Best Ski Jackets Tested: Shell, Insulated, Budget (Full Transcript)

[00:00:00] Speaker 1: Hi I'm Kai Burkhart, editor at CNN Underscored and today I'm at Eldora Mountain Resort to show you how I tested for the best ski jackets. There are two main types of ski jackets you can get, insulated and non-insulated. The Columbia Platinum Peak 2 is the best shell jacket I tested because it has a nice roomy fit, the fabric is soft, it's super protective against water and wind, and it's got huge useful pockets. The jacket extends really far down your back so if you ever want to sit down in the snow your butt can stay dry. It's really soft and flexible so you have full freedom of movement and as I've been snowboarding I really loved how protected I feel in this shell. It's got a pass pocket on the sleeve, your normal side pockets, and these two huge front pockets. There's an interior drop pocket too. While I love how big these chest pockets are, they can be pretty easy to overload since the fit is so long you might feel like you're swimming in it. If you want a versatile waterproof windproof shell jacket that's easy to layer with and has great pockets, the Columbia Platinum Peak 2 is for you. The best insulated ski jacket I tested is this, the Patagonia Insulated Powertown jacket. It's warm, it's got great extras, and best of all it's the most comfortable jacket I tested. The fabric and fit are so nice I can barely feel it when I'm snowboarding. I have full freedom of movement and I can wear it all day long. I actually love how thin and light the insulation is. You can fit even another puffy jacket underneath. I'm always looking at pockets when I'm testing ski jackets and this one definitely has enough. Two zippered hand pockets, a pass pocket, a chest pocket, and two pockets on the inside as well. The pockets aren't the biggest I tested but there's just enough to keep all your essentials. This jacket had a lot of the features and extras that many other jackets I tested, but one feature this jacket has that most others don't is a Reco Reflector. The Patagonia Insulated Powertown jacket is by far the best insulated jacket I tried. If you don't want to spend $300 on a ski jacket or you don't want to buy an insulated and an uninsulated jacket, the Columbia Whirlybird 5 Interchange jacket is the one for you. The biggest allure of the Columbia Whirlybird 5 Interchange jacket is its three-in-one design. So you can wear the puffy alone, you can wear the shell alone, or you can wear both of them at the same time. Because of the layering system there's a lot of material so it can feel a little bit claustrophobic and sometimes tight and on hotter days your body might have a hard time cooling down. I felt like I didn't have as much freedom of movement compared to other jackets I tested and since it's so thick it would be hard to layer a lot underneath this jacket too. The Columbia Whirlybird 5 Interchange jacket is cheaper and more versatile than the other jackets I tested. To read more about the best ski jackets I tested and for more product reviews and recommendations, keep it locked with V&I LondonSki.