Morpher Folding bicycle helmet, a field review after 8000km
pros, cons, history and product description
Update 2020: Unfortunately, due to the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic and other factors,
I regret to inform you that Morpher have been forced to cease operations. CPSC and Morpher Warn Consumers to Stop Using and Dispose of Bicycle Helmets Due to Risk of Head Injury. This review was written before these events.
You Can Have a Look at:
12 Best and Safest Bike Helmets for Road Cycling, Urban Commuting, and MTB
Folding bicycle helmets have been around for several years, but it’s only recently that their fame is growing, Morpher Helmets are pulling the cart of this new niche market, their collapsible bike helmets are getting more and more popular. What about them?
We tested them during our 7000km European bike trip and now we are ready to give Morpher Helmets a review, are they the best folding helmets available? Are they worth the price? Let’s answer these and more questions.
Maybe you’ve never thought about it but a folding helmet solves a lot of space problems compared to a traditional bicycle helmet.
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Why a foldable helmet
Helmets are oddly a hot topic in the bicycle community, they shouldn’t be… wearing a helmet is always a wise choice and any argument against it pales in confront of the advantage of keeping your head whole.
One of the arguments often used by those disliking bike helmets is their portability: they are bulky to carry, won’t fit in a backpack and so on.
Of course, no one wants to leave the helmet attached to the frame of the bike (at least if you want to find it once you’re back), and carrying it under the armpit can be really uncomfortable besides increasing the risk of forgetting it around. A folding helmet, however, can be comfortably slipped into a backpack, at least that’s the case with the Morpher.
Another advantage of folding helmets is for those traveling with bikes; having to enter disassembled bikes and panniers in a box to be loaded on the plane already causes a headache, and often the last thing to put in is the helmet that, although it may not seem, takes up a lot of space in the box.
Several companies produce collapsible helmets, we chose to try the Morpher for their design and safety. Morpher provided us with free helmets for testing purposes, we have been using them every day for almost 5 months, here’s our review.
Morpher: the company
The English company was awarded in 2016 by Time Magazine with the Edison Awards, an award dedicated to the best innovations of the year. This was followed by several other awards for creativity and the contribution to safety on the road for cyclists.
Availability: where to buy Morpher Helmets
Morpher Helmets can be purchased from their official website (with free shipping worldwide) or from Amazon
Morpher: the helmets – a description
Morpher Helmets are very lightweight, thanks to their foam structure, there are 14 small vents (about 5cm x 2cm) which might not be the airiest in sweating hot weather, their small size though makes the structure stronger.
Indeed they passed all applicable cycle helmet safety tests. It has CPSC certification which covers the USA and Canada and CE EN1078 certification which covers the rest of the World, other than Australia.
The folding system is easy to use: 4 magnets keep it flat when folded to an approximate size of 36cm x 22cm x 6cm (about the size of a textbook), fitting even in small purses. To open it just pull the sides and put them in place with the intuitive click system.
The chin strap has a peculiar system which becomes very easy to handle once you get a grasp on it, making occasional regulation possible even while riding. The strap holds it very well, but for people like me, with a lot of hairs, it’s a nice plus.
The traditional buckle for the chin fastening is replaced by a magnetic one, we find it very convenient, it makes it super-easy to fasten and unfasten the helmet, even with gloves on.
The Morpher fit system is certified for heads with a circumference between 52 cm and 58 cm (20.5 to 23 inches) making them suitable for most teens and adults. It may feel a little fiddly to use at first (we recommend using 2 hands or asking a friend to help) but it only needs to be done once. Once it is set it will stay in position unless you decide to adjust it for some reason.
(N.B. It is not necessarily suitable for very large heads. They won’t fit kids, the company is planning on launching new sizes soon)
We find Morpher Helmets aesthetically very pleasant, with great availability of colors and a cool design, the currently available colors are Matt Black, Shiny Black, Frosty White, Regal Red, Stunning Silver, Gunmetal Grey, and Sunshine Yellow.
Our experience with Morpher Helmets
As already mentioned, we tested them during our recent (Summer/Autumn 2018) 7000km European bike trip. We wore them every day for about 5 months, in a range of temperatures going from 0°C to 35°C, on all kinds of roads and weather.
Fortunately, we haven’t had any accident, so it’s impossible for us to give a feedback about their efficacy… but we can certainly speak for their comfortability.
Morpher helmets very unintrusive, you almost won’t notice them on your head, so be careful not to forget them around. We found their fastening and fitting system very easy and straightforward, sturdy and well designed.
We used their folding capability more than often, to bring the helmets with us in supermarkets or shops, to box them with the bikes for flights and shipments, to store them in tiny spaces such as hostel dorms.
Overall we are very happy with our Morpher Helmets and feel like recommending them to all daily commuters, long distance bike tourers, bikepackers, etc who don’t mind investing about €124,99 (including free expedited delivery) on a bike helmet.
Morpher Helmets flaws
There are not many disadvantages in using this helmet, except one that could prove insurmountable for many: the price. The Morpher folding helmets are not cheap, one costs about 125€.
Another flaw we have heard about is ventilation, it seems the helmet is not very ventilated when the temperatures are high. We honestly didn’t notice this, although it’s true that we didn’t spend much time in the heat and we always wear a sweatband under the helmet during this trip. We are going to test them soon in Subsaharian Africa and let you know.
If you are interested in Morpher’s folding helmets you can get them shipped to your location everywhere in the world from this page.
Morpher folding helmets review: pros and cons
Pros:
- lightweight
- innovative design
- comfortable to carry around
Cons:
- Price
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