Since we started our blog and youtube channel just over a year ago we’ve been having so much fun. We have been inspired to continue to work hard and plan more and more trips in order to provide more and more content. With all the aspirations to provide more content, we wanted to make sure the quality of our content is the best we can possibly produce. With great quality comes a bountiful amount of technology! Our technology game has stepped up quite a bit in the last year, from a new camera, to new video camera, a drone, and all the little accessories. In our recent trips we have been finding that an estimated 40-50% of what we are packing consists of our photography/videography equipment.
When we were approached by ScottEVest it couldn’t have come at a better time. They pitched us to do a review on some of their products. I was beyond excited as I had seen this company before on one of my favorite shows “Shark Tank” (Season 3, Episode 11) I was intrigued and impressed with their appearance but didn’t think anything of it as I am not an impulse shopper. But I was overly joyed when they reached out to us and couldn’t even decide which jacket I wanted the most.
The Tropiformer
If money was no issue I would own everything in their collection, but when browsing their website, one article of clothing stood out above the rest, and that was the “Tropiformer” jacket. This jacket was perfect for me in so many ways. The jacket consist of 22 pockets! Immediately I thought about how many things I could carry and the ability to eliminate carrying my backpack or fanny pack. Yes, I said fanny pack, when I travel or am out and about it comes in handy with all of our camera equipment. Carrying my extra lenses or batteries in the fanny pack make it easily accessible when we are out experiencing life. But after seeing the ScotteVest jackets and all its features, I was excited to see all that I could fit in it and how it would look and feel.
I was beyond excited to get this jacket specifically for traveling through the airport and getting on planes. Why you ask? Because it is basically an extra carryon! I’ve taken this thing on 3 trips now since I’ve gotten it: Cancun, San Francisco, and Puerto Vallarta, and it has proven to be more than useful. Just to give you a little idea of all it can fit comfortably, in the picture below is what I usually stuff into the jacket whenever I’m traveling or out on an adventure.
The jacket can comfortably hold:
- Ipad Mini (It can fit my full size ipad but it wasn’t the most comfortable when I did that)
- Sony A5100
- 1 18-50mm Lens
- 1 50-200mm Lens
- 1 35 mm Bokeh Lens
- GoPro session
- Mini Gorillapod
- Sunglasses
- Passport holder
- Headphones
- 2100mah Powerbank
That’s basically its own carryon! These are the usual necessities I will pack into this jacket, and the great thing about it is the design does not make you look awkward with all this stuff packed in. If you take a look at this picture, I have all of this stuff packed into the jacket and it doesn’t look overly bulky.
Jacket or Vest?
Another thing that I especially love about this jacket is that it can convert into a vest in a matter of seconds! This was the feature that separated this jacket from the rest of the products for me. I am a person that gets hot easily so having the option to take off the sleeves is a helpful feature when I inevitably get hot. So, on the airplane, whether it is hot or cold, I have the option of taking off the sleeves or leaving them on. It is also convenient when I’m on a hike here in Oregon. It’s usually cold when we start our hikes, but once we get rolling into the hikes, it gets warm and I just take the sleeves right off and continue on my way. Might not be a big deal to everyone, but for me having this option is very practical and beneficial.
Compact
The last feature of this jacket I want to mention is the ability to fold up into a little square pouch. Its super easy to transform this jacket and pack it away to make space for more things! I have utilized this feature a few times when we travel from cold Portland to tropical areas. Right before get off the plane, I usually fold the jacket up and clip it to my luggage and I’m good to go. This is what it looks like when its all folded up:
Men and Women styles available online
Too many pockets?
There is only one ‘con’ that comes to mind with this jacket, that can be a minor or major flaw depending on how you look at it. Sometimes some of my smaller items will get lost in the jacket! Easier to do than you think with 22 pockets! There have been a few items that fall into the gap of some of the seams and get stuck inside the jacket, such as little GoPro screws and other small accessories. I’ve been able to retrieve all items that get lost in the jacket. When I contacted ScotteVest about this issue, they told me that it’s a known issue and they call it “Jumping the Fence”. Its more prevalent in some garments than others. I received this explanation which makes perfect sense to me: “The Reason is because of the Personal Area Network. In order to allow a channel for wires to go from pocket to pocket, we do have a gap in some of the seams. It’s one tradeoff we haven’t been able to get rid of yet.” Its a consequence that comes with having so many pockets I guess! There you have it, that’s the only complaint I have with this product and to me it’s not that big of a deal. It’s currently something that comes with the territory and good to know that they are working to fix the issue. But this won’t stop me from purchasing any of their products in the future.
Overall the Tropiformer is awesome! The quality of the jacket is excellent, and I love the design and overall usefulness of the jacket. Its light weight, and has so many pockets you can eliminate a backpack, purse, bag, or even a fanny pack! I recommend ScottEVest to everyone I know! This is one of our favorite travel accessories!
Thanks to ScottEVest for sending me the awesome jacket! As always all opinions are my own.
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I love my ScottEVest! The pockets are awesome!
That’s actually pretty cool. I might even trade out my Mountain Hardwear vest every now and then for one that hold a bit more goodies.
A jacket with 22 pockets! Cool! Although maybe best not worn when travelling through airports. Thanks for sharing the tips!
I’ve thought of ordering a vest from ScottEVest, but they should have a little bigger sizes! LOL