The War Against Small Backpack
In our review, there’s little about the Peak Design pack that misses the mark. Also available in a 30L size, the range of Travel Backpacks from Peak Design is so well-thought-out that you can practically see the cogs turning in their creators’ heads. That said, I see plenty of people using hiking backpacks so it really comes down to personal preference. Because it has a wide, super comfy strap and boasts high-end construction, it makes an excellent personal item when flying. It could be the ultimate personal transporter – and one you never need to worry about parking. A Japanese engineer has developed a portable transporter small enough to be carried in a backpack that he says is the world’s first ‘car in a bag’. Small details like rubber-covered zipper pulls, anodized G hooks, and supple webbing keep it looking sharp. Looking for a considered blend of fashion and function? The sleek and striking Y-3 Flat Backpack does the job well. The best backpacks can reflect the style of the student who is lugging them-but they need to be more than a fashion statement. Unlike a lot of the pure-function rectangular bags in our lineup, the Never Check is a real looker – easily one of the best styled in our testing so far, and we’d have no qualms about bringing it along as a business bag.
We think they make the best travel backpacks on the market. The high price is undeniable, but for the scope of the travel pack, it’s a buy-once-cry-once purchase we would make again. In all, it’s ultimate protection with lots of room for gear. The rear clamshell design is ideal for fishing out bits of gear as you rack up, and the back panel provided enough cushion to avoid feeling any protruding cam lobes. In the main compartment, several interior zippered compartments with small sleeves keep all of your gear in its own designated place. There’s also a small outer compartment to keep essentials at hand. We could easily pack away a long weekend’s worth of travel essentials into the bag with a little space to spare. Sea to Summit is known for their dry bags, and they put that expertise into this backpack, which is essentially a very large dry bag with backpack straps. You can put a 15″ laptop in the laptop chamber and there is a laptop sleeve on it to protect your laptop from dropping down on the ground. Well-balanced, the machine naturally creates a good working angle with the ground so you never feel like you’re fighting it, even when working at maximum airflow.
Patagonia named this pack in honor of the cause – the Black Hole Maximum Legal Carry-On 45 L ($239). At 45 L, the MLC is certainly right at the cusp of the maximum allowed size, but thankfully that space is well divided up inside the pack. The company leans heavily toward the camera-toting travelers among us, but the 45 L Travel Backpack makes no compromises and works just as well for any user group. If you’re looking for a compact travel backpack that’s also great for everyday use, check out this versatile front loader from Bellroy. Knocking out our previous winner for Climbing Adventure Pack, the Mountain Hardwear Redeye 45 Travel Pack ($180) hit all the marks for what we’re looking for in a travel pack for long climbing excursions. Styled after climbing packs and haul bags, the Redeye keeps a clean profile inside and out and provides access to the internal 45 L of space via either a full back panel clamshell or an additional top entry.
On top of all this, we greatly appreciated that the Black Hole MLC 45 L is made with 100% recycled body fabric, lining, and webbing. The Patagonia Black Hole Backpack ($149) is a rugged classic. The most important factor before buying a small backpack is considerable space. It’s sleek, durable, and able to fit an incredible amount of stuff in a small space. small diaper bag backpack backpacks usually start at around å£30 whereas higher quality backpacks can start at å£130. Pulling off a good expandable backpack can be a tough task, with fabric accordion folds often taking up valuable real estate on the interior when collapsed in lesser bags. The time and effort saved in just wearing jeans is much more valuable to me than finding the perfect pant. Time to leave your comfort zone. Not so with the TimBuk2 Never Check ($209), which takes a simple backpack shape and elevates it with premium materials and design to create one of our favorite travel backpacks for laptops. This 15″ opening is generous enough to accommodate the larger laptops of today, and is suspended from the bottom of the backpack to ensure bumps don’t turn into bruises. It was Gerry Cunningham, a hiker and a rock climber, who “invented” the modern backpack.
