Hardsider Is a Two-Piece Truck Camper With Innovative Hard Walls That Fold Like Origami

When it comes to exploring the outdoors and camping adventures, nothing beats a good old-fashioned pickup truck. Besides giving you easier access to off-road destinations, they are also readily available and affordable and offer you that highly-coveted feeling of sleeping under the stars but also the ability to take shelter.

Built for those who want a bit of added comfort while camping, Hardsider's solution is a hard-sided truck camper that folds just like an origami creation. As such, it offers the best of both worlds - the comfort and safety of a hard-sided camper and the efficiency and easy handling of a mesh or canvas folding one.

The Hardsider is built around a sturdy yet lightweight 2-inch (5-cm) square-tube aluminum frame that was originally developed for the US Department of Defense and contains no wood, rivets, or fiberglass in its construction.

As mentioned, this camper is made up of two pieces: the Rack and the Sleeper, as the company calls them. The Rack has no floor, fits atop the pickup box rails, and has a reinforced front part that extends farther forward above the truck's cabin than other pop-up alcove campers. This is an essential aspect of the whole design, as it allows for the bed to be positioned forward and creates ample headroom in the pickup bed portion of the camper without having to move panels to break down the sleeping platform. Moreover, it keeps the weight of the living quarters between the wheels to increase traction and stability off-road.

This pickup bed topper includes a full-height rear wall with an entry door inside the tailgate, as well as several large and small lockable doors on either side that offer easy access to the interior.

As for the interior configuration, the company offers various options. The Standard model comes empty inside and allows adventurers to create their own space, and the Bulkhead adds a divider wall between the truck and the living space to create a pass-through storage compartment. There is also a model that keeps the bulkhead and adds two benches with storage underneath, as well as a model with a more elaborate interior layout comprising one bench on the side, the bulkhead, and various cabinets with a worktable that can be accessed both from the inside and the outside.

The Sleeper section of the Hardsider clamps to the upper frame of the rack and features a pre-folded origami-style wall design that opens and closes all three sides at once. It raises to make room for two people to sleep comfortably on a full-size mattress. It works just like any other pop-up camper but stands out with its composition.

The pre-folded walls, roof, and sleeper platform are made of a composite honeycomb core wrapped in ballistic nylon that adds strength but keeps weight down. The entire pop-up section is designed to withstand strong winds and heavy snow loads, while laminated closed-cell polyethylene insulation reflects the sun and keeps the interior warm in winter and cool in summer. As such, the sleeping space above the cab is comfortable and dry regardless of the season. The forward-set design means that you don't even have to undo the bed when you break camp.

During travel, when the upper section is not deployed, it has an impressively slim format so as not to add too much height to the truck and make driving with a camper as hassle-free as possible.

The two-piece design of this camper puts it in a league of its own, as it allows owners to use the pickup bed topper alone and only attach the pop-up roof when they know they'll be camping overnight and will need a place to sleep.

Other noteworthy features that make the Hardsider a reliable companion for any adventure include interior and exterior LED lighting, Starlink connectivity, and plenty of tie-down external rails for mounting accessories like off-road lights, awnings, and the like.

As for the installation, the company says Hardsider's adapter rail system makes the process as easy as a walk in the park if you have a buddy who can lend a helping hand.
The Hardsider camper will be compatible with most pickup trucks available on the market, from midsize to full-size heavy-duty models and even electric trucks. Moreover, the startup claims their pop-up camper is "up to 40% more efficient on the road than a traditional camper for both fuel and electric vehicles."

The Hardsider hard-wall pop-up pickup camper can already be ordered, asking for a $1,000 deposit, and first deliveries are estimated to begin in spring 2024. Pricing will range between $15,000 and $30,000, depending on the interior layout and options.