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The best heated clothing in 2023, tested and reviewed | Popular Science

Heated clothing can keep you warm during chilly morning dog walks, Friday night football games, and every occasion in between.

Working outside doesn’t mean you have to be chilly while you do it. waterproof down jacket

The best heated clothing in 2023, tested and reviewed | Popular Science

This vest heats up fast to get you warm quick.

Perfect for walking the dog or fetching the morning paper.

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If the temperatures are dropping and layers aren’t cutting it, consider upping your cozy game with heated clothing. Heated clothing provides covert, fireside-esque warmth while remaining sleek and lightweight. Clothing that uses thermal lining relies on your own body heat to create warmth. Heated clothing uses a network of small, heat-conducting flexible wires powered by a detachable, rechargeable battery. Both the wires and the rechargeable batteries are slim and hardly noticeable. Wearing a piece of heated clothing should feel just like wearing a regular jacket, vest, or pair of gloves. A button—usually on the glove’s cuff or front of the jacket—lets you control the temperature. The best heated clothing keeps you warm and comfy even when outside feels like the Arctic Circle.

It’s highly unlikely you can go the entire winter without going outside. Eventually, you’ll have to walk away from one of the best space heaters. However, just because you must stand out in the cold doesn’t mean you should freeze. We looked at our past heated gear coverage, rounded up our favorites, and tested new options. We also looked at critical reviews and user recommendations and conducted heavy research to separate the tepid from the hot.

If you’ve considered wearing something, it most likely comes in heated form. One of our choices will channel your inner Heat Miser when you’re about to turn into Mr. Snow.

If you’re working outside in cold weather, not simply enduring it, you need something heavier than a shell, a fleece, or a hoodie. The Gobi Grit heated workwear jacket offers a heavier layer of electric warmth, ensuring you are ready to spend a full day in the cold. When things get rough, you can turn on the heat, which should last between 4.5 and 9 hours, depending on the setting. The company also makes heated hoodies for when you are enduring the cold. And, if you’re looking for something in a specific style, check out our other favorite heated jackets.

This heated vest for men is tailored neatly to the body and is machine washable. In seconds, the heating elements warm up the vest, which can be adjusted according to your comfort. It even includes a USB charging port within the vest battery that you can use for your cell phone. If you’re looking for a heated vest for a specific activity, like riding your motorcycle, check out our complete list of heated vests.

Savior’s rechargeable heated gloves provide the best, most versatile protection from the cold that we’ve felt in a pair of gloves. They are well suited for a variety of outdoor adventures and reasonably priced, to boot.

In a field full of very similar products from companies with little reputation, they serve as a good example of what to look for in a pair of heated gloves. First and foremost, they’re quite warm with or without the heat turned on. They have three temperature settings, water-resistance and windproofing, heating elements that cover the back of your hand and fingertips, and touchscreen-sensitive material. Meanwhile, a leather palm ensures you won’t lose your grip when you need it the most.

They’re a bit thick but still flexible enough to shift gears on a bicycle or hold ski poles. One personal complaint about these heated gloves is that the “on” indicator light is oddly bright when it’s on in the dark—but we’ve always had issues with bright lights in darkness being distracting.

All in all, it’s exactly what you’re looking for, and you don’t need to spend too much to get it.

With a range of heat settings from a balmy 113 degrees to a toasty 140, these machine-washable heated socks from Gobi can last up to 12 hours on the lowest charge. The toes are designed with their own individual heat zone to keep your pinky from feeling frozen, plus the slim battery is hardly noticeable in its calf pocket or while wearing tight pants. Our favorite feature is the remote, which lets you change the heat settings without bending over. Consider our other favorite heated socks if you want to stock up on multiple pairs.

Volt is one of the first brands to design heated slippers, and the company has continued to innovate since coming out with its first pair 10 years ago. These comfy slippers are heated with included rechargeable batteries. They provide three heat levels (high, medium, and low) and can last up to 12 hours on a single full charge. Best of all, you can wear them indoors or outside. The previous iteration had a faux fur lining—although we loved the extra snuggliness, the new version ditches the bulky, a-little-too-hot fur for soft fleece that doesn’t make your feet feel like a sauna. You can also get insole warmers (even battery-powered ones) to turn any house shoe into a heated slipper.

As a wearable heated blanket, the Beautyrest Reversible Sherpa to Fleece Electric Wrap lets you stay warm while your hands can type, scroll on your phone, or flip between TV channels. It sits on your shoulders just like a shawl with the added luxury of heat, which you can control through three different settings. And it’s available in 10 different designs to suit your unique style and fashion sense. It’s also fully reversible with an ultra-soft beige plush fabric on the reverse side. 

The 2-hour auto shut-off prevents overheating. Fully machine washable, this wearable heated blanket provides warmth and comfort to relax anywhere in your home. This blanket would suit teens in particular because of the range of colors and styles. Like our top budget pick, also made by Beautyrest, the controller can become quite hot if covered. Simply unplug to machine wash and keep your new favorite blanket clean. Need something a bit less wearable and a bit more shareable? Check out our other heated blanket picks.

Want to save money on a handy choice from above? Any gloves are heated gloves with these disposable hand warmers from HotHands—a budget-friendly staple for keeping warm. All you need to do is shake the pack vigorously for a couple of seconds, triggering a safe chemical reaction that will lead to up to 10 hours of consistent heat in 15 to 30 minutes. Keep them in your glovebox or purse so you’ll never be caught with cold hands. If you’re looking for something reusable, we have an entire list for you.

With an entire closet’s-worth of options to choose from, what should you know when clicking “add to cart”? Here’s the short of it so you can spend more time exploring in your new hot digs:

Heated clothing requires the use of a lithium-ion battery to power the heating elements. And, like other portable batteries and power banks, they take a bit of time to reach 100 percent. Prepare accordingly if you’re going to spend all day hitting the slopes or all night cheering in the stands. Most batteries in heated clothing also double as a portable charger in a pinch. We love killing two birds with one stone.

“Heated elements” plus “water” must equal “disaster” when it comes to heated clothing, right? Wrong! Most heated clothing can be washed—emphasis on the “most.” Read the care label before throwing the item in the wash, and make sure to remove the rechargeable batteries. You most definitely don’t want to run those through the washer.

A piece of heated clothing that’s too hot leads to a sweaty person, which is not good when exposed to cold temperatures. You want to limit sweating since rapidly evaporating perspiration chills you … not exactly what you want when you’re wearing heated clothing to stay warm.

It depends. If your jacket is machine washable or has a water-propelling shell, consider your jacket safe. Always check with the manufacturer’s care instructions before jumping in a puddle on a cold rainy day.

Yes. TSA doesn’t prohibit heated clothing on planes. You only need to take electronic items larger than a cellphone or tablet from your carry-on. It’s highly unlikely the battery for your heated clothing is larger than a portable charger.

Yes. We haven’t heard of any heated jackets or vests blowing up or catching fire. However, if you feel any sparks or electrocution, take the article off immediately, turn it off, and contact the manufacturer’s customer service line for guidance.

If you’d rather not look like Randy in that one scene from A Christmas Story, consider some heated clothing for more warmth with fewer layers. The heated elements and batteries in heated clothing are thin and discreet—no one would know you’re wearing a heated jacket or vest unless you told them. And, with incredible choices like these, you’ll want to tell the entire world how cozy you are.

Popular Science started writing about technology more than 150 years ago. There was no such thing as “gadget writing” when we published our first issue in 1872, but if there was, our mission to demystify the world of innovation for everyday readers means we would have been all over it. Here in the present, PopSci is fully committed to helping readers navigate the increasingly intimidating array of devices on the market right now.

Our writers and editors have combined decades of experience covering and reviewing consumer electronics. We each have our own obsessive specialties—from high-end audio to video games to cameras and beyond—but when we’re reviewing devices outside of our immediate wheelhouses, we do our best to seek out trustworthy voices and opinions to help guide people to the very best recommendations. We know we don’t know everything, but we’re excited to live through the analysis paralysis that internet shopping can spur so readers don’t have to.

Amanda Reed is a commerce updates writer at Popular Science. She makes sure all product round-ups are up-to-date, shares deals happening all over the internet, and reviews various gizmos and gadgets.

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The best heated clothing in 2023, tested and reviewed | Popular Science

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