‘Excellent umbrella! I would highly recommend a compact, low-profile umbrella. We put it to immediate use on the day of delivery. 30mph gusts, rain falling sideways, and the umbrella did its job.’
The Met Office predicts that the global weather pattern El Niño will make this year’s autumn and winter in the UK wetter and stormier, following an unprecedented tropical summer. While we Brits are well acquainted with the rain, many of us don’t actually own a decent umbrella, settling for flimsy brollies that cost £2 from our local supermarket.
However, shoppers have been blown away by a brolly sold on Amazon that’s currently on sale for £17.99, down from £24.99. The Bodyguard Inverted Umbrella comes in a range of colours, including black, red and grey, and is available in two sizes: 46-inch and 54-inch.
What’s unique about this umbrella is its inverted design. Rather than closing the umbrella and letting the rain on its outside soak us, its inside-out design keeps the wet outer surface inside, preventing water from running down and keeping floors and cars dry when closing it.
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Alongside this inverted design, the umbrella is reinforced with 12 resin-fibre ribs that flex slightly – as opposed to eight or nine aluminium ribs – helping prevent it from turning inside out. Perfect for anyone with their hands full, the umbrella features a one-button automatic system for one-handed use.
Plus, it features a generous 46-inch canopy which has a reflective edge, delivering ample protection from the elements when out and about. When not in use, the brolly folds down to a compact size and has a wrist strap for easy carrying.
Shop the Amazon umbrella
The Bodyguard Inverted Umbrella is on sale at Amazon.
Something a bit more useful than this, perhaps, would be a carabiner attachment for anyone who’d rather tie their umbrella to their bag when not in use. This is something the Umbrella Windproof Strong Reinforced Automatic Folding W/ Carabiner Handle Black from B&Q has.
Costing £26.69, it has a carabiner-style handle that can be easily attached to backpacks, bags, or loops. It has a similar one-button open-close mechanism and is fitted with a 10-rib aluminium alloy frame.
For beating the wind as well as the wind, another fun style is the Totes Clear Dome Umbrella with Black Border, £12.99 from Robert Dyas. This design features a PFC-free canopy and a robust steel-and-fibreglass hybrid frame, which should ensure structural flexibility and strength.
The Amazon umbrella, however, has proven a worthy shield against the elements, with over 400 five-star reviews expressing shoppers’ amazement at its features. One user said: “Excellent umbrella! I would highly recommend a compact, low-profile umbrella. We put it to immediate use on the day of delivery. 30mph gusts, rain falling sideways, and the umbrella did its job.”
Another fan of the brolly mentioned: “I travelled to Costa Rica and went to the top of Vulcan Poas to view the crater. It was full sunshine when we arrived, but within about 20 minutes, the clouds, the rain and the hail began. The wind was strong and the rain/hail was very heavy.
“This umbrella withstood the challenge and kept me dry, well, except for the large puddles and small rivers that I had to walk through to get back to my car. Excellent product. I love it.”
Not everyone was impressed by its features, however, as one user deducted two stars from their review, and said they found it a bit too ‘flimsy’. Another found the cover difficult to put back onto the umbrella: “Great quality BUT heavier than expected, does NOT fold down easily at all and ends up being too full to put back into the cover.
“I would say it is worth it in tough weather, but not so much for everyday use. You will get soaked/blown away trying to fold it down before getting into cover, which is a struggle to do!”
While most people use it for rainstorms – like this reviewer: “Great quality. The first time I used it, I was at a baseball field. The umbrella held up to pretty strong winds and torrential downpours.” Others have found it useful for bouts of sunshine where shade is minimal.