Customer Reviews Arc'teryx Atom AR Hoody

I wish I could give this a higher review! Overall, great jacket--material, color, etc. However, I find the fit to be a bit ridiculous. I can only imagine a very tall person with a long torso finding this jacket fits well. I am 5'2" and will be returning--this jacket looks like a dress on me. Would love to see jackets in the future with a slightly roomier and shorter fit.

Sold my previous Atom AR in 'Bushwhack' colourway so that I could buy the new 'Distortion'. The stock pictures display it as a cream, champagne colour. But in reality it's more of a stone with just a hint of green. It looks different in different lighting (this is why I haven't provided my own photos), but it is certainly not what's shown on the stock photos under any lighting, I feel. Unfortunately quite disappointing as I would've preferred to have kept my previous colour as opposed to this. The colour is still nice, but it's not what's advertised, and as my main reason for purchase, it's a very big let down. I'm sure the utility of the jacket will still be stellar, as was the case with my previous Atom AR; it will still keep me warm in the winter with great water resistance, but just bothered by what I feel is an unfair colour representation. Hope this review helps others that were hoping for a cream or champagne colour as the photos show.

...I find last year colours a little drab. This year Atom LT colours are great.

If it wasn't for the zipper I'd give this and the other 4 arcteryx products with same zipper 5 stars. The atom AR is my favorite to layer under my beta AR when hiking in the winter. It's like it was meant to fit under it. When I'm just wearing my Atom AR or my atom LT the zipper won't stay up unless it's zippered all the way up. I have an athletic build so my shoulders tend to pull it apart especially if I'm moving or climbing. Hopefully they fix it soon.

Last season I purchased 4 arcteryx jackets, this was least expensive and the most disappointing of all. I chose a light color, I would describe it as a mint green or aqua. After just one very gentle wash and hang dry, the jacket looks old and faded. I use 7th generation free detergent, no harsh chemicals, cold water, gentle cycle. No excuse for this, except poor quality. I have not worn this jacket much except as an under layer because it looks terrible. I wanted to love this, it's otherwise a good one.

Last season I purchased 4 arcteryx jackets, this was least expensive and the most disappointing of all. I chose a light color, I would describe it as a mint green or aqua. After just one very gentle wash and hang dry, the jacket looks old and faded. I use 7th generation free detergent, no harsh chemicals, cold water, gentle cycle. No excuse for this, except poor quality. I have not worn this jacket much except as an under layer because it looks terrible. I wanted to love this, it's otherwise a good one.

I really wish I could love this jacket as many others seem to. Unfortunately I was unable to due to several issues. First of all there is nothing really wrong with the design of the jacket and if you are more normally proportioned it should fit you just fine. I am however 5'7" tall and have a 48" chest. This means that I usually have to buy XXL or occasionally XL if the cut is particularly loose such as jackets like the Dually and other expedition fit jackets. This jacket in XXL fits my body perfectly but as usual with most jackets on the market from every manufacturer the sleeves are far too long. This would not be a problem if the cuffs were either tighter or velcro adjustable. I understand that this jacket is meant to be used as a midlayer so it is unlikely that they will ever make it with velcro cuffs but it would be great if they could at least tighten the elastic up a bit. Second the hood does not have enough adjustments. The hood is quite large but it only has one point of adjustability it would be nice if it had the full 4 way adjustability of many of their other jackets. Now for the final and much more serious issue I have with this jacket. It seems like the quality control for this particular model is not up to snuff. Arc'teryx usually makes extremely high quality gear but something seems to have gone wrong with the Atom LT's quality control. Many Atom LT's I have seen in stores have asymmetrical/improperly stitched cuffs. Next time you see them for sale in person check the length of the seams on the elastic part of the cuffs and you will see that they are often different lengths on the same jacket. Also it seems to be pretty common for the cuffs to have stray stitches attaching the face fabric to the elastic which pulls it in an awkward way.

I really wish I could love this jacket as many others seem to. Unfortunately I was unable to due to several issues. First of all there is nothing really wrong with the design of the jacket and if you are more normally proportioned it should fit you just fine. I am however 5'7" tall and have a 48" chest. This means that I usually have to buy XXL or occasionally XL if the cut is particularly loose such as jackets like the Dually and other expedition fit jackets. This jacket in XXL fits my body perfectly but as usual with most jackets on the market from every manufacturer the sleeves are far too long. This would not be a problem if the cuffs were either tighter or velcro adjustable. I understand that this jacket is meant to be used as a midlayer so it is unlikely that they will ever make it with velcro cuffs but it would be great if they could at least tighten the elastic up a bit. Second the hood does not have enough adjustments. The hood is quite large but it only has one point of adjustability it would be nice if it had the full 4 way adjustability of many of their other jackets. Now for the final and much more serious issue I have with this jacket. It seems like the quality control for this particular model is not up to snuff. Arc'teryx usually makes extremely high quality gear but something seems to have gone wrong with the Atom LT's quality control. Many Atom LT's I have seen in stores have asymmetrical/improperly stitched cuffs. Next time you see them for sale in person check the length of the seams on the elastic part of the cuffs and you will see that they are often different lengths on the same jacket. Also it seems to be pretty common for the cuffs to have stray stitches attaching the face fabric to the elastic which pulls it in an awkward way.

Even though the jacket is great for low intensity activities in terms of insulation, it does not really work well for high-intensity activities such as running. I found out, that if I need to unzip the jacket couple inches after warm up to increase ventilation, in about 200 meters the jacket will be unzipped down the belly level under its own weight, nothing is in the pockets. Running 3 to 5 km every second day during late fall/winter this becomes really inconvenient to zip it up periodically. I am 5'7'' 154 lb. and own the jacket in size S. Fits a little bit big on top of midlayer, however, fits well on top of another jacket when used during a break when hiking/trekking - works for me. Glad to see XS became available, in black colour only though, more colours will be appreciated.

My son asked for an Atom SV hoody for his birthday, his friend has a large SV which was a good fit. Unfortunately the SV has been replaced by the AR model. Using the Arcteryx true fit guide I selected a large size. My son is 5'11", 41" chest and about 185 pounds. Wearing only a t-shirt underneath the jacket is extremely tight across the chest, there is no room under the arms, the cuffs are tight and its skin tight on his forearms and he can't raise his arms without it lifting. I also tried it on, I am 5'10", 175pounds and 38" inch chest and it was also far too tight for me. I was thinking of exchanging it for the XL size but have no confidence that this will fit either. A backwards move by Arcteryx replacing the SV with this model, they have really scrimped on material. People are getting larger nowadays, makes you wonder whether anyone at Arcteryx has actually tried one on.

No matter how I adjust my hoodie, it's just can cover my head tightly

For the most part this jacket is great however it stains very easily. It stain from the oil from your skin or even after it rains and gets wet. It stains so easily that I need to wash it every time after I wear it. Functionally it's a great jacket but the need to constantly clean it makes it not worth the money. I wouldn't recommend this particular jacket

I loved this coat but it tore within a month in multiple spots at work. I wasn't overly hard on the jacket but it gets caught on things and the material is very weak. I've put duck tape on the coat as a means of repair but overall very disappointing.

I have this jacket repaired twice now by arcteryx in Chamonix and the zip has now broken again for the third time today. It is ridiculously flimsy and keeps on getting stuck in th et fabric beneath. Each time the toggle has broken first and then the zip gets stuck in the fabric. I have no confidence in this product to keep me warm in the mountains as the zip keeps on breaking. I've used Arcteryx for years living in Whistler and Chamonix for 12 years and currently have 4 shell jackets between myself and my wife. This jacket has hands down been the worst Arcteryx product I have ever bought.

Purchased this jacket a few years back, it lasted about 1 year before the loft significantly deteriorated. I used the atom at as a mid layer during my winter hikes. I don't recommend buying this jacket for high output due to poor breathability. Don't get me wrong, it is very warm. However, once you loose that loft it's useless.

Hi, As I mentioned in the tittle, I am very disappointed. I bought two of them in different colors, for my first civilian experience with arcteryx (my military colleagues have a pro shell). After just a few walk around, the first one wear off rapidly in the back showing the lack of endurance when wearing a simple and very light backpack in the city! Now...the second one just leave me today because I touch a tree not very hard with my left arm. It is simple, this synthetic fleece is not intended to be wear as a stand alone. You absolutely need a hard shell on it but I definitely not recommend this item. I didn't have this problem on another brand and I have 18 years of hard mountaineering of small experience. I don't recognize arcteryx well known quality so I will leave the brand for another and maybe suggest my colleagues to do the same. Sorry.

Hi, As I mentioned in the tittle, I am very disappointed. I bought two of them in different colors, for my first civilian experience with arcteryx (my military colleagues have a pro shell). After just a few walk around, the first one wear off rapidly in the back showing the lack of endurance when wearing a simple and very light backpack in the city! Now...the second one just leave me today because I touch a tree not very hard with my left arm. It is simple, this synthetic fleece is not intended to be wear as a stand alone. You absolutely need a hard shell on it but I definitely not recommend this item. I didn't have this problem on another brand and I have 18 years of hard mountaineering of small experience. I don't recognize arcteryx well known quality so I will leave the brand for another and maybe suggest my colleagues to do the same. Sorry.

I am really dissapointed with this jacket. I had last year's Atom SV and loved it! I received the AR under warrantee and it does not compare to the SV. I am much colder in this jacket than the SV. They added extra coreloft in the front but took some away from the sides. You have 120g/m coreloft in approximately 6' in the front and 80g/mon the side which is approximately 8'. So you are actually covered by less coreloft because the front panels are so small. The pockets are smaller too. The pockets start where the larger side panel begins. My whole hand does not fit comfortably into the pocket. Poor design change. I want my money back because last year I bought a warmer jacket for the same price and now I have a colder due poor quality. I have a lot of Arc'teryx gear, however this is the first piece I am upset with. I want any older version or my money back. The justification of taking away coreloft to add more coreloft to a small portion to the front is ridiculous. Horrible design of what was a great jacket.