I've got a soft tonneau, but it has a 'flip top' feature, so it's like a hard tonneau for access, but it's still just a soft cover..
I had a rollup one on before, and that just sucked as far as access goes.. Always have to peel it up to get into the bed..
Never had a fold up type, so can't say on that, but once I got the flip top one, that's all I would use now..
My Dad has a hard tonneau cover, and it flips up the same as mine, but it's so dang heavy, it takes about 30 minutes to remove..
If I want to remove mine, it takes about 2 minutes...
It's not 100% water proof, but keeps most of the water out when it rains.. I've got a Bed Rug in it, so that just makes it even nicer...
Anyway, it works for me and I don't want a full on canopy, and this is the best compromise between then all..
Good luck!
Mitch