Patagonia’s Micro Puff® Hoody product review

Patagonia calls the Micro Puff® Hoody “the lightest, most packable insulation jacket” they have ever created. Their claim It all adds up to nothing supports this statement.

The Micro Puff® Hoody Jacket is available since 2018 and even if this is a relatively new product it already has a surprisingly long history. 

 

  • Patagonia has invested 10 years in prototype development and design
  • It took the design team  120 hours to created the first prototype
  • It had to overcome 4 years of field testing with 21 field testers
  • 10 labs, factories, and mills
  • The developer team spent 830 hours in refining materials
  • The jacket had 3 names before it became the Micro Puff®
  • It survived 288 hours of killer washes
  • The Micro Puff® has 30% fewer pattern pieces than a regular insulation jacket

 

Sport Conrad got an exclusive look on the insulation jacket and we had the chance to test the Micro Puff® Hoody from Patagonia. With the Micro Puff® Patagonia merged “the best qualities of both down and synthetic jackets in a versatile and packable featherweight jacket”

 

 

With Pluma Fill the PATAGONIA MICRO PUFF® reached A NEW LEVEL OF INSULATION

We started the test at the beginning of fall when it can already get pretty cold due to chilly winds typical for our region and temperatures dropping from 20 degrees in the afternoon down to 8 degrees in the morning. When we first got our hands on the Micro Puff® Hoody we were instantly stoked how extremely light this jacket is. It really feels like you wear nothing compared to other insulation jackets. Well, to be honest, we didn’t expect that much warmth as the hoody made a pretty light impression at first glance. But this impression was far away from what we experienced on our first foggy morning hike. When we put the Patagonia Micro Puff® on, it was …. warm! Surprisingly warm! Almost heated! So we did a little research and found out that the secret is the 65g PlumaFill insulation.
PlumaFill is a synthetic insulation that looks like a miniature version of a feather boa. Each – let’s call it feather boa – has a central spine with numerous little fluffy polyester branches. These faux fluffy feathers compress like a down, but they still stay warm and lifted when they get wet. The PlumaFill really feels like down but is, in fact, a synthetic fiber with a unique construction pattern of the garment that maximizes lift while preventing shifting, clumping or cold spots. 

 

 

What’s the difference?

  • The typical synthetic fibers are stacked in “sheets” of the material
  • PlumaFill is constructed as a continuous strand
  • The offset, discontinuous quilting construction prevents the insulation from shifting around and creating empty spots in the jacket
  • Patagonia reduced the number of quilting points but gave this jacket larger pattern. This allows heat to move freely within the jacket, keeping you evenly warm
  • The result is an eminently packable piece with a higher warmth-to-weight ratio than any other jacket Patagonia has ever made

 

How it’s built?

The jacket has one main zipper which is really comfortable on the chin. There are two outside handwarming-pockets with easy to grab zippers. You can use the right outside pocket to pack up jacket and the whole jacket really fits in there! On the inside, there are two more pockets. Even if the hood is not adjustable it fits really tight but it still lets you move your head around comfortably.  The jacket has a DWR (durable water repellent) finish. The Micro Puff® Hoody comes with a 10-denier Pertex Quantum GL, a light nylon ripstop fabric, which is – due to Patagonia – the lightest fabric they have ever used. Upon closer inspection, you can feel and see that it is definitely designed to be absolutely lightweight. And last but not least, it blocks wind and sheds precipitation really good for such a thin and light insulation jacket. Still, if it’s super windy outside you might feel the wind on your skin due to the sewn-through construction.

 

What we think about the Patagonia Micro Puff® Hoody

To sum it all up, the Patagonia Micro Puff® Hoody is a very efficient insulation jacket. You can use it in mild summer temperatures and also on warmer days during fall and you will be surprised by its high warmth-to-weight ratio. In winter, when temperatures drop below zero this jacket won’t disappoint you either! Worn as a mid-layer during your winter outdoor adventures.

 

We have worn the Patagonia Micro Puff® Hoody for hiking, ski touring, alpine climbing and while cycling to work. After more than 100 days of use, we haven’t noticed any significant drop in the quality of the material nor in the performance and how warm it keeps you. The jacket didn’t get any holes or protruding threads and fibers.  Of course, when you wear a jacket with such a light and thin fabric you might unconsciously be a little bit more careful. But you always have to keep in mind: this jacket is an ultra-light jacket and so you should treat it as it is.

 

To make the long story short, we can say, that the Patagonia Micro Puff® Hoody is one of the most impressive mid-layer jackets we have ever worn. It was developed with lots of love and attention, it has a very high warmth-weight ratio, it drys fast, stays warm while wet and to top all these functions and it has a really good ergonomic shape. So if you are looking for a light new layer jacket the Patagonia Micro Puff® Hoody should be on top of your list.

 

 

Read other interesting blog posts:

→ Sport Conrad Material Encyclopedia

→ Everything about down jackets

→ WIR DENKEN UM: The new label at Sport Conrad