Inside the main clamshell-accessed compartment is a blizzard of zippers and mesh pockets and dividers, and anything we tossed inside was well-stabilized. Styled after climbing packs and haul bags, the Redeye keeps a clean profile inside and out and provides access to the internal 45 liters of space via either a full back panel clamshell or an additional top entry. At 45 liters, the MLC is certainly right at the cusp of the maximum allowed size, but thankfully that space is well divided up inside the pack. Patagonia named this pack in honor of the cause – the Black Hole Maximum Legal Carry-On 45 L ($239). During a recent trip from Seattle to Southern California we were heavily saddled with the maximum the airline would allow. Along with being carry-on compliant, the Synapse is also one of the few bags on our list that are compact enough to fit under most airline seats without hogging too much precious legroom.
This is one of the only packs in our testing to feature a shoulder strap (the other being the Topo Designs Global Travel Bag). Hardware: Another important area to review when buying a minimalist backpack is the type of hardware being used, as this includes elements such as a bag’s buckles, fasteners, and zipper tracks – items that play a major role in the backpack’s overall user experience. If you loved this article therefore you would like to obtain more info about womens mini backpacks i implore you to visit the web-page. The main compartment is accessed through a clamshell zipper on the front of the bag, which is gusseted to hang open while you’re loading it up. Small details like rubber-covered zipper pulls, anodized G hooks, and supple webbing keep it looking sharp. The 40 liters of internal capacity is broken down into a series of dividers and pockets, which made condoning off things like electronics from the rest of our kit easy. Two top pockets, one of which is soft-lined for sunglasses or electronics. The interior of the pack is rather spartan, incorporating only one zippered pocket, a laptop sleeve, and two internal compression straps. 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.
And the interior of this pack is a cheery canary yellow, which helps with ease and visibility. Now that airlines are charging more for additional luggage, it’s become even more important to pack efficiently. Newly updated, these packs have been tweaked to ride the line between traditional backpacks and functional luggage, a claim we can substantiate. During the few national and international flights our Senior Editor Nick Belcaster deployed the bag on, this was easily enough space for everything you might want during a plane ride. 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. 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. Don’t forget to also check our guide to the best military backpacks.
Because there isn’t much of a frame to speak of, the Black Hole MLC doesn’t carry the best when slung over both shoulders and can sag when not entirely full. 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 would have rather seen a bit more organizational features involved like those that the Matador GlobeRider and Topo Designs Global Travel bags incorporate, but for those who stuff more than pack, the Farpoint and Fairview may very well punch the ticket. Just like the name suggests, the Never Check Expandable Backpack provides a svelte solution to bringing a bag with you during airline travel – or even just to the office. And for everything else, a front pocket is lined with multiple drop and zip pockets for organizing small gadgets like chargers or keys. That’s just the idea behind Push to Charge, one of the innovative entries into the 2008 Greener Gadgets Design Competition. 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 tucking under an airliner seat.