Wantdo Packable Down Hoody Review

The Wantdo Packable Down Hoody costs less than half as much as the second most affordable down jacket I tested. This alone makes it worth considering. It's not particularly warm, weather resistant, or breathable, but it is light and packable enough to throw in a suitcase, daypack, or even carry on a summer backpacking trip.

Warmth

The Wantdo is warm enough for mild winter days or as a supplemental just-in-case layer. It is stuffed with 90% duck down, has a hood, and hand warmer pockets.

The 20D nylon material with average baffles does a decent job of sealing in your body heat. However, the baffles aren't big enough or stuffed with as much down as the warmest down jackets. This jacket will keep you warm on its own in chilly conditions but not extreme cold.

It has a hood to seal in the heat around your head. The hood has an elasticized strip around the face opening, which helps to keep it in place. But it doesn't have any other hood adjustment features. If you're wearing this hood and a cold wind blows in your face, it could blow off.

It's thin enough that you can easily layer a hardshell jacket on top. It fits on the more snug side, but it isn't too tight to fit over a baselayer or thinner fleece mid-layer.

It isn't particularly long and stops just below the waist. It doesn't have a waist cinch cord to prevent heat loss from out the bottom of the coat, either. It fits tight enough that this isn't a huge issue, but I'd hesitate to rely on this coat in cold and windy conditions.

Comfort

The Wantdo Hoody is relatively comfortable but doesn't stand out in this category either. It has a slim fit that feels good with a thin layer underneath but is tighter than I'd want for layering over a thick sweater. I tested this in a men's size small. If I were to buy it again, I'd get a medium for a roomier fit to layer underneath.

The lining material is relatively soft and feels comfortable against your bare skin. It has that slippery feel you'd expect from an inexpensive ripstop jacket, but it isn't the slipperiest fabric I've felt. When you sweat in this jacket, it gets pretty clammy, which isn't very comfortabler.

This coat is very light, and we like how it doesn't seem to hang heavy on our shoulders. Warmer coats can sometimes feel like too much to wear all day. The Wantdo, on the other hand, is easy to forget you're wearing it at all.

The hood fits loose enough to wear over a beanie or other hats. It doesn't have any adjustment, which would make it easier to wear without impeding my vision when I try to look off to either side.

Of the other testers I surveyed, some of them testers found the neck was a little too tight. If you're wearing it with only a T-shirt underneath, it's not so tight that it's uncomfortable. But it's not very comfortable if you're wearing this with a layer that also has neck protection, such as a hooded fleece.

Portability

There isn't much you could do to make this jacket lighter without using even thinner material or even less down insulation. It has no adjustment points on the hood, waist, or anywhere else.

There is nothing extra on this model, and if weight is a top priority, that's what you want. But, I do worry about the durability. However, I wore the Wantdo all winter while doing manual labor projects around the house, and it was still in surprisingly good condition after that.

It has some of the smallest zippers I've seen on the handwarmer pockets. These zippers are so small that they snag easily and often on the lightweight shell material. This hasn't caused a rip during several months of testing. But it's probably only a matter of time before one of these zippers snags the lightweight shell material and the material rips, the zipper breaks, or both. I mostly leave the zippers unzipped for this reason.

Weather Resistance

The Wantdo Hoody is one of the least weather-resistant jackets I tested. The shell material has a slight amount of water resistance but not nearly as much as some other models.

Most down jackets aren't intended to be rain jackets, but this model is less water-resistant than average. During the spray and rub waterproof test, the shell material wet out within 15 seconds. The baffle seams quickly soaked through to the inside of the jacket as well. I wouldn't want to rely on this in even the lightest rain or in wet snow.

Breathability

The Wantdo performs below average in breathability. It's not very warm, which helps it to be a bit more breathable. But as you start to sweat, this jacket quickly feels clammier inside than most.

It has small baffles with stitches that go through to the inside of the jacket, so you'd think all those holes would help this jacket breathe. However, they don't seem to help enough to make this jacket comfortable during high-output or even medium-output activities.

It has no ventilation features other than the front zipper and pushing up the sleeves. The sleeves are wide enough with a stretch cuff, so pushing them up isn't an issue. The front zipper is big enough to easily unzip as well.

Should You Buy the Wantdo Packable Down Hoody?

The Wantdo is the most affordable down jacket I've tested. It's not exactly a high-performance technical layer, but I didn't expect it would be, considering the price. It's very lightweight and packable, so this would be a good choice for a backpacking kit on a tight budget, an emergency winter layer in mild climates, or for anyone else who wants an inexpensive puffy jack to throw in a backpack or bring traveling.

What Other Down Jackets Should You Consider?

If you're looking for a lightweight and packable down jacket that performs better across the board and you can afford to invest more in a high-quality jacket, check out the Mountain Hardwear Ghost Whisperer. If you're looking for something that's still a good deal but has more warmth and features, check out the REI Co-op 650 Down or even the excellent Rab Microlight Alpine.