but its a bit of a wrestle, namely because the bag is end-opening and a bit of a tight squeeze. Its also pretty long (I haven't got a tape measure to hand, but I'd guess around two foot) due to the front and rear pre-installed mini poles that this tent sports. I'm paranoid that these poles may rip through the tent fabric at some point when I'm trying to ram it back in the bag. A wider bag with compression straps to pull it tight after packing the tent away would make the world of difference.
Its long, relatively thin form when packed makes it easier to lash to your rucksack in the vertical position, rather than slung underneath horizontally, I find.
Though the tent does come with instructions on the inside of its bag, after the first pitch you won't need them.
Its a single-poled design, with, as I mentioned, two pre-installed mini poles. Stick the pole in, peg out the fore and rear tapes, peg out the guy lines, then peg out everything else. That's it, job done.
Using the tent-specific footprint makes pitching even easier, as you can hook at least four of the fastening loops onto the pegs used for the footprint. You can also sit the pole-ends in the footprint eyelets while erecting the tent, which keeps the tent from shifting as you're trying to peg it out, although I found that the pole didn't naturally want to sit in these, and after pitching I removed the pole from the eyelets and let it flex to where it wanted to go.
On my first attempt I had the whole thing up in about 10 minutes, and that's including pegging out the footprint and reading the instructions; I reckon next time I'll have it down to under 5 minutes.
Having been used to the generous length of the Coleman Cobra 2, I was worried I'd find the Zephyros 2 a little cramped. I have to say in my brief dive inside it, it wasn't too bad. One major plus is that at all points the inner is kept well away from the fly, so if my feet are up against the inner at one end it doesn't matter, there's no danger of the two touching.
I've yet to try getting in there with my pack (I'm not one for leaving my pack in the porch), but it looks like there should be enough room, even if my bag and I do have to get a little cosy.
Terra Nova advertise the packed weight at 1.81kg, which for once was spot-on* (on my scales it weighed in at 1.814kg), and as far as I can see you'll need to spend a lot more money to get a lighter "2 man" tent.
Its overall footprint and profile are pretty compact, and its rather dull green colour should help it "blend in" a bit. I'm incredibly impressed with how quick and easy it is to pitch, and I'm looking forward to spending the night in it to see how it holds up.
2021 UPDATE: Technology moves quickly even in the camping world, and just a handful of years after writing this, the Naturehike Mongar 2 has come along and trounced the Zephyros in terms of weight (when including the weight of the tent's footprint), size and cost. The Mongar 2 is a true two-person tent, weighs in at a few hundred grams less, and costs about 2/3rds as much as the Zephyros, making this my new top pick for lightweight hiking tents. See my full review of the Mongar 2 here
Terra Nova Zephyros 2
*I recently weighed all the items in my pack, only to find that virtually every item was over the manufacturer's stated weight.
Terra Nova Zephyros 2
*I recently weighed all the items in my pack, only to find that virtually every item was over the manufacturer's stated weight.
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