Giro Zone MIPS Review

The Zone MIPS is a high-end helmet that will meet the needs of all levels of skiers. While it doesn't quite match up with our top-rated helmets, it's not far behind, and the price reflects that as well, leaving you with a few more dollars in your wallet for apres.

Performance Comparison

Comfort

The Zone MIPS is one of the more comfortable helmets we tested primarily due to a couple of small features. It's solidly built, which we found gives it a sturdy, comfortable feel straight away. Beyond that, the earpieces have a very lovely, cupped feel to them, created by a thicker, padded ring around the outside edge. That said, we also found the earpieces to have a bit of a wind-tunnel effect to them at higher speeds, likely for the same design reason.

The Zone has a quick-fit click wheel in the back that customizes the inner fit of the helmet. It's a relatively common feature and one that exists in many of the helmets we tested, but the Giro system outperforms the others. We found it hard to put our finger on it in a quantitative way. But put simply, it's more snug and uniform all the way around your head. Other, similar systems felt cheap or only seemed to hold the back of your head. The chinstrap links with a magnetic Fidlock buckle that's meant to make getting your helmet on or off with gloves on easier. It's a little like clipless bike pedals. It will take a couple of minutes to figure out, but once you do, you'll appreciate the ease.

Warmth

The Giro Zone provides solid protection from the elements on those bitter, blustery days. The top vents can be shut thanks to a slider in the middle of the helmet. The earpieces are extra thick around the edges, which creates a nice seal between your ears and the cold temps. The inner liner is well-insulated, both in the ring around the outside and right across the top. The only noticeable flaw in the Zone, warmth-wise, is that while the top vents can be closed, the others cannot.

We're okay with the front vents remaining open as they provide ventilation to combat goggle fogging, but the others remain needlessly open, potentially becoming drafty on colder, windier days. In the end, while it's not the Fort Knox of warmth, it does the trick in all but the most brutal conditions, in which case you can add a beanie.

Ventilation

With thirteen vents throughout the helmet (two under the front, two on each side, five up top, and two more in the back), the Zone MIPS would appear to be heavily ventilated, and we're not disputing that. However, all of the vents are relatively small in size, limiting the amount of airflow that they trap and the area of your head that gets to reap the benefit of that ventilation. Both of the upper sides of the liner are mesh, which does expose most of the vents on the inside, which definitely helps. The Zone vents well, but it isn't exactly a wind tunnel.

Weight

At 17.9 oz., the Zone MIPS lands in the middle of the spectrum among helmets we tested and is on par with our Editors' Choice Smith Vantage MIPS. If you tend to stay inside the boundary lines of your local ski hill and don't do much hiking, be it sidecountry or beyond, this is likely not a very important metric to you. But if you split your time between the resort and the backcountry, the Zone hits an excellent middle ground that would work for both pursuits. Those with smaller builds might find the weight of the Zone more appealing than some of the heavier helmets we tested.

Goggle Compatibility

The Zone has a fairly standard goggle fit. The bungee back strap does an adequate job of holding your goggles in place, and up front, we found both smaller and larger goggles fit with a minimum of extra space or gaps. We found the noticeably wide ledge underneath the front effective in two ways. First, it allows just about any size or width of goggle to snuggle up underneath it to achieve a tighter fit. Secondly, the vents along the ledge connect to the front side vents of the helmet, allowing airflow to reach the top of your goggles and fight every skier's arch-nemesis, goggle fog.

Style

The Zone MIPS has a sleek, classic look. It doesn't reinvent the look of the ski helmet, and that's a good thing. It has a timeless feel with smooth lines and a rounded feel, modern, but somehow still old school.

The front edge juts out ever so slightly, giving the illusion of a visor without actually having one. Perhaps the most stylish part of the Zone is the earpieces. They have a polished leather swath with small eyelets and a more natural leather strap that holds the chinstrap in place; very vintage.

Should You Buy the Giro Zone MIPS?

For the level of helmet you get from the Zone MIPS, it's not a bad choice. It certainly isn't a bargain-basement price, but this is far from a bargain-basement helmet. The added safety of the MIPS technology alone will bump up the price, and while we don't all live on an open and free-wheeling budget, it's hard to put a price on your health and safety, especially your head. The Zone very nearly holds its own with our top-rated models, and you still get the MIPS technology at a good discount from the prices of those other helmets.

What Other Ski Helmets Should You Consider?

The Giro Zone MIPS offers many of the same features and qualities of our top-rated helmets at a price that is a slight step down from them. It's a quality high-end helmet that will serve you as well on bluebird days as socked-in storm days. If price is not an issue, then you might as well go for the higher-end helmets that have all the features you could want. The Smith Vantage MIPS is our first choice and is especially notable for its comfort, ventilation, and smooth compatibility with most goggles. If you need to stick with a stricter budget, Smith Mission MIPS missed beating out the Zone by just a few points, and it comes at a price that is more affordable for most skiers and snowboarders.