X-Undergear Bionic Energizers Tested
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Price:
£43.50 (tee) £15.99 (boxers)
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Weight: 55 grammes (trunks) 130
grammes tee
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Features:
Italian-made zoned baselayer garments using, erm, 37 CCR
technology, Air Conditioning body channels. Skin NODOR
fabric with temperature optimising properties and a
bacteristatic agent
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What's It For? Well, it's a baselayer that comes with more
techno hype than anything we've seen apart from X-Socks which are
made by the same manfacturer. First and foremost, it's a wicking
baselayer designed to transport moisture outwards and away from the
surface of the skin.
X-Underwear goes a stage further by using zoned areas of materials
which are claimed to keep your body at optimum 37-degree temperature
levels either by helping to lose heat or by insulating them. Cunning
stuff.
Apparently it also claims to reduce 'vibration' which reduces
muscle fatigue and improves circulation along the way.
The Techy Bits Oh gawd, the X-Underwear puts the tech into
technical underwear and it does it with massive enthusiasm. The
fabric's a very stretchy stuff called Skin NODOR - no odour, geddit -
or at least we think it is. The cunning bit is all those very obvious
areas of thicker, ribbed material.
According to the company, these have all sorts of techy names like
'3D Bionic Sphere System', 'AirConditioning Arm Pit' - which sounds
like a nasty fungal infection - and 'Innerlap Air Conditioning Zone'.
Essentially though, they're all just extra thickness material and all
you need to know is that based on lab research heat-mapping the human
body, the strategically placed hype zones are reckoned to prevent
excessive cooling or overheating.
If you really want to delve further into the whole sordid
business, take a look at www.x-undergear.com
but don't say we didn't warn you.
How It Performs Okay, we started off using the X-Underwear
with an unhealthy degree of cynicism. It wasn't helped by the glossy
packaging that dwarfed the contents. Dwarf is about the right word
too, when not worn, X-Undergear looks like it's shrunk in the
wash...
Those extra panels in subtle orange look slightly odd too, but
we actually grew to like the shrink to fit close hugging trunks and
top. They're simply very comfortable particularly worn under
similarly close-fitting overlayers and the trunks in particular have
become regular wear for anything from running to climbing with good
comfort and support putting them ahead of other baselayer grundies
we've used.
Wicking seems as good as anything else out there, the huggy fit
increases skin contact and theoretically efficiency as well and they
don't pong after a day out on the hill. The question you want the
answer to however, is whether those strange panels actually work.
The honest answer is that we have no idea. Short of using the same
fabric without the panels back to back, there's no real way of
telling. Our gut feeling is that it's 90 per-cent hype, but since the
stuff is so comfortable, who knows.
Downsides? Erm, well, you'd better be built like a professional
athlete - and we don't mean a darts player - if you're going to
display your X-Undergear clad body without causing general
sniggering. It is seriously figure hugging and, of course, it's not
cheap. Exact price to follow.
We're not entirely convinced by X-Undergear's numerous claims
about benefits from, say, a reduction in muscle vibration, and the
aesthetics are defiinitely an acquired taste, an Italian one perhaps,
but whatever the claims behind the design, we do really like the
close fit, wicking fabric and lack of smell.
We also like the cunning details like the fabric care instructions
being woven into the waistband of the shorts. Nice baselayers for
fast-moving, snug-hugging, non-flabby types.
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Close fit, good wicking, minimum pong.
Lots of hype and the aesthetics are an acquired taste.
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Performance
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Value
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