NorthFace Jackets?

[iBlue]

They're awesome but I agree with what OutThere said, it depends on the jacket because they're not all loaded up with insulation.

I have this one and my husband has one of the triclimate ones. We both love them and wonder why we waited so long to get them. It's made the british winter a lot more bearable.

Their sizing often accommodates for layers beneath the jacket so you usually go down a size if you're not planning on layering. You must be pretty petite if a small swims on you like that. My husband and I are pretty average sized and we both have mediums. Try a different range or brand, I suppose.

 

[miles01110]

North Face jackets pale in comparison to offerings from LL Bean. LL Bean's warranty is usually better also.

 

[Abstract]

If all you want is something that looks sporty, then The North Face jackets are good. They function OK, and they look OK.

If you want to buy technical gear, you can get better gear for less money.



Columbia also makes a "Tri-Climate" equivalent. They're both essentially waterproof shells with a warm-ish liner inside. Columbia's liners used to be equivalent to a heavy fleece jacket, with a bit of nylon bits on the outside to make it look more technical. The shell is somewhat waterproof, and somewhat breathable.

I don't know the technical details of this jacket, but TNF is probably giving you something very, very similar to the Columbia 3-purpose jackets --- namely, an OK shell, and an OK insulating layer. It's not going to be incredibly warm, but it really depends on where you live.

IF you want something good, you'd be better off buying the two layers individually, and accept the fact that you can't just zip one into the other (i.e. it'll be less convenient).


I have a The North Face Apex Bionic softshell. It's much warmer than other softshells, but much less breathable. It's funny, because the purpose of going with a softshell is it's breathability. However, the Bionic Apex is very useful when it's colder than -10 C, and my wool coat isn't warm enough.

I also have a Hyvent jacket of some sort. I actually bought it because it looks "fancy" for an outdoorsy jacket.