Customer Reviews Outdoor Research Uberlayer Hooded Jacket

Liked this jacket, but the shoulders were too tight. Never had that issue before with OR clothing. This jacket is intended for high exertion activities but I found the wind can cut right through it. Great for active days when the wind is not blowing or too much below freezing.

Great jacket that is super versatile for skiing. If you think your going to be wet I would recommend this over a down puffy. Great jacket for ski touring in the 15-35 degree range. I'm 6' 4" about 185 and I have a Large. Fits really great. I would give it five stars but I have had trouble with the stitching on the shoulders coming undone within a week of having this item. Overall its awesome and super great for lots of different activities but I'm a little unsure about durability.

I purchased this jacket after talking to a OR customer rep. I Was looking for a highly breathable insulated jacket to use for xc skiing, snowshoeing, winter running. I also read some reviews online and found it was comparable to the Patagonia nano air but had a more durable exterior and more features like double zipper and interior stash pocket. This is one of the most versatile jackets I have seen. It somehow is very warm, very wind resistant but breathes like a fleece. It is much more wind resistant than the nano air, is thinner, has a more durable exterior, has interior stash pocket, and a two way zipper which is highly underrated. The only con is the somewhat tight fit around the center of the jacket, I purchased a medium and large and found the medium to tight around the sternum and the large a little big but overall a much better standard fit. I'm 5'9 172 41" chest.

This is my second one of these jackets. Price has crept up over the last year I've had it but this has been a go to layering piece and I really enjoy it. A bit heavier and not as cush as the equivalent Patagonia piece but this one has held up to wear and tear better and also doesn't show the dirt constantly. Love the storage pockets. It is definitely a lighter jacket that's breathable enough to wear under moderate activity on it's own. Sitting around in the cold it's probably not enough. I'm 5'9", 165lbs, 38"chest, 15" neck and a medium fits great.

I love the Uberlayer - material is top notch. I find that its perfect for high aerobic activities aka that run at 30 degrees F. It is the answer to right amount of warm while not being to hot. It is the answer you are looking for. I also use this as a laying piece for dry suit diving. IE. The fabric works well while being compressed. I will saw its my thought process that I think the hood should be fit for a head - not a helmet. I would love to be able to wear the hood with this bad boy starting off on my run and pop it off when I start to warm up but the hood as it is now is too droopy for trail running. This is not a major issue, just a nit pick.

This is a nice jacket. It breaths very well and is light weight. It doesn't block much wind, but if it did, it probably wouldn't be as breathable. The Uber layer with a wind stopper shell or a goretex shell has been perfect for me so far. All my other insulation pieces are way too hot once I'm moving and generating heat. This piece keeps me the perfect temperature. My only critiques with the uberlayer is that it's not stretchy and it can get a little stinky. The trim fit is nice, but it can be slightly restrictive in the shoulders and chest sometimes. Not bad though. I'm a pretty big guy, so most clothing can get that way for me. I wore the uberlayer on a five day trip recently. On day two, I noticed a little body odor (not really normal for me). It didn't really get worse throughout the trip, but it made me wonder/ hope that this doesn't become one of those stinky synthetic garments. Overall, I'm very happy with this jacket.

The Uber layer is my new goto jacket. I've used this for just about everything I do, including selling off my other jackets! It has been well worth the purchase, and I cant want to go skiing in it again!

Received the product in a colour other then specified in my order (received Red, ordered Blue). Other then that, I like the jacket so much that I've decided to keep it regardless of the colour. I am 6'3, 225lbs so not a small individual; the XL size has ideal sleeve length but is tighter in the chest area then expected. The fit is fine when wearing minimal under layers, but will definitely deny the ability to wear another sweater underneath.

very comfy jacket. Although I am a small I tend to order Medium with OR becasue their sleeves are oddly short

Very good jacket for high output activities in cold weather. I use it for backcountry skiing and fat biking. Stays warm even when wet, decent wind protection. The only thing that I like a little less is the sizing, the medium is a little tight and the large is a bit too big (usually I fit perfect in medium size).

I have never owned a piece of outdoor kit that was perfect. That being said, this jacket is only a few ticks away. Fit is snug, as it should be for a mid layer. I found this jacket felt tight in the armpits at first but broke in over a few days. Things I liked: -sweet hood -easy to use zippers -great temperature comfort range (25-55F with light breeze with single LS layer under for me) -material wicks and dries super fast -fleece lined pockets are worth the extra weight IMHO -with a bit of effort it will stuff into its own pocket, awesome for multipitch Things that can be improved: -I know I sweat a ton, but this is jacket retains stink like no their garment I've ever owned. Not sure if it is the insulation or the inner mesh, but even after laundering it still smells like Me. Guess it will keep it from getting swiped. -the outer material seems fairly burly but the stitching snags and pulls super easily. Again, much more than other similar outer layers I've owned. -wish outer material had more stretch, this would help with the snug feel. -don't think the two-way zipper is necessary, it is annoying when bottom one migrates up. This would make more sense on the Transcendent hoody. Overall, I really like this piece. It can certainly double as a mid or outer layer depending on conditions. With just a tee underneath I can go hard without overheating in sub-freezing temps. I find myself wearing it more often than not, as it is really comfortable. Would definitely buy it again.

Polartec Alpha works great for breathability. I rank it a bit more breathable or less warm than Arcteryx Atom Lt. It has a nice longer cut on the bottom to keep drafts out. Fit around the chest and shoulders is a lot more fitted than other jackets I have. I want OR to fix the zipper design. The lower zipper always rides up, so you have to always pull the bottom zipper down before you can hook the zipper in the tab to zip the jacket up. As well the YKK can be more minimal, it is a very heavy duty zipper they use. Use a smaller zipper, remove wire brim hood and trim down the zipper pulls to save as much weight as possible as this is a pretty heavy jacket for a lightweight insulator. The biggest negative is the zipper system. If they fix that, would give it 5 stars.

A lot of great features have been noted. It is certainly warm and comfortable fabric. I am surprised how often I go to this jacket instead of my warmer layers. One slight flay is the fit. Comparing to the Cathode, both jackets are "Trim" but are quite different. The Uber is longer in the arms (which is fine), longer in body (which does not fit great under a shell with a snowskirt), and downright frumpy in the torso. The saving grace to the frumpy fit is the reverse zipper. I find that I bring the bottom zipper up a few inches when in the car, just sitting, or on the move. My other favorite features are the wire brim in the hood create unobstructed visibility, warmth of the hood, stash pockets, wrinkle free fabric and bitchin insulation, and high chin cover design. Overall, well done OR.

I was looking for a replacement synthetic insulating layer and wanted to try out something with Polartec Alpha. I've been out on a few adventures with it now and am very happy to have the Uberlayer. It's much more windproof than I expected for being breathable and it's surprisingly warm for as thin as it is. My only complaint is that I have a hard time with the OR fit. I thought I had it figured out: extra large for anything "trim" and large for anything "regular" but the XL Uberlayer is a bit loose in the arms. The fit is close enough to work well for everything I'm getting into: splitboard touring, snowmobiling, rock and mountain climbing.

5' 7" Small fits well. Athletic build on the slim side. Between this and Patagonia's Nano I was torn but ultimately felt the Nano would not provide enough wind resistance or any waterproof options. I live in Colorado so not concerned with rain very much though. This is definitely a trim fit, there is a very defined side cut, almost feminine even. I have had this for about a month now and it has performed well in single digits to probably 40 degrees. I skied the green runs with my daughter and it was comfortable in the 20s with just a light layer underneath. I would have given 5 stars if it had just a tiny bit more room across the back/shoulder area and if the side cut wasn't quite so trim, but those are really nitpicks and if this was meant to be a layering piece (Uberlayer in fact) then it's likely designed to be that way.

I'm 5'7" 150lbs and the medium Uberlayer fits perfect. I've used it over a t-shirt down to -10F while skinning and didn't have to layer up for the ski down. Wicks sweat well and is super comfortable. It does develop a funk pretty quickly. By the fourth time wearing it in the backcountry, I stopped wearing it around town. Only thing that could be improved is a side zip for vents. Overall an excellent jacket.

Skied up Lake O'hara Rd in this on a -14~-20C day. Not a lot of wind, no sun. Thought I would lose the jacket after warming up over the first couple Km, but didn't feel myself overheating so I left it on. Mostly uphill on the way in, but the jacket kept me at an optimal temp. On the way down I did feel the wind moving through the jacket, but didn't get chilled to the point that it was uncomfortable. Great active piece!

polartec alpha it works keeps you warm when soaking wet. take off your hard shell you'll be dry in 20 minutes. without the hard shell it will draw heat out. this has changed what i carry in my bag a good base layer a polartec alpha layer hardshell your good to about 5 degrees fahrenheit if your moving. on the down side the hood has one drawstring pull on it a little bit the hood will not fully cover your ears. The wire brim is small & somewhat ineffective. i'm not a fan of wire brim's laminated brim's just as effective and don't break. like the one on my gore tex pro shell that is now covered in duct tape

Well I have had this jacket for several months now and have found it a excellent layer for most of what winter has thrown so far. It really does find that warm sweet spot while active while dumping excess heat like during snow shoeing. Only complaint is cosmetic, the piping around the pockets is coming off so I have had to peal it off. Other than that, it is exactly what I have been looking for in my layering system.

I was disappointed that the fit was way too snug for me and it was not warm enough for what I intended it to be used for- fall and spring cool temps. I think that if you are wearing the Uber jacket and doing a cardio/active activity, then the warmth factor would improve. As a female (5'5, 135#, curvy), I find that OR's "trim fit" doesn't work for me. I've found this out through several orders and returns of the same size (Med) jackets but very different fits. " Med standard fit" works best for me- I like my jackets to have some extra room for at least a long sleeve layer underneath. Hope this helps, Love OR products!!

This jacket really does breathe well. I wear it in various ranges of temperatures and levels of physical output. For what it is meant to do, it really does a great job! I do want to mention two problems I was not to impressed with. First, the pocket designed to be a stuff sack is way too small. When I tried to pack the jacket inside I really had to jam it in there. I like a tight fit with stuff sacks because it makes the space smaller, but this was simply just not usable. I couldn't even fit the whole jacket in before the pocket began to tear at the seam. The pocket is a very thin material and as such is not that burly. If you're going to stuff the jacket anywhere, don't use the pocket. The other disappointment was the stitching along the body. The lines of stitching that go across the jacket snag on the insulation and pull the little white hairs out making it look tattered when it's still brand new. The stitching on the sleeves was clean and neat, so I'm confused as to why it was like this on the body. May not be a problem on other colors, but on the black it is very noticeable. Would I buy it again,? Yes! It works great and the fit is trim which I love! Just be aware it has a few kinks that need to be worked out.

Let me start out by saying just how comfortable and versatile this jacket is. It keeps me warm, breathes well during high output, and stretches with your movement. It also blocks wind well for not being a shell. I bought this to use in the winter for hiking, snowshoeing, and fat biking when the temps are below freezing and there's a chance I could get a little wet from snow, or just around town in the spring/fall chilly air. The Polartec Alpha insulation, stretch mesh interior

Purchased this jacket this winter season to replace a Primaloft jacket that I use daily until spring comes. Im a cold person, all the time so I was hoping the insulation factor on this jacket would be higher. During times of physical activity its great.....but if you're looking for that "instant furnace" feel of a synthetic or down fill jacket, I would strongly consider something else, as for me (a cold person), this doesn't cut it when Im standing still. In the Spring, summer, fall however, I'm looking forward to having it around. Also, I normally wear a medium jacket (5'11 180 lbs). The medium still fits, but its tight, so if you're on the fence, size up.

Its a great jacket that definitely serves its purpose in being breathable and being able to regulate temperature wether you are moving and needing to get rid off excess heat or retaining warmth when you aren't moving. I also wore the jacket in moderate rain conditions which tested the jacket's water resistance. The jacket being a synthetic retained its warmth and resisted the rain pretty well, but did eventually start to soak through. Still not bad for such a versatile jacket. The jacket is also not the lightest and is probably the heaviest among its competitors in the category of breathable mid layers. It does succeed in its intended purpose of being warm and very breathable, but if you are running or doing something very intense, you will heat up and may have to end up taking the jacket off or unzipping it. The issues I had with my two Uberlayer jackets were the detailing around the zippers peeling off on one jacket and the cinch on the hood breaking on my other jacket and this is all within a week of having them. I don't know if I got unlucky with having two Uberlayer jackets breaking down so quickly but just be aware of the durability issues. I hope OR fixes these issues on the next season redesign and update.

The jacket itself seems like a great piece. I am 5'8'', 145 lbs and wear a size small in pretty much every other jacket I have. This one is a good length both in body and sleeves, but the shoulders are super tight! Too tight to use in the outdoors. I thought it might just be my broad build, but gave it to a skinnier buddy to try and he commented on the same thing. The fit is just a little too funky... I would recommend the jacket itself, but don't expect it to fit like other brands without trying first.