Windows Phone Thoughts: Technology And Warmth Enabled? SCOTTEVEST Indoors And Out!

Indoors: In Style, In Touch, In Hoodie
A SCOTTEVEST jacket is the perfect outdoor partner for the techie-on-the-go, but it isn't all that perfect indoors. Sure, you can unzip the sleeves and make it into a vest, which is an option - but it still can be a bit heavy. For that reason, I was very interested when SCOTTEVEST announced the availability of the Ultimate Hoodie several months back. While I've never owned a hoodie during my adult life, I figured that it may be time to diversify my wardrobe and to test out just how ultimate this ultimate hoodie was.

Upon receiving my hoodie, I found that the biggest turn-off that I had to the product when considering it was actually not that big of an issue. The turn-off being the presence of a gigantic SCOTTEVEST logo on the back of the hoodie! While I enjoy telling my friends about my SCOTTEVEST wear when asked, I have never been a big fan of logo-emblazoned clothing. Small logos, such as the one visible in Figure 6 are OK, but large ones have always scared me away. It didn't help that the pictures of the hoodie on SCOTTEVEST's site led me to believe it was much more bright and vibrant than it really is. The picture below even exaggerates the brightness a bit, despite my best efforts. The logo is actually very tasteful, and has a slightly faded look to it. I don't feel like I'm giving away free advertising by wearing the hoodie, which is what I was afraid of. Additionally, while painfully obvious, the logo is on your back, so there is very little chance that you'll actually look at it much!


Figure 7: SCOTTEVEST Logo on back of the Ultimate Hoodie.

The hoodie itself is very comfortable to wear. The cuffs around the wrist are loose enough to roll up to the elbow, and the fabric is very soft. The front pockets both contain drink holders, which are nice - but a bit odd on this style of hoodie. When I put a bottle of water in one of them, it jutted up out of the fabric and made me look like... well... like I was carrying a bottle of water in my pocket. Perhaps if this hoodie was one that didn't feature a zipper all of the way down the front (one that is a pull-over hoodie), the bottle would have been more concealed. I also question the reason for having magentic closures on the pockets. It's nice that they are held closed, but the fabric around the magnet is so thin, that they feel really noticable and can be quite strong. I shouldn't have to push my hand into the pocket to break through the magnet, and I found myself doing this frequently on the hoodie.


Figure 8: The Ultimate Hoodie revealed.

Despite some of the odd design choices, the hoodie did excel in a few areas. It went perfect under my Tactical 4.0 jacket, and allowed me to avoid freezing while putting my Tactical 4.0 in the back seat of the car before a long drive. The pen holders on the inside of the hoodie were also an excellent addition - I had a pen stealthily hidden away and available right when I needed (which is always different than when I think I'll need it!). Overall I wasn't blown away by the hoodie, but I wasn't disappointed either. I'm sure it will come in handy this winter while I'm at my in-laws house (which can get cold in some spots, overly warm in others), and will keep me looking stylish as well.

Conclusions
SCOTTEVEST makes some interesting products, and in the winter, this level of ingenuity can be extremely helpful while traveling the country or traveling to work. The Tactical 4.0, while priced higher than most like to pay for a jacket, is worth the extra dough if you're mobile on the go (horrible rhyme, I know). The hoodie is a great entry-level jacket that can help you get tech mobile on a budget.

Jon Westfall is an amazing wealth of odd and trivial information. He lives with his wife, cat, and pet rock in Marblehead, Ohio, and posts his daily exploits (More than you want to know) at JonWestfall.Com