Berghaus Micro Jacket
Price: £100
Weight: 440g
Features: DryAqua hydrophylic coated ripstop waterproof,
breathable material with mesh lining, single stormflap over main zip,
roll-down hood, twin handwarmer pockets with mesh inner, drawcord at
hem.
A hundred quid is an awful lot of money to pay for what is really
a pretty basic jacket, Berghaus badge or not. It packs as small and
light as the rest of them for sure, but you can find a lot more for
your money. For a start, the rip-stop pattern DryAqua fabric feels
insubstantial with a soft, silky feel and a metallic sheen that
you'll either love or hate, but doesn't feel like £100-worth.
The flimsiness is apparent rather than real, at least so far, but it
doesn't inspire confidence and you wouldn't want to, say, hurl
yourself from a mountain bike wearing it. It is, however, very light,
and the overall weight is low at 440 grammes, despite a mesh drop
liner.
We didn't like the hood either. It's floppy and shapeless, but the
main problem is that the lack of a rear volume adjuster makes it
impossible to snug up around your head without pulling the soft peak
down over your head and obstructing vision. Not only that but the
cordgrip adjusters need stronger springs as they slide along the
adjustment cord under the slghtest load.
Otherwise the Micro's okay rather than stunning. As with the top
of the range PacLite jacket, there's a single storm flap over the
main zip and the cut is on the short side to make it suitable for
multi-activity use. Cut and mobility are both good and the mesh
pocket liners save weight. Breathability is adequate, viz, like any
other waterproof fabric, it's okay with for low to medium use but
can't cope with medium to high intensity activities. Some more
advanced venting provisions might have justified the highish price,
but there aren't any.
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Verdict: Expensive for a basic
jacket, though it packs small. The floppy, vision-impairing
hood is a definite weak point and needs attention.
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Performance
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Value
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Take me to the Berghaus
web site at the speed of a hyperlink
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Pushed for time:
It's small and light but the material feels flimsy, the
hood isn't particularly good and the features are pretty
basic with no venting arrangements. Overall it doesn't live
up to the usual high Berghaus standards and we can't help
thinking that you're being asked to pay extra for the label,
though it's still a well-constructed piece of
kit.
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