I apologize if I posted this twice -- I was positive that I posted it but couldn't find it when I went to check on it.

Anyway, I want to improve my cold weather glove situation, and I'd like advice from gear heads about the best products/features currently out there. I see that you can spend a lot of money on high tech materials and features, but I don't know what "improvements" are real and what are just hype / marketing. What I want is probably what everyone wants -- something that will keep my hands warm even in sub-zero temps (and I do mean sub zero) but giving dexterity and breathability to the greatest extent possible so that I can use them for all of the sorts of intricate tasks that a backpacker would use them for. Durability is also important. I'm not that concerned about weight if they give me this.

I think this is really a question for the gear heads out there who really know about the features and performance of the various offerings available as of late 2012. Most of the posts I found on here are mostly people giving accounts of how they bought some cheap gloves 5 years ago and they work great -- I don't think those will be very helpful.

I'm open to mittens or mitten / glove layering systems. I'm sure that I could make an improvement just by getting some good wool or possum liners, but I have a gift card I need to use, so I can look at spending more if it is worth it.