Vest Series, Part 3 -- Scott E-Vest

X-ray view of Scott E-Vest Men’s Travel VestI did not begin this series with the Scott E-Vest in mind. I was aware of it, but didn’t remember the multi-pocketed, electronics-friendly line of vests and jackets until a reader reminded me of them. I’m glad he did, because for many amateurs this is doubtless the best choice for carrying a lot of equipment, without appearing loaded down.

These vests have been around since 2000, though it seems longer, and have become a common disguise for geeks who want a “personal area network” but don’t want anyone to know they have one. Somehow, I’ve never had one of these vests, but if I find $100 burning a hole in my pocket before Christmas, I’ll probably wait and spend $50 more to get the jacket version.

The Travel Vest ($100) has 22 pockets, while the Essential ($120) and Evolution ($150) jackets have 19 and 25 pockets, respectively.

Scott E-Vest Travel VestHere is a list of the features of the Travel Vest:

• Personal Area Network
• Travel Document Pocket
• Magnetic Pocket Closures
• Eyeglass Chamois with Versatile Clip
• Bottle Holder
• Water Hydration System Pocket
• PubPocket™
• 22 Pockets and compartments
• Weight Management System
• DeepPockets™
• NoBulge Pockets™
• Extendible, removable Key Holder
• Back Pocket
• BudBuckets™—earbud Pockets
• Pen/Stylus Pockets
• ZIP-PIP™
• Change Pocket
• MyMemory Pocket™
• CollarConnect™
• HangingPockets™
• Collar Loops

There are quite detailed descriptions of all these features, plus videos, on the Scott E-Vest web site. As a disclosure, I like the vest enough that I signed up as an affiliate, which means that if you order from Scott using the links on this site I will get a teensy amount of the sale price. More importantly, when I order a jacket for myself, I’ll get a discount.

One of the features I like most is the the ability to drop a phone, iPod, or (presumably) a talkie in the interior of the jacket and run the earbud cable (or an earbud/mic combo) up to the back of the neck without the wires being visible. As regular readers know, I am a big fan of using earbuds on talkies to reduce the noise level/eavesdropping potential of incident scenes and emergency operations centers.

A Go-Kit You Can Wear?

Without testing the jacket for capacity, looks, and comfort, I am not going too far out on a limb. However, while you may not be able to carry everything for a 12-hour kit inside this jacket, you will probably come pretty close. And, unlike the other vests I am reviewing (I own all the others), this vest won’t draw too much attention to itself—and the jackets will probably draw even less attention.

If you own one of these or have thoughts, feel free to comment.

20% Discount — You may be able to get a 20-percent discount on your total order by adding “twitlive” to the comment field on the order. I cannot promise this works, but it is worth a try.