I have spent a lot of time (over a month) researching camera daypacks and from all that I gathered, this is the most complete camera daypack available. Unfortunately it still isn't perfect, but as you will see all over the internet, no camera bag is. To me it seems like camera bag manufacturers are trying to create both "pro" camera bags and walk around bags in the same bag, and it just isn't working. A walk around bag doesn't need to be super deep or hold an entire collection of lenses, and it would benefit from common "regular" backpack amenities such as extra pockets or even separate places to put pens. I'll break down all this bag has to offer and where it falls short as I see it.-Look --
This bag looks great. Especially compared to the Lowepro Fastpacks (similarly designed) which just scream camera backpack to me. This bag looks like a somewhat average backpack. I'm 5'9" and when starting at the top of my neck it ends just above my waistline. It is a bit deep (9") for my liking, but I get the sense that most camera backpacks are these days.
-Comfort --
The bag is very comfortable when lightly packed. The more weight you add exponentially makes it less comfortable due to its size. The straps are padded nicely but once enough weight is added the hard edges of the straps begin to dig in and cause discomfort.
-Regular Compartments --
The laptop compartment will hold a 17" macbook pro (15.5" x 10.5") without having it protrude from the top as would be expected. Most 15.4" laptop PCs are about this same size so they should fit as well as long as they are not more than an inch thick. The laptop compartment has a lightly padded sleeve built in for the laptop as well as room outside the sleeve for other things (this will help keep spiral notebooks off your computer). There is also a small zippered pouch on the opposite side of the laptop sleeve which is relatively small but could possibly hold a power cords or extra accessories.
The front-top compartment has a couple little pockets, a large pocket, and a small zippered mesh pocket as well as a card holder. This area is great for small notebooks, or possibly an iPad mini, as well as zip drives and other knick knacks. There are no pen pockets but I just clipped mine onto the main pocket and it worked just as well.
In front of this compartment is a small felt lined pocket for valuables. It's not really big so I don't believe many sunglasses will fit but iPods, phones and other small valuables can be put here.
The rear-top compartment is the largest of the regular compartments. This one is very spacious and able to hold a couple sweaters or a few bottles of water and lunch. There are no extra pockets inside this one.
-Camera Compartment --
The camera compartment is okay, not great. It's pitfall is the dividers, the side opening, and the material used. The dividers are well built but poorly designed. They, along with the whole camera section, lack enough velcro to really customize the layout of your camera space. This would have been fixed if they just lined the entire inside with that felt material most other bag companies use instead of nylon. Also they are a little long, forcing the back of your camera to slightly protrude from the container. You could probably make your own dividers or find extras, which could help alleviate this problem, but for $200 I would expect more. The entire compartment is a pod that is (not easily) removable and built with hard plastic instead of padding for the walls. This makes the backpack unable to fold in and really hug your equipment to prevent it shifting around due to the compartment's depth. The whole thing seems pretty strong however and very protective, just not what I was hoping for.
Although I do not have a 70-200mm lens to test with, there seems to be enough room to fit one inside along with other smaller lenses or accessories.
The side entrance is nice but not the easiest to get into. There is an extra flap inside that was probably meant as extra protection, but seems to just get in the way. A gripped camera will not fit through the side entrance. This wouldn't bother me much except for the fact that they decided to make the camera compartment very deep (9 inches). If the side entrance wont fit a gripped camera then why make the compartment deep enough for one? I guess you could fit more lenses by turning them facing out, but since I am only looking for a daypack, I wouldn't be carrying my entire collection and this makes the backpack stick out a little far causing discomfort (explained under 'Comfort') while carrying it fully loaded. There are also small pockets on the inside of the main flap which are somewhat tight for filters or memory cards but should do the job.
-Extra Features --
The side opposite of the camera side-entrance has a hidden bottle holder zipped away. This is a really nice feature since most bottle holders (in my opinion) ruin the appearance of backpacks.
Beside the bottle holder is a very nice tripod system. There is a small zippered pocket above this that contains the strap to secure the tripod to the backpack. This is great for light tripods or monopods but anything heavier or larger greatly offsets the bag creating more discomfort. Luckily this is a snowboarding backpack so the 2 snowboard straps across the front of the backpack can also be used to carry the heavier tripods and avoid awkward weight distribution.
The backpack also comes with a deployable rain cover that is not attached. I like that it isn't so that you can stow it away easier or replace it if its damaged.
The waist strap is removable and comfortable. Although it is very stiff, once it's broken in and more pliable this becomes a great feature for the backpack. It also has a chest strap which is nice. The top snowboard strap and tripod strap are both able to be hidden.
Also as long as the camera compartment pod is inserted, the bag will stand up on it's own.
-Conclusion --
In the end I give it 3 stars because of its lack of customization, its discomfort even when not fully packed, and its unnecessarily deep camera compartment. This is not a bad backpack, nor is it poorly made. If you are still unsure if this is the pack for you I suggest you try it for yourself and then decide.
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