ETC Arid Unisex Reflective Cycling Gilet

Fully reflective jackets are unbeatable for being seen at night, but with the odd exception the reflective fabric tends to be pretty bulky and not very breathable. A reflective gilet is a happy halfway house: you still light up when cars approach, but you're less likely to boil. The ETC Arid Unisex Reflective Gilet is a pretty good option for less aggressive riding.

Made fully from reflective fabric, the Arid gilet has a solid front panel to keep the wind and rain out and a perforated back panel to let some air escape. There's a fleece-lined collar, which is welcome, and a mesh liner which it doesn't really need – you're never wearing it next to your skin, after all, and it adds to the bulk.

Reflective fabric isn't lightweight and you'll struggle to roll this up into a jersey pocket – it's more one to commit to for a ride or to stuff in a saddlebag or pannier.

There's a chest pocket that'll swallow a phone, and two side pockets for general stuff.

The back is dropped in a way that suggests more upright riding is the target market here.

ETC describes this as a unisex item, which here just means it's not an especially close cut. The size L fitted me (1.89m, 93kg) fine; I can't really tell you whether it's suited to female riders, but the chest isn't especially generous and the fabric certainly isn't very stretchy, so bear that in mind.

Out on the road the gilet performed pretty well: it's fully windproof and it shrugs off some pretty heavy rain. The fabric isn't really breathable but there's enough room for air to circulate and make it out of the perforated back, so even going quite hard it didn't get uncomfortably warm. And it's certainly hugely effective in terms of its reflective ability. It's a useful extra layer on dark winter mornings or on rides that carry on into (or through) the night, and there's room to wear it over a couple of fairly thick layers if it's bitter out.

Overall it's pretty good for £50. If you want to light up after dark then a gilet like this is a more versatile option than a jacket that will end up being too warm for a greater proportion of the time.

> Buyer’s Guide: 13 of the best high-vis cycling jackets

It's more expensive than something like the BTR gilet we tested recently, but also a lot more bike-specific. In terms of performance it's not dissimilar to the Proviz Reflect360 Plus gilet, for £10 less. And you can pay a lot more than that if you want.

> Buyer’s Guide: 13 of the best cycling gilets

I'd recommend it for more casual riding, into audax and touring; if you want something more sport-orientated then the Lusso Nitelife is probably a better bet.

Verdict

Good quality reflective gilet for commuting, audax and touring