REASONS TO BUY
Warm
Stylish
Heavily featured
REASONS TO AVOID
Bulky and heavy
Poor ventilation
686 Smarty 3-in-1 Form Insulated Review
A great 3-in-1 jacket with good protection, style, and features, for a great price
We think this is a good-looking jacket.
Credit: Jeff Dobronyi
RELATED: Best Ski Jackets for Men of 2024
Our Verdict
The 686 Smarty 3-in-1 Form Insulated packs plenty of warmth and weather protection into a highly functional and stylish package, earning our praise as the best 3-in-1 jacket on the market. The internal liner jacket is packed with plenty of high-quality synthetic insulation, and the thick shell material keeps out wind and weather. The jacket is large and loose-fitting but still feels comfortable to wear. It has a baggy style, but it isn't too polarizing and looks good in a variety of contexts. Plus, it makes a great winter parka while not on the slopes. With tons of pockets, you'll never complain about organizing your gear again. For a side-by-side comparison of the rest of the models we've tested, head over to our men's ski jacket review.
Compare to Similar Products
 This Product
686 Smarty 3-in-1 Form Insulated | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Awards |  Best 3-in-1 Ski Jacket |  Best Bang for the Buck | | Best Ski Jacket Under 100$ | |
| Price | $289.95 at Evo Compare at 4 sellers | $279.00 at REI Compare at 4 sellers | $319 List $223.29 at REI | $229 List $160.29 at REI | $80 List $64.98 at Amazon |
Overall Score  |
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| Star Rating | |||||
| Bottom Line | A favorite 3-in-1 jacket with good protection, pockets, and slouchy style | A good jacket at a great price | This shell nearly matches the performance of much more expensive products | This jacket doesn't excel in any attribute, but it doesn't fall short either | This inexpensive and warm jacket ticks all the boxes for a solid ski jacket |
| Rating Categories | 686 Smarty 3-in-1 F... | Obermeyer Foundation | REI Co-op First Cha... | REI Co-op Powderbou... | GEMYSE Men's Mounta... |
| Warmth (20%) | |||||
| Weather Resistance (20%) | |||||
| Comfort and Fit (20%) | |||||
| Ventilation (20%) | |||||
| Style (10%) | |||||
| Features (10%) | |||||
| Specs | 686 Smarty 3-in-1 F... | Obermeyer Foundation | REI Co-op First Cha... | REI Co-op Powderbou... | GEMYSE Men's Mounta... |
| Main Fabric | Nylon | 45% Repreve Polyester, 55% Polyester | Recycled polyester | Nylon | Unknown |
| Insulation | Synthetic 160g | 100g synthetic body, 80g sleeves, 40g hood | None | 60g polyester sleeves, 80g polyester body | Synthetic and faux-fleece |
| Pockets | 2 handwarmer, 2 chest, 1 internal mesh | 2 zipppered chest, zippered pass pocket, interior electronics pocket | 2 handwarmer, 2 chest flap, 2 chest zipper, 1 internal zipper, 1 intenal mesh, 1 sleeve | 2 zippered hand, 1 zippered chest, 1 sleeve, 1 internal zippered chest, 1 internal mesh | 2 handwarmer, 1 chest, 1 internal zip, 1 internal stash |
| Weight (size large) | 3,15 lbs | 2.62 lbs | 1.73 lbs | 1.81 lbs | 3.63 lbs |
| Water Resistance | infiDRY | HydroBlock Pro with critical seams sealed | Gore-Tex | 2-layer waterproof breathable laminate | Unknown |
| Hood | Adjustable | Adjustable and removable | Adjustable | Adjustable | Removable |
| Pit-Zips | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Cuff construction | Elastic strap with velcro | Velcro, inner sleeve with thumb loop | Velcro | Interior wide hook-and-loop adjustments and external velcro | Stretchy wrist gaiters and external velcro |
| Powder skirt | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| RECCO | No | No | No | No | No |
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Our Analysis and Test Results
With great marks in nearly every category, this jacket delivers high performance at a price that is hard to beat.
Performance Comparison
The 686 Smarty 3-in-1, hard at work during early season testing in Colorado.
Credit: Jeff Dobronyi
Warmth
The 686 Smarty 3-in-1 delivers heat mostly through the liner jacket, which is a removable insulated zip-up layer with 160-gram synthetic insulation. This mid-layer is remarkably warm. In addition, the shell layer has a thin hanging liner that also traps some heat, but the liner jacket does most of the work. Together, they kept us warm on the coldest days of testing at the ski hill.
Three-in-one jackets traditionally deliver plenty of warmth, and this one is no exception. Its modular build allows this jacket to perform on the coldest days of winter (using both layers), the warmest days of spring (using just the shell), and even around town or during spring and fall (using just the liner). Such versatility is hard to come by in jackets that also deliver enough warmth for the coldest days of winter.
The 686 Smarty 3-in-1's heavily insulated mid-layer insert offers plenty of warmth, while a hanging liner in the shell jacket adds even more.
Credit: Jeff Dobronyi
Weather Resistance
The Smarty 3-in-1 Form Insulated does a great job at keeping out snow, rain, and wind. The shell fabric feels thick, and the infiDRY membrane effectively keeps out water. We couldn't tell if all the seams are sealed, or just the critical ones, but either way, they didn't let in water during our shower test. This jacket keeps us warm, dry, and protected during the harshest winter weather.
The hood has good coverage, though there are better hoods on the market. The biggest flaw in this jacket's weather resistance is that the zippers aren't waterproof. Instead, there are small storm flaps that shield water and snow away from the zippers, but in a truly wet environment, water will soak through the zippers.
The front zipper and chest pocket zippers aren't waterproof, but are marginally protected by storm flaps.
Credit: Jeff Dobronyi
Comfort and Fit
Despite its heavy weight, the Smarty 3-in-1 Form Insulated is comfortable to wear while skiing. The jacket weighs over three pounds, which can be a burden, but on the coldest days, we needed all of this weight to keep us warm. The jacket has good tailoring with a loose but ergonomic cut.
The jacket features some nice accents like a fleece lining around the chin, which greatly enhances comfort, and the soft knit collar on the inner liner jacket. It isn't as loose-fitting as it looks and actually has great mobility, allowing us to make athletic movements with ease. Overall, this is a comfortable parka.
The 686 Smarty has a nice fit. Not too loose and baggy, but not too tight, either.
Credit: Jeff Dobronyi
Ventilation
The ventilation in this jacket is not great. The 686 Smarty 3-in-1's 160g synthetically-insulated liner is warm and stuffy, which is great on cold days of downhill skiing but not great for hot bootpacks or aerobic riding. There are small underarm vents, but they don't help that much with ventilation.
The shell fabric is a thick nylon material that is less breathable than most Gore-Tex jackets. When the mid-layer jacket is removed, there is still a thin hanging lining, which traps air and prevents ventilation. The underarm vents are short and mesh-lined, and even when zipped all the way open, they don't actually open very much.
The armpit vents are short, mesh-lined, and don't open very widely unless you pull them apart.
Credit: Jeff Dobronyi
Style
This jacket has a loose, “steezy” style that isn't for everyone, but we think it looks pretty good. If you enjoy looser, baggier looks, then you'll love this jacket. That said, it also compares well against most other jackets on the market.
Style is subjective, and while we know that not everyone will like how this jacket looks, it's an added bonus that a jacket that performs so highly across the board also looks good.
Brushing snow off our car after an early-season snowstorm in October.
Credit: Jeff Dobronyi
Features
This metric is where the Smarty 3-in-1 really shines. This jacket has more pockets than you'll ever need, including two handwarmer pockets, two chest pockets, a headphone port, one internal stash pocket, and a sleeve pass pocket. It also has an adjustable hood and a powder skirt to keep out snow on deep days.
The “three-in-one” package is a unique feature in itself, which includes a shell jacket, an insulating liner jacket, and a zipper to combine both layers into one. This allows for tremendous versatility, giving you layer combinations for any time of year. This also inherently provides great value since you can buy your autumn, winter, and spring jackets all in the same package.
Two front chest pockets augment two handwarmer pockets. This jacket has a lot of pockets.
Credit: Jeff Dobronyi
Should You Buy the 686 Smarty 3-in-1 Form Insulated?
This jacket is perfect for users on a budget who want a high-performance ski jacket and who also want to save money on their fall and spring layers by using either the liner jacket or the shell jacket in the other seasons, depending on the weather. There are better jackets to be found for either use, but when it comes to value, the three-in-one system can't be beaten. This jacket also has a unique style, so if it appeals to you, it's a great choice!
Testing the 686 Smarty 3-in-1 Form Insulated in November in Colorado.
Credit: Jeff Dobronyi
What Other Ski Jackets Should You Consider?
The North Face ThermoBall ECO Snow TriClimate is another favorite 3-in-1 jacket. It's a bit more expensive, but it also has a different style and performs well in nearly every ski context as well. If you're looking for the best-insulated ski jacket on the market, the Helly Hansen Alpha Lifaloft is a great choice at a reasonable price, and so is the Arc'teryx Macai, but that one costs a fortune. If you're looking for a good ski jacket for the lowest price possible, the GEMYSE Men's Mountain Fleece Lining provides good warmth, weather protection, and comfort at an unbeatable price.
—
Jeff Dobronyi
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