REI Co-op  Flash Insulated Jacket - Men's

Overall, this is a great piece of gear-- it's simple, not overly stocked w. features (which often don't work as intended or just come off as outdated/cheesy like headphone cable slots), and it's quite warm for it's carrying weight. Ideally this is intended as a middle layer under a shell for maximum warmth when camping, but I found that it also performed well on a summit hike of Long's Peak mid-Summer as an outer layer. I wasn't completely blown away by the piece, but overall satisfied. Pros: Lightweight, simple pockets for outer layer use, warm Cons: no stuff pocket/sack, runs large

First, I think it’s pretty cool that this jacket is mostly made from recycled materials. Comfortable, fairly light, medium warmth. Like that the tree outside pockets are deep and zippered. Additional inside pocket, which is nice. Overall good fit - sleeves are on the baggy side; not a problem, just makes the jacket feel bigger than it actually is. Good for layering I guess. One downside is that after wearing it just a few times, it got these dark splotches on both of the shoulders. Not sure if these are stains or if they can wash out. Either way, seems to get dirty easily. For that I’d give it 3 stars with a bonus star for being recycled.

Was looking for a mid-layer, and took a hard look at North Face Thermoball, Patagonia Micro-puff, Nano-Air, and several others. This REI jacket, which I stumbled on by chance in a store, is by far the winner. Not just a better price, but a better jacket. Warm, comfortable, and well cut. Looks good and feels good. Even has a drop pocket. Love it. Three downsides: first, as others note the zipper seems suspect. This jacket deserves a better zipper. Second, the colors. Ug. REI, please offer this in a tasteful light blue, with a different color lining. Third, the men's version needs a hood. When they offer that version, I'll buy it the next day.

Disappointing quality in this jacket. I ordered it because I own a Revelcloud II and thought it would be similar in quality from REI. It's not. REI has gone with a much lower quality zipper on this jacket. All of the zippers stick. The photo shows my Revelcloud zipper in grey and the one on the Flash.

Lightweight jacket for hiking or even running around town. Nice styling except that like the rest of REI jackets the sizing runs large. If you are 5'9" and above you shouldn't have any problems but at my height (a prototypical small in every other brand) the small runs way too large and the sleeves are too long. The small is made for someone 5'9" which I don't think of as small and of course there is not an XS. For those who are taller this is a good product. I'll keep it for around town but when true adventure calls I will have to go with a better fitting option.

As some other reviewers pointed out, the zipper is of poor quality. Multiple times I struggled getting the jacket off because the zipper catches at the very end. I gave it a few days to see if it just needed to wear, but there is something wrong with the tab that attaches the two sides of the zipper at the bottom. It gets stuck very frequently. Returned the item Nice amount of insulation on a light jacket. Fit was a bit baggy for a medium. The elastic materials around the cuffs was not very stretchy so there was a large gap at the wrist.

I’ve had the chance to wear this jacket in a few scenarios. I’ve taken it on a cool morning walk with the dog and wore it open when I started getting warm. I’ve worn it out boating with friends to help fight the wind and cool lake air. And, I donned it while sitting around a campfire on a cool, breezy evening. It worked fairly well as a windbreaker and kept the chill off in temperatures down to 60°. I haven’t had a chance to wear it in colder weather, so I can’t yet tell what the low temperature range will be. Once it gets too cold to wear independently, it would make a great layer under or over another garment depending on what size you go with. The jacket runs true to size. I went with an XL so it feels a little roomy and gives me the opportunity to easily layer underneath. A large would have provided a more athletic fit. The jacket is lightweight and packable. There is a wide interior pocket that can be used to stuff the jacket into a ball roughly the size of a large grapefruit. The only change I’d like to see is a little more detail on the exterior of the jacket. Some stitching to show the baffling or hit of secondary color. Overall I would recommend this as a great, mid-weight down alternative jacket!

I was so excited when I received this jacket. The jacket fit well but when I put my hand in the pocket there was a surprise! A old receipt and an old Clif bar wrapper. To my surprise it was only 49$ for the previous owner. It was 34$ for me. It is sad they list it for 120$+ on their site.

Light weight insulator jacket was perfect for insulating a shell ski jacket and easy to pack in a suitcase. Very light weight with convenient pockets for storing gloves and an inside zip pocket for a phone. The fit was true to size. I haven't used it yet in cold weather and will add to the review after I use it in colder weather. Color is a cool blue

6' 195 lbs and the Large is perfect. I love this jacket. Living on the Coast in Northern California, the weather shift and changes with frequency. This is perfect for those conditions as it's the perfect weight for temperatures between the high 40's to low 60's, stuffs into it's own pocket and fits extremely well. I am extremely happy with the purchase.