Wearing gloves should be a no-brainer. They keep our hands warm and protected and can be a highly fashionable accessory. But there’s a reason they get annoying these days. Gloves and touchscreens just don't get along.

Touchscreens need your electricity

I only recently found out why touch-screens don’t work when you're using gloves. In
essence, there are two types of touch-screens. The first is “resistive”. That refers to the old-school technology – like at the ATM – where you can actually feel the screen being pushed in. The technology detects your touch from the resistance.

The touchscreens that our phones and tablets have, however, use a more advanced
technology: capacitive. These screens are constructed from materials that conduct
electricity. When you touch them, the electrical field fluctuates, due to your own electrical currents. Capacitive screens detect those fluctuations.

Which is why you can’t use smartphones when you're wearing most gloves. However, that’s no reason to go without gloves, even if it is annoying.

Retain your moisture

In winter, it is not uncommon for the skin on your hands to start to chap and peel. Not only is this unappealing, but it can be painful as well.

The reason why your hands chap is that they lose moisture very easily in winter. Humidity goes down and cold dry air constantly hits your hands. The protective oils are stripped away, leaving your skin open to the elements.

There are a few ways to remedy this. Applying moisturiser will help, along with drying your hands properly, with towels, after washing them. But the constant exposure to air makes treatment ineffective.

Gloves, on the other hand, keep the moisture trapped inside, no matter how potent an icy wind. Wearing gloves when you can, even while indoors, will keep your skin moisturized and healthy. Some even recommend wearing them to bed!

Technologically advanced gloves

The good news is, the touch-screen “problem” has not gone unnoticed, and manufacturers have created gloves that work with touchscreens.

These gloves use conductive materials, that transmit the electrical current from your body through to your device.

This technology has been around for some time, and it is really coming into its own. While original touch-screen- friendly gloves gave you rather clumsy control, newer gloves can be as good as the tips of your fingers.

Vbiger both feature built-in touchscreen gloves. Not only will you be able to use your smartphone in the cold outdoors, but you'll also never lose those gloves!