I have two pairs of mittens. They are different brands. They are a nice soft polar fleece on the outsideand the linings in both are some kind of soft material. Both pairs of mittens have “finger chambers”. It’s like a glove inside a mitten. These are not the type of mittens that you can fold the top back to expose your fingers in order to do something that requires your fingers. They’re just mittens. Why would there be finger chambers in mittens? The purpose of a mitten is to keep your fingers together and be warmer than a glove. These mittens keep my hands warm but I see no purpose for this design. Am I missing something?
You’ve discovered the missing evolutionary link between mittens and gloves!
In my experience, mittens with individual pockets for fingers are warmer than those without.
The difference between them and gloves is that no outside cold air gets between your fingers.
My warmest mittens (which I use for skiing in single-digit temperatures and below), have an interior liner mitten with individual finger pockets and an outer heavy-duty mitten.
I have a pair of mittens that go even further. Not only are there “finger chambers” for your fingers, but they came with an additional set of thin gloves for you to wear inside the mittens. So it’s like two pairs of gloves inside a mitten!
This kind of retched excess used to only be available to royalty!
When one wears Arctic mittens it is advisable to wear a thin silk glove inside. On the occasions you have to pull the mittens to grasp something the thin liner keeps your hands from freezing to whatever you grab.
I don’t feel the difference in warmth between a regular mitten and the hybrid mitten with finger chambers. If it’s really cold I wear choppers - leather (deer hide) mitten with a removable pile lining.