Five HG3 Evo WP ladies heated gloves in black

This ladies Five HG3 is a down-spec'd version of their HG Prime Gore-Tex, heated glove, and obviously is a ladies specific version. We'll talk about what the glove does and doesn't have, but Fuel points out that because this glove contains no elements of animal origin, it can be considered vegan friendly. I think it might also be gluten free!

 

Anyway, the HG3 has no leather on the palm. The membrane is Five's own Drytech membrane. Instead of the 200g Gold Primaloft insulation you get on the back of the hand of the Gore-Tex glove it has 170g Primaloft, although you get the same 60g. material in the palm. You also get a panel of aluminium foil in the back of the hand to reflect heat back into the glove.

 

You get a hard, knuckle protector and a palm slider. You get two closure systems at the wrist. And a zip that allows the cuff to go outside the sleeve of your jacket. The fingers and thumbs are touchscreen sensitive, and you get Five's take on a visor wipe.

 

So that's it. The HG3 Evo is similar to the HG Prime GTX. You get a fewer of the creature comforts, but the glove is more comfortable and less expensive. It is also good, of course, to know that no animals were harmed in the making of this glove.

 

Every heated glove manufacturer will tell you that they have discovered the secret ingredient, but really we cannot see that Five's heating components are going to generate more heat, or last longer, than anybody else's.

 

Indeed, those gloves with 12 volt batteries will notionally generate more heat, although nearly always at the expense of comfort. And certainly, every 12 volt glove I have ever tried on has felt uncomfortable to a point where I would not have wanted to ride in them.

 

In the Five gloves, you get heating elements in the fingertips, including the thumb. But the main area that is covered is the insides of the fingers, and the back of the hand.

 

Five tell us that the gloves will heat up to 60 degrees for two hours, 50 degrees for three hours, or 40 degrees for six hours. Well, in your bedroom maybe, but on the road in the middle of winter you are not going to get anywhere near these temperatures.

 

But there's another thing here; and it comes from my experience with gloves powered by the bike's battery. And it's that if heating is available you are nearly always going to want it turned up to 11!  So my view is that, for most people, we are going to be talking about a maximum duration of two hours; and potentially less.

 

In terms of the settings, Five uses Bluetooth to connect the gloves to one another. So you turn the gloves on, and alter the heat setting on the right hand. On both hands you get a battery indicator to show you much life the batteries have left. The display on the left hand will also tell you which of the three heat settings you are on.

 

You can also buy a kit for charging the gloves from the bike as you're riding along. This kit can be connected directly on to the terminals of the bike's battery, or you can use a cigarette lighter socket.

 

Now this doesn't mean that you are going to benefit from the bike's larger battery. All it means is that you can keep the 7.4 volt batteries in the gloves fully charged. So, no extra heat, but you could then ride for many hours, and the batteries will not run down. But heck, if you're prepared to do this, why not get a pair of gloves designed to be powered by the bike?

 

For whatever reasons, some people may want battery-powered gloves. Our view is that they will work for the person who commutes up to an hour or so into work, although even then you may need to re-charge them after every journey. But if you ride professionally, or spend many hours in the saddle in cold weather, forget these gloves. They are not for you.

 

As I have stated, I am not convinced that Five's heated gloves are any warmer than anybody else's. But they start out as very good, winter gloves, and that will clearly have a bearing on what they're like to ride in.

 

What does have to be said, though, is that these gloves, in their own right, are great gloves. The spec. is impressive. These are proper gloves. They will be properly protective. They will be warm, even without batteries. And they will be waterproof.

 

Here's the deal, only buy these gloves if you are convinced that they meet your needs.  Having said that they are not the best way to keep your hands warm, we will not take them back just because you find they're not warm enough, or don't provide heat for long enough. You cannot return these gloves because you find them disappointing. And that's because, for many people, they will be.

 

If the gloves are faulty of course they can be returned. But not meeting your expectations doesn't constitute a fault.

 

If you really want warm hands, buy gloves that connect to the bike.