Feb 19, 2009 01:40 PM
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The iPhone is great, until, one frosty day, you realize its capacitive touchscreen doesn't work through gloves. So we tested three pairs of iPhone-friendly gloves to decide which were best.
Freehands Stretch ($21)
Gimmick: Finger tip flaps allow your real fingers to do the typing.
Finger tip hinges allow actual finger to touch iPhone screen, 100% responsiveness
Finger tip hinges are made of non-breathing wetsuit material
The tips, predictably, leak air in
Build quality is generally low
The North Face E-Tip ($40)
Gimmick: Shimmery gold finger tips activate the iPhone's capacitive touch screen.
Palm design is grippy, makes me feel like Iron Man
Touch responsiveness is at about 85%, though typing is futile
Thin enough to work as lining under additional glove for skiing, etc
We just got word that E-Tips are sold out nationwide with no plans for additional production. UPDATE: They'll come back in the Fall 2009 line.
tavo Gloves ($30)
Gimmick: Like the North Face E-Tips, the shimmery gold finger tips activate the iPhone's capacitive touch screen.
Minimal black design looks like a normal glove
Finger responsiveness at about 70%, usable, but worse than E-Tip
So our conclusion is a sad one. The North Face gloves were our favorite if you can stand the overly-techie design (which my wife hated but I loved). However, the tavos do come in a close second, offering a passable way to check your email in the cold.
Brian Lam: Snowmodo is our snow sport winter meet up at Lake Tahoe, with prizes, discounts, tons of fun snow activities, a party and GADGETS. If you can make it (and people are coming from TEXAS) please RSVP.
Send an email to Mark Wilson, the author of this post, at mark@gizmodo.com.
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