Price: £160/€195
Flex/Comfort: 9/10
Warmth: 8/10
Overall: 9/10

Tested at: Les Dunes, Anglet, France 24/04/14
Water temp: 15 deg C
Air temp: 17 deg C
Weather: Overcast, light rain
Dry weight: 900g
Tested by: TH

The Hyperfreak combines very high end spec with a modest price. You’d struggle to find a better wetsuit that gives you change out of 200 euros.

Brand Overview:

Credited with inventing the wetsuit in 1952 when founder Jack O’Neill opened his first surf shop at Ocean Beach, San Francisco, O’Neill prides itself on its surfing heritage and has long enjoyed an authentic, core following as a result. It may be of interest to you to know that O’Neill clothing and O’Neill wetsuits are two totally separate companies. Or perhaps you couldn’t much care…

The Test:

Marketed as Jordy’s signature model, the O’Neill Hyperfreak is a suit whose maximum priority is comfort and optimum surf performance. Like most summer suits here, there’s no internal pullover seal on the entry system, which favours added flex and comfort over warmth. On the test day it did feel well suited to the conditions (15 degree water) despite occasional slight flushing. For those stationed north of Bordeaux, I’d say this specific model would class as more of a full summer rubber option. It’s also worth noting that I do, in general, feel the cold, big time. As in, I surf in shorts in France, never.

Squeezing into the Hyperfreak couldn’t have felt more enjoyable, immediately offering a super snug, comfy fit. In fact, to help with this, O’Neill have done away with taped hand and leg cuffs that other suits sometimes have to add water-tightness. The idea being in the long run this should reduce wear and tear on these fragile parts of the suit when pulling it on and off. That said, while I’ve only tested it once, it’s probably safe to say O’Neill’s Hyperfreak isn’t the hardest wearing model in their range. In general, comfort can come at a durability price.

As for the finer details, I particularly liked the placement of the zipper-less key stash on the Hyperfreak, on the outside right-hand thigh, way more comfortable than both the lower leg and chest options you tend to find. On first impression, the heavy-duty chest closure on the front-zip entry-system also feels sturdy and the fact you don’t have to thread the zip to close it came as an even radder revelation. Zips and seams represent the weakest points in a suit structurally and are nearly always the first things to go, something to bear in mind when you’re scratching into your suit full throttle. You’ll also notice if you grab the collar with your thumb and forefinger, there is play between the inside and outside lining (as in they are not glued to each other, just stitched.). The Hyperfreak is the only suit in the test to have this kind of neck, everyone else had a standard one-piece. I liked the neck.

In Summary

If you’re fixed on finding a suit that’s as sturdy as possible to survive the continued ravages of time, the O’Neill Hyperfreak perhaps isn’t it. That said, the Hyperfreak combines very high end spec with a modest price. I’d say you’d struggle to find a better wetsuit that gives you change out of 200 euros.

O’Neill Wetsuits