Uniqlo Down Ultralight Parka

Never heard of Uniqlo!? Neither had I until I took a trip to San Francisco earlier this month. They are like a Japanese H&M or Old Navy. But these jackets are not something I'd expect to see there. You can not beat the value you get for the price you pay!

First off these style jackets are big in style in SF right now. I couldn't believe how many people were wearing their thin baffled down jackets; Patagonia, Mountain Hardwear, The North Face, etc.

My wife wanted to go into Uniqlo and that's when I saw their version. I was like, "great, another look alike," surely it's like $150-$200.  $69.90...yep.  I probably don't need to go on but I will. 

This jacket is lightweight and packable. They say 7oz-9oz depending on size. It's light. It comes with a small stuff sack that you could easily compress to half its size. All in all I think you could compress the jacket down to between a baseball and softball. 

They have several colors and both the hooded and non-hooded were the same price. Though the hooded ones were of that shiny material that some manufacturers use. I opted for the non-hooded in black, and the material is more flat in sheen. The fill is supposed to be 740 and is made up of 90% down and 10% feathers.

The only negative I could say is that the fill power could be higher and you get a down leak every once in a while.  But that seems par for the course. Also the material is a little thin, but so are most of the higher priced brands too.  Beware, these are japanese jackets, they only come in left hand lady zippers.

If you've been looking for ultra lightweight down jacket or mid layer, this is the perfect entry!

Really well made, affordable, down parka that does well at keeping you warm. Lightweight in both your pocket ($$) and pack!

I've been in the market for quite some time looking for a good, inexpensive down jacket to use as my main insulator. I know that using the words "good" and "inexpensive" when looking for a down jacket can be asking too much. However, I was really quite surprised with the quality of this jacket.

The Uniqlo Down Parka retails for under $70 and is available in XS to XL. I personally got the XL, I needed some room so I can wear other layers underneath if needed. The fit was perfect in my opinion and even without the ability to cinch the hood and bottom portion, I have found that it worked just fine and kept me warm in temps down the mid 20's

The fabric on this jacket is coated with DWR and I unknowingly tested the water resistance of this recently and so far so good. I inadvertently spilled water on the jacket and left it unattended for a few hours...a puddle had formed and when I discovered it, the water did not penetrate the fabric and the down was not affected at all.

Some basic specs on the jacket:

Shell: 100% nylon

Filling: 90% down, 10% feather (640FP)

Lining: 100% nylon 

Weight: 10.12 oz.

Some pictures of the jacket:

Laid out

Compressed in supplied stuff stack

Total Weight

I would recommend this product for those looking for an inexpensive insulating layer.