Altura Night Vision Windproof Gloves
Altura's Night Vision range has almost a legendary status amongst nocturnal riders and commuters. Known for providing some of the best 'reflective detail' on the market, products include jackets, bags, performance cycle clothing and gloves. After what has been a pretty mild Winter so far, a drop in temperature proved to be the perfect time to test the new Altura Night Vision Windproof Gloves. Available in men's sizes S-XXL and women's sizes S-L, we tested the men's XL version.With their strategically placed reflective detail and logo, combined with hi-viz, fluorescent yellow, the Altura Night Vision Windproof Gloves look great. They have a nice fit and whilst classed as a winter glove, they aren't bulky like some gloves in the same category. The close fit means you can feel the can still feel your handlebars, brakes etc.
The gloves are made of Nylon and Neoprene and have a nice stretch feel about them - whilst the thinly padded palm uses a thermosuede material that is designed to keep your hands both warm and comfortable. The 'snot and sweat' wipe is disappointing though. The suede-like material around the thumb seems to have little function other than giving the Altura Night Vision Windproof Gloves a nice finish - that is until you use them to wipe away sweat (ok and your running nose). We can understand that a toweling wipe can sometimes look a bit cheap but maybe a micro-fleece section would have bridged this gap and would have proved a bit more absorbent.The palm, thumb and first and second fingers feature a good size silicone grip area which works very well, especially grabbing a water bottle mid-ride. We found the Neoprene cuff to be of adequate length and the Velcro fastening secure - although a little short.
We first tested the gloves on an early New Year's Day ride for around 60 miles. The temperature, although forecast as 6°C at 6am, was closer to zero and 30 minutes into the ride, my fingers were extremely cold. By the time I got to the first stopping point just over an hour into the ride, they hurt. A couple of hours into the ride, the temperature had risen to around 6°C but the gloves still seemed to provide little warmth. It did feel a little unfair to judge the performance of these gloves based on a test ride on such a cold day, so we used the gloves over a series of commutes. The visibility of the gloves is unquestionable, with the reflective strips and Altura logo well positioned - making it easy to catch the headlights of oncoming vehicles and that of following traffic when signalling. However, despite commuting a relatively short 15 mile round trip, the Night Vision gloves just failed to keep my hands warm in colder temperatures.
Altura Night Vision Windproof Gloves Review Conclusion
Having owned a pair of Altura Night Vision Windproof Gloves from 2012, I had high hopes for the newer version. I still maintain that they are very good looking gloves that are comfortable and fit nicely - without being too bulky. We really like the design contrast of the black gloves with hi-viz yellow finger inserts and for those taking no chances, the full yellow and black gloves look great and offer maximum visibility. The palm grip is very effective and well designed and the Velcro cuff fastening is sturdy and secure but a little short. The gloves have had nearly 200 miles of testing in mainly cold and wet conditions but seem to lack the level of warmth we'd hoped for. We feel these would be ideally suited to Autumn cycling and commuting. From a pricing point of view - the Altura Night Vision Windproof gloves have an RRP of £29.99 but at the time of this review you can save around 30% from Wiggle or Evans Cycles online. The Altura Night Vision Windproof Gloves are available in men's sizes S-XXL and women's sizes S-L.