£300 - £599 | translate:/Global/SiteRating: 3

At 448g (men’s L) the Mammut Albaron /Adamello is the lightest jacket in our test, and while it is certainly trimmed down to make that weight it still has some great features. It is made from Gore-Tex Pro Shell, as are many other jackets, but this feels like a thinner and therefore lighter version. To maintain durability you get reinforcement ...

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Arc’teryx Beta AR 2011

£340.00

The Arc’teryx Beta AR weighs in at an impressive 494g (men’s L) so it is one of the lightest jackets in our test. That weight advantage comes from the relatively short and stripped-down design, as you just get two external pockets, pits zips and a main zip. The fabric is quite a thin version of Gore-Tex Pro Shell, so there ...

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Lowrance Endura Sierra 2011

£450.00

By offering both touch-screen and keypad operation, the Lowrance Endura Sierra aims to provide the best of both worlds. So you can scroll and zoom the OS mapping by touching the screen or using the buttons, while other functions are accessed via the key pad and touch-screen icons. But I found moving the maps around wasn’t as smooth or as ...

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Magellan Explorist 610

£400.00

A brand new model from one of the big outdoor navigation brands that has been a bit quiet over recent years here in the UK. It’s the middle unit of the series, which essentially means that it comes with a barometric compass, but not road navigation (available on the next model up). Its rounded shape houses a three-inch touchscreen display. ...

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Memory Map Adventurer 3500

£380.00

A touchscreen model with quite a large screen, so allowing you to view a little more of the map. Perhaps the most impressive thing about this unit is the scrolling. There is never any delay when flicking the map. It never really stalls to refresh. The menu is simple with most features accessed from the main mapping page, although it ...

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Lowrance Endura Sierra

£383.00

This is the top-end unit from Lowrance and has been recently overhauled to offer full integration with Mapyx Quo mapping software. The unit tested had full 1:25,000 OS mapping for the entire UK on it, which is perhaps the ideal digital-mapping situation. However, the unit plus this mapping would be prohibitively expensive. In addition to the cost, the amount of ...

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Nemo OBI Elite 1P 2011

£400.00

The Nemo OBI Elite 1P one-person tent packs in two halves using a compression dry-sack and separate pole bag, which is a good space saver. It’s free-standing and pitches inner-first, but the single Y-shaped hub-jointed pole attaches easily with clips and the flysheet is on quickly. There’s good internal space for lying down and sitting up; and with a lot ...

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Helsport Ringstind 1 2011

£390.00

The Helsport Ringstind 1 is a quick-pitch one-person tent design with just a single pole that has an ingeniously simple attachment method. This does take a little practice to get perfect as there are multiple guy lines at each end, but once mastered it is great. The guys at the ends and at the centre pole plus the numerous pegging ...

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Garmin Oregon 450T

£400.00

A sleek and lightweight receiver that comes with the benefit of optional Ordnance Survey mapping (£130 for a national park at 1:25000 or £80 for all national parks at 1:50000). All the functions are operated by the touch-screen, which keeps it simple and works well, even with gloves, and as usual for Garmin, the transfer of data is incredibly simple. ...

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Marmot Alpinist 2010

£400.00

The Marmot Alpinist weighs 730g (size M); Gore-Tex Pro Shell; four large chest pockets; pit zips aid ventilation; removable snow skirt; good hood: wired peak and volume adjustment. But no external stormflap on main zip (although it does get internal guttering flap); slightly shorter than some options; main drawback is the price.

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Mammut Chalten 2010

£350.00

The Mammut Chalten uses C-Change fabric, which gets more breathable as it gets warmer; two chest pockets; pit zips; extremely durable fabric; zip-out snowskirt; excellent hood movement. But 850g (size L); breathability does not start to improve until 18 deg C; mesh pockets are not waterproof; pockets are Napoleon style so are of limited use; hood peak needs better stiffening.

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Helly Hansen Verglas 2010

£330.00

The Helly Hansen Verglas weighs 516g (size M); Helly Tech O2 fabric has extremely good waterproofness and breathability; stretch panels in shoulder and hem; two small high chest pockets; two very large hip pockets; removable snowskirt. But access to hip pockets easily obscured with rucksack belts; front zip has internal rather than external stormflaps; hood not as good as some.

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Mountain Hardwear Axial 2010

£320.00

The Mountain Hardwear Axial weighs 504g (size L); Gore-Tex Pro Shell; two hip pockets; one chest pocket; pit zips; hood has good fit and movement and stiffened peak; close fit; excellent sleeve movement. But hip pocket access easily obscured by harness or hipbelt; very short body means you’re more likely to need overtrousers; front zip has internal but no external ...

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Outdoor Research Mentor 2010

£320.00

The Outdoor Research Mentor weighs 486g (size L); Gore-Tex Pro Shell; two big chest pockets plus a third smaller chest pocket; pit zips extend to hem for incredible venting; good hood fit and movement. But waterproof pockets may be a better choice than these mesh-lined ones; front zip has internal rather than external baffles; long side zip has no stormflap ...

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Crux Flak 2010

£300.00

The Crux Flak weighs 552g (size L); eVent fabric; huge chest pockets; large main zip for ease of use and durable performance; stunning hood with massive stiffened peak.But Napoleon pockets restrict ease of access for handwarming for example; front ‘Aquazip’ leaks and has internal rather than external stormflaps; short body length suits climbing, but not walking.

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Adidas Terrex Feather 2010

£340.00

The Adidas Terrex Feather weighs 400g (size L); Gore-Tex Pro Shell offers extremely high levels of waterproofness and breathability; mesh pockets on chest increase ventilation and can be accessed while wearing a rucksack; fixed hood with wired peak can be rolled down and secured; excellent movement in sleeves. But very pricy for features; sealed pockets and a storm flap over ...

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Mountain Hardwear Optimo/Celeste 2010

£330.00

The Mountain Hardwear Optimo/Celeste weighs 412g (size M); Gore-Tex Pro Shell fabric; two large hip pockets; additional chest pocket; rolldown hood with excellent movement and large wired peak; pit zips. But price tag is high; others are lighter; access to base pockets is not ideal when wearing a rucksack belt; base pockets are mesh so they’re not watertight.

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Mountain Hardwear Artero 2010

£340.00

The Mountain Hardwear Artero general-purpose jacket weighs 538g (size L); Gore-Tex Pro Shell is extremely waterproof and extremely breathable; pit zips; two Napoleon chest pockets; two hip pockets; hood can be rolled to collar; hood movement is excellent. But price is very high; pocket access with a rucksack could be slightly better; pockets are mesh-lined so not totally waterproof; very ...

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Tentipi Onyx 7 CP 2010

£585.00

Tentipi Adventure Nordic tipis are based on the traditional Sami dwellings of the nomadic reindeer-herding people of northern Sweden. So they are designed to withstand the worst weather, while allowing the campers to sit around a warm fire inside the tent. Their cosy design makes them ideal for the outdoor family looking for a more ‘traditional’ camping experience. DesignTipis have ...

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Brunton Solar Roll 14 2010 solar panel

£595.00

If you are miles from civilisation for weeks on end, the Brunton Solar Roll 14 is for you. It is ideal for expeditions when laptops, cameras and phones have to keep on working. It comes rolled into a handy storage cylinder; it is waterproof and could easily be attached to the roof of a car or tent thanks to eyelets ...

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Lowrance Endura Sierra 2010

£500.00

Lowrance released three new GPS receivers in 2009 and they tackled the interface question by offering touch-screen and conventional button access. The top-of-the-range unit is the Sierra at £500, with the Safari at £350 and the Out&Back at £250 offering stripped-down features. DesignThe boxy design of the Lowrance device sits comfortably in the hand. It is waterproof, and the rubber ...

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The North Face Heathen 2009

£300.00

With the The North Face Heathen jacket you do get a lot of features for the tiny weight of 332g (men’s M), so it should appeal to the lightweight walker. Firstly it is made from well-proven Gore-Tex Pro Shell, which offers excellent performance in terms of its waterproofness and its breathability. There are two chest pockets that are easily large ...

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Haglöfs Spitz 2009

£345.00

The Haglöfs Spitz general-purpose jacket weighs 506g (men’s L); Gore-Tex Pro Shell, very waterproof and breathable; two Napoleon chest pockets; long pit zips; hood has very large wired and stiffened peak that fits very well. But Napoleon pockets do not allow wearer to easily warm hands; short body length; no external stormflaps; price is high.

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Vaude Stretch Infinity 2009

£300.00

The Vaude Stretch Infinity general-purpose jacket weighs 552g (men’s L); stretch eVent fabric is extremely waterproof and breathable; pit zips; chest pockets easily accessed with rucksack on; front zip gets external stormflap; fine hood movement. But chest pockets are mesh-lined so not as waterproof as sealed pockets; hood peak is large and not stiffened.

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Garmin Oregon 300

£350.00

The Oregon is a sleek device with lovely clean lines due to the lack of buttons – it’s activated solely by touch-screen. The screen is a good size and it runs Ordnance Survey mapping by means of the new Garmin GB Discoverer mapping (£130 for a single national park at 1:25,000 scale, or £80 for all national parks in a ...