First impressions
Is it a shoe? Is it a sock? Skinners’ Comfort 2.0 hybrids blur the line, combining the lightweight, soft upper of a sock with a tough plastic outsole.
Liberating bulk while maintaining durability, Skinners claims its latest low-cut offering activates the muscles and tendons in your feet, providing a “natural and grounding feel and second skin sensation".
Skinners also boast that its lightweight sock shoe is suitable for all manner of adventures – a reliable choice for light hiking and traveling while assuming the role of a comfy pair of slippers around the camp.
• List price: $70 (US) / £54 (UK)
• Weight (per shoe, men’s UK11): 200g / 7oz
• Drop: 0mm
• Colors: Stone / Anthracite / Moss / Marine / Aqua / Carmine
• Compatibility: Walking, light hiking, camp wear
Featuring a cotton and polyester mesh, the Comfort 2.0's upper is designed to maximize breathability and comfort, allowing for a greater feeling of freedom in the backcountry. A 3mm grippy polymer outsole is also designed to emphasize said freedom, highlighting all the bumps and inconsistencies below your feet.
The outsole’s surface consists of thousands of small, individual black rubber chunks glued together to provide a little extra protection without sacrificing a close, flexible barefoot feel.
Like most barefoot footwear, the Comfort 2.0 doesn't have a drop, meaning your feet hit the ground evenly as they would without shoes.
A shoe’s drop is the difference in height between the forefoot and the heel; the greater the drop, the steeper the angle between the two. Although opinions vary, shoes with a higher drop are usually preferred by runners and hikers who strike the ground with their heel first, while barefoot / zero-drop shoes are often worn by forefoot strikers.
In the wilderness
For the past few months, I've been putting the Comfort 2.0s to the test, wearing the barefoot sock shoes on the trails and even around town to see whether or not they truly live up to their bold claims.
Here's how they performed:
Barefoot feel and comfort
The best barefoot shoes strike a fine balance, offering a close barefoot feeling without sacrificing comfort. The Skinners Comfort 2.0s certainly succeed on the first metric.
The light, flexible polymer outsole provides a close, barefoot feeling when you're walking around the wilderness, painting a vivid picture of the terrain beneath your feet. This is especially true without the removable sole, which I found to slip around and impede the barefoot feeling.
The polymer outsole was comfortable enough for light walks in the wilderness and around the camp; however, issues quickly arose during more strenuous activity.
The Comfort 2.0s were decidedly uncomfortable during uphill and strenuous hiking, causing aches in the balls of my feet and even a blister on one occasion. With or without the removable insole, this pair felt harsh and confining compared to a proper pair of hiking shoes or trail runners. This was also the case on hard-paved streets.
It's important to note that the Comfort 2.0s are designed for walking around the camp and light hiking. However, I'd still expect the Skinners 2.0 to perform better on gentle uphill hikes.
Waterproofing
The Comfort 2.0s were disappointing in wet weather.
Although it's designed to be waterproof, the 3mm polymer outsole was disappointing in damp conditions as it only covered the bottom of my feet, meaning the uncovered sides would immediately become soggy in wet grass or rain.
In addition, its thousands of tiny plastic chunks would pick up mud and debris that would annoyingly cling to the outsole in wet conditions, adding weight and minimizing the coveted barefoot feel.
Sizing
The Comfort 2.0s did not fit true to size. Wearing UK size 11, I found the shoe-socks to be far too cramped, with a particularly narrow toe box.
Moving up a size reduced the cramped feeling and improved comfort, although the toe-box was still noticeably narrow.
Upper
Despite a few flaws, Skinners’ Comfort 2.0s have several redeeming qualities. As advertised, the adaptive-fit cotton mesh upper is indeed comfortable, providing a soft, sock-like feel around the bridge of your foot.
Said upper is also genuinely breathable. Its stretchy, adaptive fit kept the bridge and top of my feet from overheating when hiking.
I also found the Comfort 2.0s to come good on Skinners' odor-resistant claim. After several hours of use, my pair remains pong-free. For a proper wash, they can survive in the washing machine like any other pair of socks without any damage or shrinking.
Weight
Much of the Comfort 2.0's appeal comes from its light weight and ease of use. Weighing under 7oz / 200g, these shoe-socks can be rolled up and chucked in a backpack without taking up any significant space.
Final thoughts
With the Comfort 2.0s, Skinners was promising a lot. Balancing the comfort of a lightweight sock with enough support and waterproofing for easy use around the camp, and even the odd hike, was always going to be a tough ask.
This unusual hybrid succeeds in some areas and falls short in others. The Comfort 2.0s are adequately comfortable for walking around the camp and light hiking but fall short on more strenuous trails and in wet weather.
The Skinners Comfort 2.0s are available on the WildBounds website.
