‘World’s Lightest Waterproof/Breathable’ — Berghaus makes the “world’s lightest” claim with its 75-gram Hyper Smock 2.0 jacket. Yep, just over 2 ounces for a shell that can keep you dry in the rain or sleet.
The wisp of a shell gives a purported waterproofness rating of 15,000mm (breathability of 10,000g/m²) via its polyamide fabric with a polyurethane coating. The company used a tighter hood design and extra-narrow seam tape to reduce the material and nip away a few more grams from a previous generation shell. ($150; spring 2015)
—Editors and reporters Stephen Regenold, Sean McCoy, Jason Magness, Chelsey Magness, Sam Salwei, Jake Ferguson, Raquel Hernandez-Cruz, Tom Grundy, and Mallory Paige contributed to this report.