What makes a jacket great? A pair of trekking poles? A set of dishes? How do you define greatness in such a varied range of products used by the modern man? This was a question we circled often while honing the third annual edition of the GP100, presented by Eddie Bauer — our own salute to products that embody excellence, innovation, craftsmanship and an unwavering desire to challenge expectations.
It would have been easy to pick bombastic gear, the stuff that gets a million shares on social media. But if you take a deeper look, you’ll find outlandish usually doesn’t equate to great. Ours is a different study in the world of gear in 2015 — one that values subtlety and awesomeness equally. What unites our selections is an understanding that great ideas deserve to be pursued to their full potential, regardless of whether they align with the whims of the many or just get it right for themselves. That, in the end, defined our picks for the best products of the year, from watches to fly rods to gaming controllers to crossover station wagons. Greatness, in all forms — and plenty of gear that should make its mark on you.
