It was recently revealed energy prices will increase yet again in January – leading many of us to avoid putting it on. But that doesn’t mean you have to freeze, there are plenty of gadgets on the market which promise to keep you warm at a fraction of the price of turning the heating on. Fabulous reporter, Leanne Hall, who is notoriously mocked for wearing jumpers in the middle of summer because she’s always cold, decided to put some to the test to see if they really did keep her warm.
She gave her verdict on which of the five gadgets under £15 was worth the money – using a body thermometer to see if they really put a stop to the chill. To give each product a fair chance, Leanne tested her body temperature before wearing the item and let each one get to work for ten minutes before recording her temperature again. Each product was marked out of a total of 15 points based on ease of use, price point and how warm they made her.
This scarf was super easy to use, it comes with a power bank you can charge at home and bring along with you in a nifty pocket attached to the scarf. I think £15 is a bit steep for a scarf, especially with how small it was and the fact it only had one heating pad located on the back of the neck. My neck was 36.
7c before using the scarf and went up to 37. 3c in just ten minutes – my only bother is that it would have been nice to have a heating pack near the chest which often gets cold too. The heated scarf warmed up quickly and raised my temp by half a degrees – I can imagine this being a lifesaver when out and about in the winter.
Total score: 12/15 The hand warmer which features cute kitten ears and nose is super lightweight so perfect for sticking in your coat on the go. The one button function was super easy to use and had three heat settings and is charged by a USB cable. My hands were 34.
4c to start and went up to 36c in just ten minutes. Although the gadget is just out of the £15 budget – it did work well especially if you’re out all day and don’t want to bother with gloves. The main issue I had was that it took a while to heat up so I’d recommend turning it on before heading out.
Total Score: 9/15 The foot warmers were super simple to use and heated up quickly. I started by sticking them on to the bottom of my socks by my toes where they get coldest and within seconds I could feel them heating up which happens as soon as they come into contact with air. The sticky side managed to stay stuck to the bottom of my foot for hours and kept me ridiculously warm.
I was shocked by how cheap the gadget was as well, my foot temperature to start was 34 and by the end of the ten minutes they had heated up to 35. 8 – a massive difference. This was by far the easiest gadget to use, the cheapest and the one that made me feel super toasty.
Total Score: 15/15 I was most excited to try this gadget but found it the most disappointing. It took ages to charge up and didn’t have much battery life when it was turned on plus, getting the right size vest based on the measurements wasn’t easy. The vest was far too big for me despite getting a small size – meaning I couldn’t really feel the heating pads on my body despite my temperature changing from 35.
8c to 37. 4c however, I really didn’t feel warm from wearing it. Total Score: 7/15 This microwaveable slipper gadget is a life-saver when it comes to working from home and the £15 price tag seems reasonable for how well it worked.
You place the microwavable bag inside the slipper into the microwave for two minutes with a cup of water – and add 15 second intervals until it’s warm enough for you. Then slip the bag back into the slipper and set up at your desk. The mono slipper was really easy to heat up and stayed warm for a good couple of hours.
I started off at 37. 4c and was still that temperature after ten minutes – but I could feel that my feet were a lot warmer than the beginning. Total Score: 12/15.
From: thesun_ie
URL: https://www.thesun.ie/fabulous/11906653/tested-five-heating-gadgets-stay-warm-cheap/