Review: Outdoor Research – Waterproof Liner Gloves

There are some days that I do not want to wear a standard or thick glove, as my hands quickly overheat and become uncomfortable. However, during autumn and early spring, I do like to wear a thinner liner glove as my fingers tend to get cold quickly (an age thing!).

However, when wearing any form of glove, the one thing that annoys me is having to take them on an off to use the camera or OS Map App on my smart phone. What I need is a thin liner glove that is touchscreen compatible.

Pro Agencies offered me the chance to try out the Outdoor Research Waterproof Liner Gloves as they appeared to cover all ‘the bases’ that I was looking for.

Specification

According to Outdoor Research:

The first of their kind, the Waterproof Liners are complete with touchscreen-compatible fingertips, a pull-on loop, and silicone grip palm and fingers.

The gloves are made from Ventia™ insert – 95% Polyester, 5% spandex; 100% polyester tricot lining, and synthetic Touchscreen suede

The Ventia membrane is made of Hydrophilic PU Film Laminate that runs Hydrostatic Resistance (in mm H2O) of 10K. (JIS L1092B test method) 80/10 DWR.

The gloves are waterproof, breathable, windproof, lightweight, compressible, ultra-tactile, and quick-drying. With:

Anti-Slip Silicone Pads on Palm and Fingers
Pull-On Loop
Tapered Wrist
Under cuff Construction
Embossed Sensor Logo on Index Fingertip
Touchscreen-Compatible

Verdict

I have had the opportunity to use these gloves on two occasions. One was a cold morning (0 to 3 degrees), and the other a wet and windy day.

Overall, I was very impressed with their performance. Firstly, they kept my hands warm without causing them to sweat, suggesting that the Ventia Membrane works. The gloves were used in conjunction with my trekking poles, so were exposed to the elements for the duration of the walks. Thankfully, they proved to be wind and water proof.

With regard to the ability to use my smart phone with the need to remove the gloves. The gloves appear to have the ‘sensors’ on the index fingers only. Whilst this worked fine and allowed me to operate the touch screen, the addition of a ‘sensor’ on the thumb would have been a great improvement.

The pull on loop was very useful in aiding the donning of the gloves and the anti-slip silicone pads working well with my trekking poles. Although these are not a unique feature, they do add to the useability of the gloves.

Over the past year I have tried numerous pairs of gloves and whilst they all perform very well, certainly with regard to being water and wind proof, they do not cover all the bases that I require in a pair of gloves. However, the OR Waterproof Liner Gloves did cover most of the bases and go a very long way to fulfilling my exacting requirements.

Would I recommend them? Yes I would, and I think they warrant the £45 price tag.

Disclaimer: I was supplied with a pair of Waterproof Liner Gloves by Pro Agencies on behalf of Outdoor Research for the purposes of this review. All opinions are my own.