I have been testing 30Seven re-chargaeble battery operated heated waterproof ski mittens. They are made by a European company and sold in the UK. I must confess that I have spent a lot of time over my decades of outdoor activities looking for a solution to Raynaud’s Syndrome, which affects my hands. Find out my thoughts on these heated gloves.
Features of 30Seven re-chargaeble heated ski mittens:
- Integrated Novaheat® technology.
- Hot spots at the back of the hand, fingers and fingertips.
- Extra warm insulation
- Wind resistant
- Breathable and Waterproof Hipora® membrane.
- Soft lining
- Ergonomic fit
- Inner glove with separate fingers
- Reinforced with high-quality leather on top and bottom of the glove
- Double cuff for additional insulation
- Shell is a combination of 40% leather, 40% polyester, 20% rubber
- Lining is 100% polyester
- Insulation is 100% polyester.
- Gloves are washable at 30°C on a short wash programme
- Extra info at 30Seven
- Buy in the UK in at Robert Dyas for £139, for example, or for £229 at 30Seven, via Amazon. I can’t vouch for these outlets as I received the gloves direct. I will gain 5% commission on all sales through Robert Dyas.
Battery details:
- Rechargeable lithium-ion battery (7.4V/2.0 Ah) with button operation on the glove
- Dual-charger for charging both batteries simultaneously.
- 3 heating levels
- Battery life: Power max: 3 to 4 hours, power min: Up to 6 hours
- Recharging time: 4-5 hours (at least 1000 full charges).
On test: 30Seven heated waterproof mittens
I have owned and tested a number of pairs of heated gloves over the years and the 30Seven heated mittens are the best I have tried.
They are no bulkier than ordinary ski-style mittens. In fact, they are slimmer than my favourite pair of non-heated down insulated gloves.
They look to be made to a high standard, too, with leather palms, waterproof fabric outers and knitted internal cuff, internal glove fingers, padded insulation and, best of all, slim-line batteries that fit neatly into a zipped pocket in the underside of the cuff.
It is the development of smaller and more powerful batteries that has enabled the creation of a more useable and wearable product. Other rechargeable heated gloves I have tested have had had bigger and heavier batteries.
The 30seven batteries fold in half and fit neatly into the zipped pockets. Even when walking, rather than skiing, I did not notice the extra weight.
The gloves fit me well. I have the medium size. I have large hands for a women and the medium size fits really well. You can check your size on a useful size guide.
They are definitely water-resistant and I tested the waterproofing by running them under a tap in the full flow of the water. The water just rolled off. I suspect the waterproofing is DWR treatment and this will wear off the fabric with use but you can respray.
For most uses the waterproofing will be adequate although in a full-on Scottish downpour the gloves are likely to become soaked. I doubt this will be an issue for mosts skiers and walkers, so long as the weather is not too woeful.
The inside of the gloves is cosy and, although I have long fingers and thumb, my hands felt like they had wiggle room.
I much prefer mittens to gloves for almost all of my winter activities because they are warmer than gloves.
The heating system works with the external button control on the glove. There are three settings and you simply press the button to go through the settings.
I found that setting one offered a nice level of warming heat. I didn’t need to use a higher setting although I like that there are two more heat settings should conditions get colder.
The heating warms the hand and the fingers. I don’t think there is heating at the thumb and this meant that my thumbs did stay a bit colder than the rest of my hands but once my hands were warmed up this circulated to my thumbs.
30seven state that there are “extra hot spots at the fingertips”. I am not sure if I felt this specifically but I can’t complain at all about the level of heat. It was excellent.
When I first tried the heat, my hands were already cold and numb. As I felt the heat come through – almost immediately – I purred with happiness. My walking pal Ben laughed at me because he said I sounded so very happy by such a seemingly small thing. But when you suffer with cold hands, having warmth to them feels wonderful.
Once my hands had warmed through I turned off the heat setting to save the battery. The gloves stayed really cosy.
The company reports that heating at maximum power (setting 3), the batteries last for 3 to 4 hours and at minimum power power (setting 1) for up to 6 hours.
I tested this in the house (leaving the gloves on until the heat went off) and I found that on setting 3 the battery lasted 2 hours and 15 mins and on setting 1 it was 4 hours 15 mins. This is less than the company reckons and this was not in very cold conditions, where batteries might have a reduced life and function due to the cold, but this is still fairly good.
If you turn the power on and off when you need or don’t need the heat this will lengthen the total time of heat.
Be warned, however, that the red button to switch on the heat can be accidentally turned on. When I had the gloves stowed in my rucksack I found I had accidentally switched them on and this is an unnecessary drain on the battery.
I also like the knitted cuff for extra warmth around the wrist. The wrists are nicely covered by the long cuff.
The soft-feel thumb is useful for nose wiping. I know, that sounds a bit yuk but it’s not unusual to have a softer fabric on he thumb of sports gloves that people use to wipe at their nose.
The gloves are meant to be breathable. I think they are to an extent but I still found that my hands became a bit sweaty when the heat was left on. Sweat can lead to wet inside the gloves so the way to combat this is to switch off the heat.
I did find that when my hands were sweaty it was not so easy to pull them off and on. It would be useful to have an extra loop at the cuff area to help with this.
The gloves are machine washable, too, and that is an excellent feature. It also means that if I use them to dab at my nose I can clean them afterwards.
I think the mittens will be most useful, to me, for skiing and hill walking. I also wear mittens for winter cycling and mountain biking although it’s not so easy to change gear. You could buy the heated gloves instead.
There are heated ski gloves and heated cycling gloves, too.
Review: 30seven Rechargeable Heated Base Layer
The 30seven® Rechargeable Mesh Heated Base Layer has two rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. It’s a gilet style with a moisture-wicking mesh.
There are two zipped pockets for bits and pieces and there is also a place to stow the batteries.
There is a removable integrated battery-operated heating element so you can use the same heating element for our other base layers and jackets.
Features include:
- Breathable Fabric
- 2 sipped pockets
- Removable Nova heat® technology and battery (remove before washing).
- Hot spots: neck, shoulders, kidneys and lower back
- Centre front closure, full-length YKK-zipper
- Material: 100% polyester
- Made in Europe
- 2 Rechargeable lithium-ion battery (7.4V/2.6 Ah) with button operation
- 4 heating levels
- Battery life: power max: 3-4 hours, power min: up to 7 hours
- Dual-charger for charging both batteries simultaneously
- Washable.
On test: 30seven Rechargeable Heated Base Layer
I have the size small, which is quite large for me. It fits over several layers. It does what it says it will. It heats the back mostly. I didn’t notice the shoulder heat to be honest.
It’s a no frills style of gilet and that is fine because it doesn’t need to be fancy and most people will wear it under their other clothes. The heat is effective and can be switch off or on to four different levels.
I have used it in the house on cold days when I am sat at my desk working and feeling too tight to put on the heating. It has worked a treat.
It’s also great for walking because you can switch on the heat when you need it.
The gilet will be most useful for skiers, cyclists and people who fish or need to stand around outside. I think it has a lot of uses.
The removeable heating element is a good idea, too.
It’s priced £115 at Robert Dyas.
It would be nice to have heat at the front of the gilet as well as the back but it’s adequate enough.