Anyone who is regularly doing water sports or diving for long periods in water faces the difficulty of staying warm. Without some form of water compatible insulation most ocean or lake water will quickly take body heat right out of you.
Due to technology advancements wetsuits have been able to to make huge strides in materials. As this technology advanced so did the various options of different coloured wetsuits become available, so much so that people really started making fashion statements with brands such as Quicksilver wetsuits and Billabong wetsuits leading the way.
The typical black material we all think of has now changed to neoprene material and is the key material in any wetsuit, the reason being is it traps a very small bit of water inside to allow the body heat this water up. Other more interesting methods have been put forward and starting to break through, for example gel based heating and solar panel heating.
Rip Curl wetsuits have been pioneers in heated wetsuits. A new product they have released which is supposed to push forward the wetsuit market is the H-Bomb wetsuit. The wetsuit has a thickness of 3/2 millimetres and a special heated panel that runs down your spine. Just the thing you need in cold waters to keep the chill off. This kind of technology will allow water activates to spend a lot more time in the water without any risk of danger.
Great brands are really pushing the technology forward for wetsuits and they are now a world apart from the first suits design for the US navy. And this fact together with the added functionality that has come about allows people to really enjoy their surfing throughout the year both in warm water and colder water conditions.