A smart jacket is a coat with electronics built in. In most cases that means battery-powered heating panels you switch on with a button or an app. A few designs go further and use sensors to decide how much heat or ventilation you need, but those have mostly stayed in research labs and small production runs. The details below come from manufacturer specifications and published reports rather than hands-on testing, and prices are in US dollars as checked on September 15, 2026.
Three kinds of jacket with technology
The label gets used for very different products, so it helps to sort them by what the electronics do.
Type | What it does | Example | Can you buy it? |
|---|---|---|---|
Heated jacket | Battery powers heating panels you control with a button | ORORO Classic Heated Jacket, Milwaukee M12 TOUGHSHELL | Yes, widely |
Connected heated jacket | Adds app or Bluetooth control over heat levels | Milwaukee jackets with the brand's app-enabled power source | Yes |
Adaptive smart jacket | Uses sensors to adjust heat or airflow automatically and learn preferences | Ministry of Supply Mercury, the Omius jacket concept, Hong Kong PolyU prototype | Rarely, or not at all |
Most people shopping for a smart jacket are really choosing among heated jackets, which is where the products, reviews and replacement batteries are.
How a heated smart jacket works
Thin heating elements sit between the lining and the outer shell, usually across the chest and back. When current from the battery runs through them, they warm up. Most use carbon fiber, while some newer designs use conductive yarn woven into the fabric.
The battery is a rechargeable lithium-ion pack that clips into an inside pocket. You pick a heat setting, typically low, medium or high, and the setting decides how long the battery lasts.
Two jackets show the range. The ORORO Men's Classic Heated Jacket has three heating zones, on the left and right chest and mid-back, with three settings. ORORO lists run time as 10 hours on low, 6 on medium and 3 on high. The outer layer is machine washable, and the jacket carries a three-year warranty on the heating elements and one year on the battery. On September 15 it was on final sale for $99.99, down from a regular price of $189.99, and final-sale items can't be returned.
Milwaukee's M12 Heated TOUGHSHELL Jacket is built for job sites. It heats the chest, back and hand pockets, with separate controls for the chest and back zones and for the pockets. Milwaukee lists 12 hours on low, 6 on medium and 3 on high. It runs on the same M12 batteries as Milwaukee's cordless tools, which matters if you already own them. Milwaukee's site doesn't list a price, and retail prices vary by kit and store.
When a jacket adjusts itself
A more complex idea is a smart jacket that reads your body and the weather and responds without you touching anything. Three examples show how far that has gotten.
Ministry of Supply's Mercury jacket, launched on Kickstarter in February 2018, combined an accelerometer, a body temperature sensor and an outside temperature sensor with a small controller. According to the company's description of the Mercury, the jacket turned on its three carbon fiber heating elements when it detected motion or a temperature drop, learned from adjustments made in its app, and worked with Amazon Alexa. The company said a 10,000mAh USB battery gave about 4.5 hours at maximum heat. It's unclear whether the original version is still sold.
The Omius jacket, covered by TechXplore in 2017, took the opposite approach and focused on cooling. Small slit-shaped vents in a waterproof shell opened when temperature sensors detected the wearer heating up, copying the way plant leaves release heat and moisture through pores called stomata. A processor controlled the vents and learned the wearer's preferences, and the battery was meant to last about a day. Omius planned a crowdfunding launch at the time. Its current website sells cooling caps and headbands, and I couldn't find evidence that the jacket shipped.
A 2025 project at Hong Kong Polytechnic University shows where the research stands. A team led by Jeanne Tan published a heated textile design in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces in February 2025, as reported by Interesting Engineering. It uses silver-coated yarn for heat, an AI model trained on 50 people to choose temperatures between 40 and 50°C, and yarn that changes color as it heats up, so the wearer can see how hot the fabric is. It's a research prototype with no announced release.
Is a smart jacket worth buying?
For most people the answer comes down to how long you spend in the cold and whether you'd rather wear fewer layers.
A basic heated jacket suits people who stand or move slowly outdoors for hours: construction and utility workers, dog walkers, spectators at winter games, and anyone who ice fishes. Construction crews who already use Milwaukee M12 tools get the most from the TOUGHSHELL, because spare batteries are already in the truck. For occasional use, a lower-priced jacket like the ORORO Classic covers the same basic need. The trade-off with any heated jacket is that the battery sets a hard limit, and on high you'll get about three hours from either jacket above.
A jacket that adjusts itself is harder to recommend right now. The concept solves a real problem, since a heated coat that's comfortable at a bus stop gets too hot on a crowded train. But the examples above are years old, of unclear availability, or unreleased, so there's little current product to compare and no long-term repair record.
If you're only outside for short stretches, a well-insulated coat without a battery will do the job and costs nothing to run.
Washing, safety and flying with a heated jacket
Take the battery out before washing and follow the care label. Some jackets, including the ORORO Classic, are labeled machine washable; others may not be.
If you have reduced feeling in your skin, ask a doctor before using heated clothing, because you may not notice a panel getting too hot. Stop using any battery that's swollen or damaged.
Flying adds rules. The FAA's guidance on battery-powered heat-producing devices says the heating element, the battery or another component has to be removed so the device can't switch on in flight. Spare lithium-ion batteries have to go in carry-on bags, not checked luggage, and batteries over 100 watt-hours need airline approval. Heated jacket batteries are usually far smaller. ORORO's 7.38-volt, 4.8-amp-hour battery, for example, works out to about 35 watt-hours. Check the label on yours.
Common questions about the smart jacket
What is a smart jacket?
A jacket with built-in electronics. Today that almost always means battery-powered heating, sometimes with app control. Fully adaptive designs that use sensors and learning software exist but are hard to buy.
How long does a heated jacket battery last?
On the two jackets covered here, about 3 hours on high and 10 to 12 hours on low, according to the manufacturers.
Can you wash a smart jacket?
Many heated jackets can go in the washing machine once the battery is removed. Check the care label first, since not every model allows it.
Can I wear a heated jacket on a plane?
You can bring one, but the FAA requires removing the battery or heating element so it can't turn on, and spare batteries have to travel in your carry-on.