REVIEW – We travel a lot. Many times, that travel is to warm, exotic places. Other times, we visit wetter, cooler, or downright colder locales. It’s tough to pack for those wet and cold places because adding a bunch of cold-weather gear takes a lot of precious luggage space. What helps conserve space is heated gear. Heated outerwear uses a rechargeable battery pack to power heating elements integrated into critical areas of the outerwear, providing warmth and reducing the need for multiple, bulky layers. Heated gear manufacturer Venustas offered up a men’s and women’s heated jacket for review, and we jumped on the opportunity. Let’s get into this two-fer review of two different jackets from Venustas – a Women’s Waterproof Heated Lightweight FELLEX® Jacket 12V, model W20, and a Men’s Heated Jacket 7.4V, model M2168.
⬇︎ Jump to summary (pros/cons)
Price: $199.99 for either model (Save $30 with code: Julie)
Where to buy:
Men’s Heated Jacket 7.4V, M2168
Women’s Waterproof Heated Lightweight FELLEX® Jacket 12V, W20
What is it?
These are both heated jackets. Venustas sent two different models. Both models are available in men’s and women’s styles. For the sake of brevity, I will refer to the Heated Jacket 7.4V, model M2168 (men’s)/W2168 (women’s) as “the jacket” and the Waterproof Heated Lightweight FELLEX® Jacket 12V, model M19 (men’s)W20 (women’s) as “the lightweight jacket”. I received the men’s version of the jacket and the women’s version of the lightweight jacket. The jackets use removable lithium-ion battery packs to power the heating systems. When on, multiple heating zones provide three levels of heat to keep you warm with minimal bulk. In addition to keeping you toasty, the jackets are water and wind-resistant, keeping you comfortable regardless of the weather.
What’s included?
Heated Jacket 7.4V, model M2168 (men’s) TESTED/W2168 (women’s)
- 1 × Heated Jacket 7.4V
- 1 × 4,800mAh Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Battery
- 1 × USB charger
- 1 × USB-A to USB-C charging cable
- 1 × User Manual
- 1 × Battery User Manual
- 1 × Warranty Card
- 1 × Storage Bag
Waterproof Heated Lightweight FELLEX® Jacket 12V, model M19 (men’s)W20 (women’s) TESTED
- 1 × Waterproof Heated Lightweight FELLEX® Jacket 12V
- 1 × 5,000mAh Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Battery
- A side note – the battery that came with the coat was defective and wouldn’t charge. Venustas didn’t have a replacement available, so they replaced it with a compatible 10,000mAh battery, and that is what I used for testing this jacket.
- 1 × USB-A to USB-C charging cable
- 1 × User Manual
- 1 × Battery User Manual
- 1 × Battery Charging Info Card
- 1 × Warranty Card
- 1 × Storage Bag
Tech specs
Heated Jacket 7.4V, model M2168 (men’s)/W2168 (women’s)
Hip-length
7.2V heating system (yes, I know the title says 7.4V – Venustas has some minor proofreading issues)
Water repellent & wind-resistant (20,000 mmH₂O)
Silver mylar thermal fabric lining
FELLEX® insulated
Detachable & adjustable hood
5 heating zones: left & right shoulder, left & right chests, mid-back
Claimed heat levels: High: 144℉/62.2℃, Medium: 130℉/54.4℃, Low: 112℉/44.4℃
Runtime: 3 hours on high, 6 hrs on medium, 10 hrs on low
4,800 mAh battery pack 7.2V with charging puck and USB-C cable
Battery weight: 6.56 ounces
Machine washable
Waterproof Heated Lightweight FELLEX® Jacket 12V, model M19 (men’s)W20 (women’s)
Active fit, hip-length
12V heating system
Wind & water resistant (5,000 mmH₂O)
Breathable (5000 g/m²/24h)
Lightweight FELLEX® insulation
Silver mylar thermal fabric for super heat retention
Detachable & adjustable hood
5 larger heating zones: collar, left & right pockets, mid-back, lower back
Claimed heat levels: High: 131℉/55℃,Medium: 113℉/45℃,Low: 100℉/37.8℃
Runtime: 3 hours on high, 6 hrs on medium, 10 hrs on low
5,000 mAh battery pack with USB-C cable – no charger (10,000mAh battery used for this test)
Battery weight: 10.4 ounces (the 10,000mAh battery used for this test weighed 12.8 ounces)
Machine washable
Design and features
These are high-quality jackets with a water-resistant exterior and windproof design. The jacket is somewhat bulky with thicker insulation. This isn’t to say that the jacket is uncomfortable – quite the contrary. It fits well and is nicely comfortable to wear. The lightweight jacket has much thinner and less bulky insulation. Both jackets use high-quality YKK zippers throughout. The hoods are attached with a zipper across the top of the jackets, plus Velcro tabs to secure the ends. Both jackets have hand pockets and main zippers with securing snaps. The sleeves are nicely long and have Velcro storm cuff closures at the wrists.
There are five heating zones in the jacket. There are zones over each shoulder, one in the mid-back, and a zone on each side that sits over the chest. The lightweight jacket also has five zones, but in different locations. They are at the neck, mid-back, lower back, and both low pockets. The lining in both jackets has a silver, reflective material covered in a soft cloth mesh. The heating is controlled on both jackets via a button on the chest that doubles as a color LED indicator. The LED pulses red while the jacket warms up. Once warm, the jackets step down to medium heat and a white display. Pressing the button lets you manually choose high (red), medium (white), and low (blue) heat levels.
Let’s look at the specifics of each jacket.
Heated Jacket 7.4V, model M2168 (men’s) TESTED / W2168 (women’s) (The Jacket)
Let’s start at the top. Here’s a photo of the zipper-attached hood. You can see the brim and the two cinch straps, one on each side. The hood is lined with a soft, fuzzy material.
The zipper for the hood is in the back. The ends of the hood tuck into small pockets and are secured with Velcro.
Here, you can see the interior of the jacket. It has a heat-reflective silver coating and a soft mesh cover. The bottom of the jacket features two cinch straps in the back to snug up the bottom.
Inside, we find the info label (ignore the size) and locker loop.
The zippers are all high-quality YKK zippers. The main zipper is secured at the top and bottom with snap closures.
The sleeves can be secured with Velcro storm cuffs.
There is an outside zippered pocket on each side at waist level.
The right chest features a waterproof zippered pocket.
The left chest features the Venustas logo and the power button / LED indicator. The LED pulses red in startup mode, red in high mode, white in medium mode, and blue in low mode.
At the bottom, inside the left side, we find a small, zippered pocket.
The battery connector is inside that pocket. To use the heat functions, plug the battery in via the barrel connector, place it in the pocket, and secure it with the zipper.
Here’s a look at the battery.
The button briefly turns on the segmented battery charge indicator.
The back contains all the tech details and certifications.
One end of the pack holds the USB-C charging port. It also has a USB-A port, as the pack can double as a power bank for portable electronics.
The opposite end has the barrel connector port where the jacket’s connector plugs in.
Waterproof Heated Lightweight FELLEX® Jacket 12V, model M19 (men’s) / W20 (women’s) (Lightweight Jacket) TESTED
Once again, starting from the top, here’s a look at the hood. It has a similar brim and cinch cords. The lining of the hood is the same as the lining in the lightweight jacket itself, rather than the fuzzy lining of the other jacket’s hood. It is still comfortable to wear. The hood is detachable like the other jacket and attaches with a similar zipper and Velcro tabs.
Like the other jacket, the lightweight jacket has a pair of cinch cords in the back at the bottom of the jacket.
The lightweight jacket has an info label and a locker loop below the hood.
There is a zippered pocket on the right chest. Unlike the other jacket’s chest pocket, this one is waterproof. All the zippers are quality YKK zippers.
The left chest features the Venustas logo and the power button/status LED. It functions just like the other jacket. The addition of another waterproof pocket is a nice touch.
Speaking of extra pockets, the lightweight jacket adds another zippered pocket inside the left chest.
Did I mention pockets? The lightweight jacket throws in one more waterproof zippered pocket on the left sleeve. You can also see the Velcro storm cuff closure at the wrist.
Inside the left side, at the bottom, we see the zippered battery pocket.
Just like the other jacket, the wire with the barrel connector comes out of that pocket. Plug the battery in and secure it in the pocket.
The battery is similar to the other jacket’s battery. It has the same status button. The LED charge indicators are aligned horizontally rather than vertically.
Pressing the status button briefly lights the status LEDs to indicate the charge level.
The back contains all the specs and certifications.
All the business bits are located on one end of this pack. We see the USB-C port for charging the pack, or for the pack to act as a power bank. We see two different barrel connector output ports. This battery pack can power either of the two jackets.
Here is a summary of the differences in the jackets.
Hood lining: jacket – fuzzy; lightwright jacket – mesh
Pockets: jacket – 2 external zippered, 1 external waterproof zippered; lightweight jacket – 5 external waterproof zippered, 1 internal zippered
Insulation: jacket – thicker, bulky insulation; lightweight jacket – thinner, lighter insulation
Heat zones: jacket – 5, shoulders, chest, back; lightweight jacket – 5, neck, mid-back, lower back, pockets/hips
Battery: different battery designs, connectors, and voltages
Assembly, Installation, Setup
Both styles of jackets come complete with the hood attached. The battery pack should be fully charged before use and then installed in the dedicated battery pocket. Note that the lightweight jacket’s battery pack can be used on either jacket, as it has both sizes of barrel connectors on the pack. The jacket’s pack can only be used on the jacket it came with, as it only has the smaller barrel connector.
Performance
To get a sense of how the heating gets distributed, I grabbed the Teslong Thermal Imaging Camera and got to grabbing images. I started by laying the jackets out – the lightweight jacket is on the left and the jacket is on the right.
I grabbed a thermal image of everything. It’s pretty exciting.
You can’t see the jackets because the entire scene is essentially the same temperature between 69°F and 71.3°F.
It was time to heat them up. I held the power button on each jacket until it started pulsing red. The pulse indicates that it is in startup mode, where it will reach full temperature before stepping back to medium heat mode. You can see the red glow from the button/indicator at the tips of the arrows.
Within a few seconds, the heat was coming on strong in the lightweight jacket. You can clearly see the top heating element in the neck roll, the mid-back heating area, the lower back heating area, and the two heating areas that cover the pockets and front hips.
The heating elements in the other jacket also heated quickly, but were harder to lay out for viewing. The two top elements rest on the back of the neck and shoulders. The lower two wrap around to the chest when the jacket is closed. The large one in the middle sits in the center of the back.
I tried to spread the jacket out a bit to give you a better look at the heating areas. They peaked at about 114°F before stepping down to medium heat.
The lightweight jacket got a little hotter, peaking just over 118°F before stepping down.
This step-down behavior is automatic. Once the jacket has pre-heated and stepped down to medium heat, you can press the button to select low, then high, and then medium heat in a continuous cycle.
Venustas claims up to ten hours of battery life. Of course, that number is based on running the jacket on low heat. I decided to beat the jackets a little harder. I charged the batteries and installed them. Then, I preheated the jackets and put both in high heat mode. Then, I waited. The 5,000mAh battery on the jacket conked out after three hours, exactly as claimed. That means that Venustas’s claim of ten hours on low is probably reasonable. The lightweight jacket with the optional 10,000mAh battery cooked on for another hour. The lightweight jacket has a 12V system versus the 7.4V system on the other jacket, so getting double the battery life wasn’t going to happen. Still, a 25% increase means that on low, you should get 12-13 hours out of a charge. Both packs take between 3 and 4 hours to recharge, assuming you use a 35W or higher charger.
Let’s talk about the heat produced. Venustas claims the following:
- The jacket: High: 144℉/62.2℃, Medium: 130℉/54.4℃, Low: 112℉/44.4℃
- Lightweight jacket: High: 131℉/55℃,Medium: 113℉/45℃,Low: 100℉/37.8℃
My initial thermal images didn’t seem to support that. To better test that, I laid out the room temperature jackets on the ground. I turned both on and immediately set them to low temperature. After ten minutes, I took a thermal photo to record the highest temperature. Then, I set the jackets to medium, waited ten minutes, and took another set of photos. Finally, I set both jackets to high and repeated the process. Let’s take a look. That extra glow on the lower right was heat generated from the battery that had recently come off the charger.
Here are the numbers shown as claimed/actual.
- The jacket: High: 144℉/119℉, Medium: 130℉/96.4℉, Low: 112℉/88.7℉
- Lightweight jacket: High: 131℉/126.3℉, Medium: 113℉/100.9℉, Low: 100℉/88.7℉
For both jackets, at every level, the actual temperature delivered was lower than the claimed temperature, sometimes by quite a large margin. The lightweight jacket’s numbers were much closer to the claim than the jacket’s numbers. There is no documentation describing exactly how they measure the temperature. If they measure right on the heating elements, then of course, the temperature that actually radiates through the liner will be lower. Regardless, the numbers are definitely different and much lower than claimed.
How do the jackets feel? My wife and I both agree that both jackets are nicely comfortable to wear. The stitching feels strong, and both jackets have a quality feel to them. You can move easily, the sleeves are nicely long, and the hoods fit well and can be snugged with the cinch cords. The heat was nicely distributed. Personally, I liked the design and weight of the lightweight jacket better. Being lighter, but also nicely heated, means that it is appropriate outerwear across a wide range of temperatures. Cool? Wear the jacket. A little chillier? Turn on low heat. Cold? Medium or high heat solves it. My jacket, with its heavier insulation, means it might be too warm on its own on a cool day. Still, both jackets can cover you over a wide range of cool to cold temperatures while also adding protection from stiff winds and driving rain.
Care for the jackets couldn’t be easier. When they get dirty, take out the battery and zip up the battery pocket. Toss the jackets into the washer and then let them line dry. Nice!
Final thoughts
Bottom line? These are very nice heated jackets. Personally, I like the lightweight jacket’s design a little better. The lighter weight and additional pockets make it more versatile, in my not-so-humble opinion. I also like the layout of the heating zones better on the lightweight jacket. Still, my jacket provided excellent heat and comfort. We will be cruising through northern Norway and the British Isles next spring, and these jackets will add some welcome warmth and weather protection with minimal luggage bulk. And while the actual heat produced was less than claimed, the jackets still produced enough heat to keep you comfy when the weather gets ugly.
What I like about Venustas Heated Jackets
- Both jackets are high-quality products and are quite comfortable to wear
- Three heat levels provide comfort across a wide range of cool weather situations
- Good battery life
- Wind and rain resistance adds more comfort in inclement weather
- Nice pockets – although there are way more pockets on the lightweight jacket
- Easy to clean
What needs to be improved?
- More pockets on the standard jacket would be nice
- A larger battery for the jackets would be nice, but they are available for purchase on Venustas’s web store (and one was supplied for the lightweight jacket review)
- The temperatures produced by both jackets at all three heating levels were below the claimed specifications
Price: $199.99 for either model
Where to buy: Venustas store (Save $30 with code: Julie)
Men’s Heated Jacket 7.4V, M2168
Women’s Waterproof Heated Lightweight FELLEX® Jacket 12V, W20
Source: The sample of this product was provided for free by Venustas. Venustas did not have a final say on the review and did not preview the review before it was published.
Check out these other heated gear reviews!
- Savior Heated Ski Gloves 2.0 review – Luxurious Winter gloves
- Kemimoto Thermal-Reflective Heated Vest and Heated Gloves Liners review – Two great ways to beat the winter chill
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