I am asking sincerely, because I plan to buy either the Proton LT or the Ascendant hoody soon, and I want to make sure I correctly understand the pros and cons of each. Do you have experience with Alpha not being durable? I’ve not noticed my fleece layers losing loft.

Arc’teryx makes some of the top jackets and shells on the market, and the Atom LT Hoody is perhaps their most well. What we don’t: Breathability could be better. Insulation: Coreloft Compact (60g) What we like: Great mix of warmth, mobility, and comfort. But in an increasingly crowded field, some jackets still rise above. Arc’teryx Atom LT Hoody (259) Weight: 13.2 oz. The explosion in breathable-insulation garments has changed the way we think about insulation in the backcountry. (men’s medium) Sizes: men’s S-XXL, women’s XS-XL. First, how do you think the OR Ascendant hooded jacket would compare in this review?Īnd, you state that PolarTec Alpha insulation is not durable? Can you please explain why? I thought that since Alpha is basically long-pile fleece, it would not break or lose loft like short-fiber, loose synthetic insulation fills having very small fiber diameters. Outdoor Research Uberlayer Hooded Jacket. I also have the Patagonia Nano Air (like a fellow traveler on my Patagonia trip), but my Uberlayer was clearly the better choice in terms of warmth, wind protection, and comfort (moves with you). Much warmer and better wind protection than most other synthetic jackets out there. So Max, I have two questions if you would be kind enough to reply. This jacket delivers and seems to be very durable. And according to Max’s review, the Uberlayer is the same warmth as the Proton LT and Nano Air. The Ascendant uses the same weight of PolarTec Alpha insulation as the reviewed Uberlayer, so I assume they would both be the same warmth.

Micropuff vs an 800 fill power down would be a more realistic. It's the third heaviest jacket in this review behind The North Face ThermoBall Hoodie and the Hyper Puff. Weight & Compressibility Weighing in at 17.8oz for our size small test model, the Uberlayer is over 5oz heavier than the Nano-Air.

So the Uberlayer is probably about 1/3 warmer and about 1/3 heavier than the Nano-Air, and probably doesn't breath quite as well - but would be more appropriate in colder weather. We found that the Uberlayer 's hood seals in warmth well and it fits over a helmet if needed. Again you could compare them, but they are so differently designed, the comparison wouldn't mean much. The Uberlayer seems to be OR's answer to the Nano-Air, although it has 98g/m2 polartec Alpha while the Nano Air has 60 g/m2 fullrange. The Micropuff would be the user who is slower paced and not expecting to break a sweat while wearing it. The OR Ascendant hoody weighs a claimed 13.0 oz, which is a whole 1.4 oz lighter than the top-recommended Arcteryx Proton LT. The Nano air would be for the user who is moving faster and sweating.

Uberlayer vs nanoair