Shiftall unveils ChillerX: Peltier-cooled vest for hot days

Shiftall has unveiled the ChillerX cooling vest (SOP-C1W1G) utilizing Peltier or thermoelectric cooling to potentially keep wearers comfortable on hot days by ridding the body of excess heat more quickly than normal. The vest will be released in Japan on August 2025 at an MSRP of 39,900 yen (~$275).

Heatstroke on hot summer days is a significant health problem worldwide, and high humidity can cause heatstroke to develop more quickly. Peltier coolers work when electricity flows between two sandwiched semiconductors, causing a temperature difference that results in one side being hot and the other side being cold. The temperature of the cold side can be significantly lower than the ambient air temperature, and this potentially allows the ChillerX vest to cool the body more effectively than sweating or fans.

ChillerX circulates water throughout the vest, pulling excess heat away from the body. The water passes through a Peltier cooler mounted on the back of the vest, which dumps the heat into the surrounding air while cooling the water to up to 35 °C below ambient air temperature, according to the company.

The Peltier cooler is said to run up to 2.5 hours with a 25,000 mAh battery and can run indefinitely when connected to an external 20V 3A USB-C PD power supply. Wearers can power the vest using renewable electricity from solar panels. A variety of tested batteries can be used with the vest. The vest weighs 1.6 kg (3.5 lbs.) without battery and can be detached from the cooler for handwashing.

Readers who can't import a ChillerX might consider an ice vest like this one on Amazon.