Advnture Verdict
Get the best of both worlds – and stay safe – with this clever gilet. It has effective reflective detailing for use at night and is warm and comfortable for use as a body warmer in the daytime.
Pros
- +
Reflective at night
- +
Zipped pockets
- +
Water resistant
Cons
- -
Too warm for more active sports
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Proviz REFLECT360 Women's Down Gilet: first impressions
The Proviz REFLECT360 Women's Down Gilet is a little different to most hi-viz jackets. We’ve tested out multiple reflective jackets designed to make you more visible when you’re out and about at night, and while they’re very effective, many of them do make you look like a blindingly bright beacon whenever you encounter a light source.
The more subtle reflective details on the Proviz REFLECT360 Women's Down Gilet’s shoulders, back and sides make you easily spotted under street lighting or in car or bike headlights, but when worn in daylight the vest is a neutral, versatile black that doesn’t make you look like you’re part of a construction team. But is that enough to secure it a place in our best women’s gilets buying guide?
• RRP: $150 (US) / £100 (UK)
• Fill: Synthetic down
• Sizes: XS / S / M / L / XL
• Waterproofing: Water resistant
• Colors: Black (with reflective properties)
• Compatibility: Great for walking and biking after dark
Proviz REFLECT360 Women's Down Gilet: on the trail
If you commute daily in the dark you might want to pick something more obviously reflective, but as a compromise between a gilet you can wear everywhere and a safety jacket the Proviz REFLECT360 Women's Down Gilet is ideal.
This isn’t a one-trick-pony safety vest, either – the down filling offers instant warmth but isn’t too bulky, with a great warmth-to-weight ratio. Boasting 180g of insulation, it traps in heat quickly, but we did find that this vest is too insulated to work for fast-paced sports, and is better kept for chilly winter walks and city cycles.
On test, the outer material of the gilet proved water resistant enough to repel light rain, so it’s ideal if you’re heading out in changeable conditions. You can easily layer jackets over this slimmer, insulated gilet – we tested it out alone when cycling at night and under a waterproof on a walk and found it ideal for both uses. (See also: why is layering important?)
As the name suggests, there are reflective details on every side of the gilet that really catch the light, and when the sun comes up this is a handy go-anywhere gilet.
