Gloves with touch function: Autumn operation of smartphone & GPS

The surprise up front: not all of the ten cycling gloves in this test were convincing when operating touch-sensitive screens such as those on smartphones or GPS computers. This is exactly what you should expect from a touchscreen glove. In practice, however, our intensive tapping, swiping and stroking attempts with some gloves were unsuccessful.

Gloves with touch function - how does it work?

A capacitive touchscreen only reacts to touch if there is electrical conductivity, as is the case with human skin. In contrast, a resistive touchscreen works by pressing on two conductive layers in the display and can therefore also be operated with normal gloves, as is the case with older Garmin models such as the Edge 1000.

To be able to operate a capacitive touchscreen with gloves, the fingertips of the gloves must be conductive. To do this, they are either coated with a conductive material or interwoven with copper or silver threads. This enables the transfer of electrical charge from the fingers to the touchscreen so that the display recognises the touch.

Some manufacturers equip the thumb as well as the index and middle fingers on both hands in this way; others, however, only equip the middle or index finger of their gloves with conductive material, which makes one-handed "pinching" (enlarging images or map sections) impossible.

Ideally, the thumb and index finger on both hands of a glove should at least be touch-capable in order to enable tapping, swiping and zooming on the screen, at least in theory.

The touch function in the test: from smooth to reluctant

In practice, our ten test candidates showed different sensitivities. The models from Chiba, GripGrab and Hestra worked without any problems on our test devices from Samsung, Apple and Garmin (Garmin Edge 1050 with capacitive LCD screen). Every touch was recognised without us having to twist our fingers or wrists.

In contrast, smartphones and GPS computers on the Alé and Giro gloves were reluctant to respond to our inputs. Even with the Kinetixx, it often took several attempts before the Samsung devices responded, while the iPhones showed no reaction at all.

During our tests, the smartphones were in the standard settings, without any adjustments for glove operation or input aids, as is possible with the Samsung and iPhone, for example. The Garmin responded most reliably, as its screen appears to be particularly sensitive. In the rain or on a wet display, however, all devices responded rather randomly to touch, which makes an objective evaluation difficult.

Naturally, we tested the gloves for the autumn transition period in terms of weather protection, handling and features. After all, the best touch function is useless if your fingers freeze after a short time in the wind and rain and you lose control of the handlebars. The good news is that there are gloves such as those from GripGrab or Hestra that offer both reliable protection and can also be used for typing without any problems.

Test summary: The most important facts about the gloves with touch function in brief

There is now a wide selection of touchscreen-compatible long-fingered gloves for cycling. Our ten test candidates range in price from 40 to 80 euros. The cheapest models are from Canyon and Kinetixx, while the Hestra glove costs twice as much.

The layering principle is used for most gloves: A lining, a vapour-permeable membrane and a water-repellent outer skin protect the hands from wind and rain. The warm and soft membrane knitted glove from Giro is an exception.

However, there are major differences in terms of touch function; not all specially equipped fingertips work equally well with all display surfaces.

• Best touch function: Hestra Ergo Grip Long 5-Finger
• Lightest glove: Sportful Fiandre LGT Gloves

10 cycling gloves with touch function in the test

Gloves with touch function: Alé Nordik 2.0 Gloves

• Price: 44 Euro >> available here
• Country of production: China
• Equipment: Thumb index finger touch, gel print, reflective material
• Sizes: XS to XL
• Weight (XL): 73 grammes

TOUR rating

• Weather protection (40 %): 6 from 8 | Grade: 2.0
• Touch function (30 %): 2 from 8 | Grade: 4.0
• Handling/equipment (30 %): 5 from 8 | Grade: 2.5

Overall grade (100%): 2.8

Conclusion Alé Nordik 2.0 Gloves

Normal fit; long cuff covers the wrist nicely; flexible, very comfortable to wear; outer skin hardly lets water drip off; only available in black, very tough touch function.

Long-fingered gloves: Canyon Cycling Gloves S & A

• Price: 40 Euro
• Country of production: China
• Equipment: Middle finger touch, towelling thumb
• Sizes: XS to XXL
• Weight (XL): 59 grammes

TOUR rating

• Weather protection (40 %): 6 from 8 | Grade: 2.0
• Touch function (30 %): 4 from 8 | Grade: 2.9
• Handling/equipment (30 %): 4 from 8 | Grade: 2.8

Overall grade (100%): 2.5

Conclusion Canyon Cycling Gloves S & A

Normal fit, offers space for strong fingers; light, flexible, medium warmth; easy to put on and take off, touch zone only on the middle finger with sensitive function, only one-handed donning is not possible.

Cycling gloves: Chiba Transalp

• Price: 45 Euro
• Country of production: Indonesia
• Equipment: Thumb index finger touch, palm padding, terrycloth thumb, waistband bar, reflective material, rain cover
• Sizes: XS to XL
• Weight (XL): 89 grammes

TOUR rating

• Weather protection (40 %): 7 from 8 | Grade: 1.7
• Touch function (30 %): 8 from 8 | Grade: 1.0
• Handling/equipment (30 %): 7 from 8 | Grade: 1.3

Overall grade (100%): 1.4

Conclusion Chiba Transalp

Relatively large, for long fingers; low insulation, very airy; flexible weather protection with rain cover; extremely sensitive when typing, swiping, scrolling and pulling up.

Cycling gloves with touch function: Giro Xnetic H20

• Price: 60 Euro >> available here
• Country of production: Taiwan
• Equipment: Thumb index finger touch, gel prints
• Sizes: S to XL
• Weight (XL): 73 grammes

TOUR rating

• Weather protection (40 %): 7 from 8 | Grade: 1.6
• Touch function (30 %): 0 from 8 | Grade: 5.0
• Handling/equipment (30 %): 4 from 8 | Grade: 3.1

Overall grade (100%): 3.1

Conclusion Giro Xnetic H20

Fits true to size; wears very comfortably, warms well, absolutely windproof, rain does not run off completely; the touch zones did not work with iPhone and Samsung, only with Garmin.

Gloves with touch function: Gorewear C3 GTX I Stretch Mid Gloves

• Price: 60 Euro >> available here
• Country of production: Vietnam
• Equipment: Thumb index finger touch, fleece lining, gel prints, palm padding, reflective material
• Sizes: XS to XXXL
• Weight (XL): 60 grammes

TOUR rating

• Weather protection (40 %): 8 from 8 | Grade: 1.0
• Touch function (30 %): 7 from 8 | Grade: 1.6
• Handling/equipment (30 %): 6 from 8 | Grade: 1.9

Overall grade (100%): 1.4

Conclusion Gorewear C3 GTX I Stretch Mid Gloves

Fits normal to narrow, for slim and long fingers, nice long cuff; Roubaix lining warms well, top weather protection; typing and swiping worked very well, scrolling sometimes took two attempts.

Gloves: Gripgrab Ride Windproof S/A Gloves

• Price: 44 Euro >> available here
• Country of production: Pakistan
• Equipment: Thumb index finger touch, fleece lining, gel prints, palm pad, terry thumb, reflective material
• Sizes: XS to XXL
• Weight (XL): 70 grammes

TOUR rating

• Weather protection (40 %): 8 from 8 | Grade: 1.0
• Touch function (30 %): 7 from 8 | Grade: 1.5
• Handling/equipment (30 %): 8 from 8 | Grade: 1.2

Overall score (100%): 1.2 (Tip: Price/performance)

Conclusion Gripgrab Ride Windproof S/A Gloves

Best price-performance ratio; normal fit, short, slightly tight waistband; very good weather protection; reliable touch function thanks to well-conducting thumb and index fingertips; many features including terrycloth thumb.

Long-fingered gloves: Hestra Ergo Grip Long 5-Finger

• Price: 80 Euro
• Country of production: Vietnam
• Equipment: 6-finger touch, palm padding, cuff strap, towelling thumb, reflective material
• Sizes: 6 to 11
• Weight (XL): 78 grammes

TOUR rating

• Weather protection (40 %): 8 from 8 | Grade: 1.0
• Touch function (30 %): 8 from 8 | Grade: 1.0
• Handling/equipment (30 %): 7 from 8 | Grade: 1.3

Overall score (100%): 1.1 (test winner)

Conclusion Hestra Ergo Grip Long 5-Finger

Fits normal to large; robust structure, well-padded palm; adjustable waist; very good touch properties with three fingers on the left and right; top weather protection; most expensive model in the test.

Gloves with touch function: Kinetixx Leevi

• Price: 40 Euro
• Country of production: Not specified
• Equipment: 6-finger touch, fleece lining, gel prints, palm padding, reflective material
• Sizes: 6.5 to 11
• Weight (XL): 66 grammes

TOUR rating

• Weather protection (40 %): 7 from 8 | Grade: 1.3
• Touch function (30 %): 4 from 8 | Grade: 3.0
• Handling/equipment (30 %): 7 from 8 | Grade: 1.5

Overall grade (100%): 1.9

Conclusion Kinetixx Leevi

Normal fit, long thumb; material edges slightly noticeable on the inside; nice long waistband; very good weather protection, water drips off immediately; top features; works well with Samsung and Garmin, but failed with the iPhone.

Cycling gloves: Roeckl Racale

• Price: 60 Euro >> available here
• Country of production: Not specified
• Equipment: Thumb index finger touch, fleece lining, palm padding, reflective material
• Sizes: 6 to 11
• Weight (XL): 84 grammes

TOUR rating

• Weather protection (40 %): 8 from 8 | Grade: 1.0
• Touch function (30 %): 6 from 8 | Grade: 1.9
• Handling/equipment (30 %): 6 from 8 | Grade: 2.0

Overall grade (100%): 1.6

Conclusion Roeckl Racale

Fits normally; relatively stiff due to the flat palm padding; very good weather protection; typing and scrolling worked great, swiping less well due to the somewhat stiff touch surfaces.

Gloves with touch function: Sportful Fiandre LGT Gloves

• Price: 50 Euro >> available here
• Country of production: China
• Equipment: Index finger touch, gel prints, reflective material
• Sizes: XS to XXL
• Weight (XL): 43 grammes

TOUR rating

• Weather protection (40 %): 7 from 8 | Grade: 1.0
• Touch function (30 %): 6 from 8 | Grade: 2.2
• Handling/equipment (30 %): 5 from 8 | Grade: 2.5

Overall grade (100%): 1.8

Conclusion Sportful Fiandre LGT Gloves

Fits normally; relatively stiff due to the flat palm padding; very good weather protection; typing and scrolling worked great, swiping less well due to the somewhat stiff touch surfaces.

Weather protection, touch function, handling & features: the most important facts about the TOUR test categories

Weather protection (40 per cent)

For optimum weather protection, the gloves must be windproof and quickly repel raindrops. If the outer skin quickly becomes saturated with water, this increases the cooling effect of the wind and the hands freeze more quickly. In our spray test of the previously washed test candidates, the models from GripGrab or Hestra, for example, were convincing, while the outer skin of Alé or Canyon did not repel water as well.

Touch function (30 per cent)

We tested the touch function with a Garmin Edge 1050 and various iPhones and Samsung smartphones. We tested the suitability for tapping, swiping, scrolling and swiping (pinching). Because only the middle finger of the Canyon is conductive, this model is not suitable for one-handed pinching. Only the Garmin could be operated with the Giro; the gloves from Chiba, Hestra and GripGrab achieved the best results on all devices.

Handling & equipment (30 per cent)

In this category, we assessed how easy the gloves are to put on and take off, how good their grip on the handlebars is in the rain and how extensive their features are. The models from Chiba, GripGrab and Hestra achieved top results, while Sportful's list of features is very short, but the glove is very easy to put on and take off and offers full control even on wet handlebars.