This said, how cold do phones (with LiPo, screens LCD or OLED) operate and how ’bout a suitable mirror and bluetooth in-mitt smart gloves (accelerometers and enough plastic F/O or something to call a 3-finger drag while jogging?)

I needed dexterity for handling ropes and climbing gear, and warmth because sometimes you might belay for hours at a time, basically motionless, until someone called for more pitons out of the bag, then you had to get them on the zip line.  No fumbling – we were a long way away from the nearest gear store.  The wool glomitts were by far the best.  Mitts are just too clumsy, gloves not warm enough and if you pull them off, your hands get cold and do not get warm again.  There is no fire to get warm against later.  Unzipping to get your hands next to your pits is highly discouraged.  Spindrift would kill you.  All you get is your bodys’ warmth.

My single pair of $15 wool glomitts were the envy of the others, and after a few days, the $100 Gore-Tex sponsor gear stayed in the bag.  You could use them to brush snow off ledges to find placements, shake off the spindrift, and they’d be good to go again.They survived 8 weeks of pretty much constant use on the ice.

Temps were consistently around 5 F on a north-facing wall.  So they didn’t have to deal with much moisture.  And we’re not talking Alaskan/Himalayan temps or windchill here, but storms were no joke.I’m still a huge fan of them for climbing and skiing, though I’ve never found another pair as solidly made as that no-name REI pair.YMMV, as I run pretty warm, and my hands are warm when others are freezing.  On the other hand (ha!), I returned with frost-nipped toes that I still feel.  I sleep with socks on.

That being said, I would watch a video of magnet mittens worn by kittens in the presence of dancers with metal taps.

1..Heat transfer is a component of thermodynamics.  Distinguishing potential and actual in phyisics in this case is nothing more than sophistry.  At macro scale, and within the confines of the phenomena discussed,  there is no meaningful difference between the two, and no meaningful chance that there would be any other outcome. 

2.  Everything does, indeed want to be the same temperature.  Stable temperature gradients are always a:  temporary and b: the result of externalities like the specific heat and insulating qualities of matter.  If no energy is added to the system, all gradients will normalize. 

Temperature gradients on your mountain are a function of the decreasing density of the atmosphere, and a concomitant reduction in its ability to retain heat.  Energy is constantly being added to the system by radiant heat from the planet, and externally by the sun, this the denser air at ground level gains heat at a similar rate to the higher, but dissipates it at a slower rate – making for what you call a stable temperature gradient.

I have never used glittens, mainly because I really don’t need the exposed fingers part. But my worry would be to get snow in between the mitten and glove part.

2) Everything does not want to be the same temperature. No, I’m not talking about using the word “want” and the anthropomorphization of inanimate objects. Temperature gradients need not be unstable.  Example:  when you climb a mountain the air gets colder as you go up.  If everything wanted to be the same temperature, the temperature difference at the bottom and top of the mountain would have equilibrated a long time ago.

And when I’m walking with your arms held down by two full bags of grocercies and a toque pulled down over my face (peeking through the natural gaps in the fabric) because it’s too cold, I need to be able to turn pages as quickly as possible, otherwise I feel silly. 

Personally, i hate fingerless gloves, though this hybrid design does improve them somewhat.

Another hybrid design to consider is the lobster type, eg:
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/pearl-izumi/pro-softshell-lobster-glove-ec030450
binds the fingers in pairs, giving you the mitten warming effect but with some finger function too, great for cycling with (and zoidberg impressions ;) )

For when it’s not extremely cold i stick with a very thin, but windproof, set of cycling gloves i have. They seem to keep me plenty warm as it’s the windchill that effects me the most, for this reason i’ve never seen the point of wollen gloves at all.
added bonus for these is that they’re thin enough to operate touchscreens too :)

Nothing is best. I like mittens for skiing. Gloves when you need your fingers. Glittens when you *really* need your fingers, ie. shooting, smart phones, money, etc. 

Then there is also the added bonus of being able to do things that require fingertip dexterity.

2 great products for this:  If your hands are REALLY cracked/bloody, get Eucarin cream–the nearly solid-at-room-temp stuff. 

http://www.eucerinus.com/products/aquaphor/aquaphor-healing-ointment.html

You can even just rub a bit into your fingertips if that’s all that’s chapped.

I also LOVE LUSH’s “Lemony Flutter Cuticle Butter” on  my hands.  Also good for feet, elbows, etc.  Smells lemony and nice.

Note that cotton sleep gloves are also great for the most extreme cases of dry cracked winter hand. My bedroom at home growing up was below-grade, and in the winter, my hands looked like a road map. Eucarin on and these gloves over them before bed made all the difference.

http://www.amazon.com/Dermatological-cotton-gloves-ladies-regular/dp/B000GCOL5M/ref=pd_sim_sbs_bt_1