Feb 5

Feb 5 Rab GORE-TEX Infinity Light Jacket (2020)

Rab GORE-TEX Infinity Light Down Jacket (2020)

Type: Parka / Use: Active / Face: Nylon / Insulation: Down

Technologies: GORE-TEX Infinium Windstopper, 800-fill hydrophobic down

Think of the UK outdoors scene, and you might think of caravans and bank holidays. But there’s a lot more to Albion than campgrounds off motorways. The Lake District and Snowdonia boast some of the most profound nature in all of Europe, especially in winter. These are the stomping grounds of Britain’s Rab. Known as down insulation specialists, the brand bills itself as “mountain people.”

They’ve certainly got a point.

The Rab Infinity Light Down Jacket is a packable puffer made for serious mountaineers. Leaner than a belay parka but bigger than a bubble coat, this athletic jacket is a geothermal warmer that packs much more punch than the standard down sweater (and works in all weather, too). It’s full of intuitive, user-friendly features designed for extreme use. Even better, it comes in pwetty covers.

As a city mouse, is the Infinity Light worth your finite attention?

Well, let’s start with the tech.

The Infinity’s highlight is its hefty stuffing of 800-fill down. This size Large contains ~190g, around twice the tonnage of a Patagonia Down Sweater. All that bird is coated with a fluorocarbon-free waterproof solution that Rab developed with chemicals specialist Nikwax, adding a layer of all-weather protection to down that’s *checks notes* already behind a layer of all-weather protection.

Per the name, the Infinity Light features a GORE-TEX membrane - in this case, the lighter (but still incredibly water-resistant) Infinium Windstopper tech. That membrane sits behind a superlight 13-denier nylon face that’s *checks notes* coated with DWR.

What does this mean?

It means dry. And warm. Very dry and warm.

Function-wise, the Infinity Light basically nails it. Packed with high-quality down, as aquaphobic as it gets without saying “proof,” this Rab is a ringer. It’s as warm as you could ever want it to be - 35° F with just a tee on is doable. It’s as waterproof as you’d need it - the “highly-water resistant” GORE membrane and hydrophobic down handles everything south of a 30 minute downpour. The Infinity Light might as well be an expedition jacket without the baggage. And at a mere 555g, only part of that is what it’s lugging.

We’ve reviewed other paradigm-shifting large lads on this blog before. On the upper end, Jottnar’s Fjorm sets a difficult example to follow - its cut, tech, and features made it a gentle giant with thoughtful design touches aplenty. Yet, through the lens of city function, the Infinity outclasses it.

Part of that is its slimmer profile. There’s no way around it: a giant coat is inconvenient, and often, a little obnoxious. The Infinity Light is certainly poofy. But it’s manageable - maybe twice as lofty as the Atom SL, but dramatically slimmer than a TNF Himalayan or 66N Tindur. For its potency, it strikes a nice balance. And on the inside, an included stuff sack doubles down on the dexterity. A chungus that doesn’t act like it! Technology!

The other part is its comprehensive but tastefully-presented feature set. In case it didn’t sink in earlier, the Infinity Light is a mountaineering piece - a high-altitude insulator made to accommodate a harness (and potentially, an emergency de-arming spoon). Every moving part and pocket on the Light was designed for mountain athlete uses. Here, that translates to a sleek profile, reliable function, and a genuine consideration for the details.

For example: on the Infinity, the hem cinch pullers work perfectly one-handed. Why? Because when you’re climbing, your hands might be full. A similar thought informs the interior location of the hood toggles. Why? Because when you’re climbing, the less that gets tangled the better. Other highlights for me include the double zip (a must), comfy cuffs (a nice-to-have), and a nimble fit that means I can reach over my head and have neither move.

TL;DR - for pure function, it’s a really fucking great winter jacket.

On the aesthetics side, however, it leaves something to be desired.

The Infinity Light just isn’t stylish. Like, at all.

Proportions work, but there’s nothing exceptional. It’s a hip-cut puffy that’s big but not huge.

The actual baffle pattern is a bit of a head-scratch. I totally get the box-wall construction and desire to map insulation. But what are we looking at? A uni-pec above an anime six pack? A #moto lookalike? It’s close enough to sales-rack hybrid jacket to raise my eyebrows. Unlike the Norrona Trollveggen with its double chest zips, there’s no overt exterior technical feature that hints at its capabilities. I think it could gain from one.

What this means for dailywear is that Rab’s functional front-runner is… perfectly fine. That’s it! It’s fine!

In so many ways, this is True Neutral puffy. Styled with a standard outfit like gray chinos, white sneakers, and a black tee, it will appear standard. Worn with #techwear, it will fit right in if it’s a dark tone but look out of place if anything else. If you try to dress like an NPC, this might be your puffer. Regardless: the interest comes from the color you choose it in. On that note, this Bright Arctic from last winter is dope. But it will vary by season.

Wearing the Infinity Light around snowy New York for this review, I caught myself wondering why I don’t wear it more. Honestly? Good question.

Technically, this is an amazing jacket. Warm, dry, packable, agile, the list goes on. I should be reaching for this coat before many others. And yet, I guess I just never developed the emotional attachment to it that I did some others.

In a phrase: it just tastes like chicken.

Overall, the Rab Infinity Light is a functionally excellent winter jacket. I feel about this jacket similar to how I feel about The North Face’s L5 LT Summit: it’s hard to see other coats in its category the same now knowing what can be done.

The price is even right for it. $450 for a 1.2lbs, fully-featured, GORE-backed winter coat? That’s a steal and a half in a market where the Marmot Biggie - another candy-colored, oversized GORE mountaineering puffer - starts at $575.

That said, the missing beat on style will cripple its appeal for some readers. It’s not unwearable - it’s just a highly-tuned function piece without any of the fashion-of-function signaling many have come to expect. The Rab Infinity Light is a lightweight, badass mountain climbing jacket that comes in wild colors. But it’s going to make you look like an actual mountain climber instead of, say, a Japanese workshop’s vision of one.

Would I get one? Absolutely. Would I recommend one for everyone? Not so much. Like 3x leveraged index funds and sriracha mayo, it’s a more exciting version of a stable thing. That could turn out to be a great investment. But it could also leave you feeling like you’ve erred into the excluded middle.

Give it a look. As a pure cold-buster, the Infinity Light has a lot to like. It just never quite turned into love for me.