With energy bills skyrocketing, heating the human rather than the house is a strategy many of us are employing this winter.
Winter wearables such as battery-heated blankets and throws, hoodies, gloves, cushions and more are being spruiked as clever new ways to combat the cooler weather.
In our next quest for winter warmth, we decided to test-drive two products from Stoov that promise cosy comfort. The Dutch brand specialises in cordless, infrared-heated cushions, pads and blankets, and we were keen to find out whether their rechargeable hand warmers ($109) and heated cushion ($189) are red-hot winners or tepid flops.
CHOICE staff member Melanie Stopic volunteered to review the Stoov rechargeable hand warmers. Costing a hefty $109, they come with three warmth settings up to 48°C, promise to last up to 10 hours and double as a device charger.
Stoov pitches the product as being perfect for warming up your hands on hikes or “cold outdoor adventures”. The only issue? The included instructions clearly state they’re “intended for indoor use”, which is very confusing. Oops!
Stoov’s $109 warmers come with three temperature settings and promise to last up to 10 hours.
Thankfully, Mel was still prepared to give them a shot and get hands-on.
“I’ve been told I have lizard blood,” says Mel. “I consider anything below 18°C as ‘freezing’, and in a Sydney winter, even when it’s 16°C in the middle of the day, you can find me wearing ski socks, thick pants, fleece jumpers and a jacket, beanie and gloves.
“So when I was asked if I wanted to try out some hand warmers, I was all for it.”
Mel’s review: How well do the Stoov hand warmers work?
“Out of the box, the slightly-squished-egg-shaped devices were charged and ready to use, which meant I didn’t have to wait before gaining their warmth.
Hot handful: The warmers do make it hard to do anything else or multi-task.
“The power button on the bottom is pretty obvious. Holding it down for a few seconds turns it on, and then pressing it again will change it to one of three levels of warmth. Indoors I found the highest setting too warm and the medium just right.
“I used them for a few hours sitting on the lounge watching TV and scrolling on my laptop.
“While watching TV, they warmed my palms, but if I’d been really cold, I still would have been annoyed that the backs of my hands stayed cold.
“While trying to scroll on my laptop or answer emails, they were annoying, and in most cases I had to put them down in my lap while I typed. At one stage, my husband asked if they were hand warmers or breast warmers as I’d put them down on my chest while I logged into a site.
“After 20 minutes, they’d automatically move to the low-heat setting and I’d have to turn them back up to medium. After one hour, they shut off altogether and I had to turn them back on again. While I see the benefit for safety, it was just annoying.”
Mel’s verdict: Are they worth the price?
“In most cold situations, like on my cold early morning drives or my bike ride to work, these hand warmers wouldn’t help much.
“The one place I did see some benefit was when I went to donate blood. I get bone-chillingly cold as I sit in the chair giving plasma, as I can’t put my needle arm under the blanket like the rest of me. I turned the hand warmer on and it was good at stopping my fingers from getting too cold.
In most cold situations, like on my cold early morning drives or my bike ride to work, these hand warmers wouldn’t help much
“One handy bonus is the product can also be used as a charger. There’s a USB-C port on one of the devices, and a short USB-C to USB-C cord is provided. The second device attaches to the first through magnetic contact points for charging. However, charging is quite slow – it took half an hour to go from 36% to 58%, which didn’t impress me.
“I reckon the novelty of these would wear off after the first few uses. While they have some usefulness as a slow portable charger, I think my normal gloves are going to be my go-to for keeping my hands warm while out and about.”
CHOICE staff member Margaret Raffety volunteered to jump into the hot seat and test out the Stoov Huddle.
A regular user of hot water bottles, she was keen to try out the $189 rechargeable heated seat cushion and pad with removable inner filling and three temperature settings (35–40°C, 40–50°C, 58°C).
Our cushion came in khaki, but it’s also available in midnight blue, ochre yellow and soft pink. It comes with a charging cable and assembly, and the operating instructions are pretty straightforward.
Our tester found the Stoov Huddle useful as a warm back support.
Marg’s review: Does the Stoov Huddle work?
“Yes, insofar as it’s a cushion that gets warm, but I’m not convinced it’s terribly useful.
“Admittedly, I had it on the lowest setting and perhaps I would have found it more effective at one of the warmer settings, but I found the plain old rug over my knees did more to keep me cosy than the cushion at my back.
“It also didn’t seem to stay warm for very long, and while the company says it can keep you warm for hours, you’ll also see advice that this depends on the setting you use and the temperature of your surroundings, as it won’t stay warm for as long in colder conditions.
“Stoov sells the product’s portability and versatility – you can use it as either a heating pad without the padded inserts or as a cushion. I found it worked well as a back support in my office chair, and I imagine it would be particularly useful if you suffered from any kind of back pain.
“Perhaps most importantly, the household’s most discerning arbiter of warmth, my cat Luna, was unimpressed with the Huddle. When I switched it on and placed it on a nearby bed (even going so far as to place her on its surface), she rejected the Huddle in favour of my lap, an inconvenient choice since it made it harder to reach the keyboard.”
Luna the cat helped us out with our Huddle review. She preferred her human’s lap.
Marg’s verdict: Is it worth the price?
“At $189, I’m not sure the Huddle heated cushion is great value. After all, I could buy 29 traditional hot water bottles for that, and not be left with e-waste to deal with when I no longer want it.
“On the plus side, to use the Huddle I don’t need to boil the kettle or risk scalding myself. Stoov does emphasise the safety aspects of this product, so if that’s important to you, it could be worth considering.
“It’s also contoured, unlike any hot water bottle I’ve tried, which made it very comfortable. It could also be good if you’re someone with an injury looking for something warm to hold against an aching back.
“Living in a temperate climate, and with no injuries that might benefit from a warm cushion, I’ll stick to simply adding an extra layer of clothes or maybe a rug over my knees if I start to feel chilly, and leave the high-tech personal heating options for others.”
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Pru Engel is the Audience and Engagement editor at CHOICE. Her job is to ensure as many Australians as possible know about the great work we do at CHOICE.
She works closely with our testers and experts to find the gems of information in our data and research that will resonate with Australian consumers and help them make the best decisions, whether they're purchasing an air fryer, looking for a new mattress or trying to find the cheapest car insurance. She also helps to drive meaningful change for consumers by collaborating with our Campaigns team on content covering issues such as grocery pricing, product safety and scams.
Prior to CHOICE, Pru worked as an editor at many of Australia's leading food and lifestyle titles.
Pru has a Bachelor of Arts in Communication (Journalism) from the University of Technology, Sydney.
Find Pru on LinkedIn.
Pru Engel is the Audience and Engagement editor at CHOICE. Her job is to ensure as many Australians as possible know about the great work we do at CHOICE.
She works closely with our testers and experts to find the gems of information in our data and research that will resonate with Australian consumers and help them make the best decisions, whether they're purchasing an air fryer, looking for a new mattress or trying to find the cheapest car insurance. She also helps to drive meaningful change for consumers by collaborating with our Campaigns team on content covering issues such as grocery pricing, product safety and scams.
Prior to CHOICE, Pru worked as an editor at many of Australia's leading food and lifestyle titles.
Pru has a Bachelor of Arts in Communication (Journalism) from the University of Technology, Sydney.
Find Pru on LinkedIn.
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