What does it fit?
If you’re considering picking up one of these to replace your existing backpack, it will force you through a difficult transition. As a college student, I usually have a lot of random things stuffed into my backpack. These aren’t limited too but often include a Dell Mini netbook, graphing calculator, pencils, pens, erasers, a water bottle, textbooks, a sprial-bound notebook, headphones, and sunglasses. With the Built NY backpack, I’m forced to carry only a laptop. I could most likely squeeze in a notebook, book, or folder as well. The top of the bag unzips for access to a large compartment which fits up to 16-inch laptops. There’s also a small secondary compartment accessible from on the side of the bag for storing a laptop’s power supply. There’s also a small pocket for storing headphones or sunglasses on one of the shoulder straps. For the most part, the only thing you’ll want to be storing in this backpack is a laptop, nothing else. And there’s a reason for that: comfort and looks.

Comfort and Quality
When you think of a laptop backpack, you expect something that’s well padded. Unfortunately there’s absolutely no padding between the backpack and you. It’s just the thin neoprene material. If you have a rugged laptop with sharp edges and possibly stubs on the bottom, you’ll have a remorseful time with this backpack. However it won’t be an issue storing something smooth and rounded such as a Macbook Pro or a compact netbook. For the most part, the bag holds a laptop quite well. But that’s it. Using the small storage compartment on the shoulder strap is quite uncomfortable. I was also annoyed with the carry handle which naturally folds down and ends up between you and the backpack. I found myself having to take of the backpack to adjust it. The neoprene material seems quite durable. It’s fairly resistive to water and dirt. While there’s slightly thicker padding on the bottom to absorb impact, there’s not nearly enough to adequately protect a laptop. It’s not on par with a true laptop backpack. In addition, I was disappointed with some of the workmanship as well. The stitches weren’t double or triple reinforced. It seems as though it could fall apart after some wear and tear. Even the zipper was often stubborn and wouldn’t close or open smoothly. Despite those issues, which should be improved on in a future iteration, it’s still the simplest back pack I’ve come across. There’s no unnecessary bulk.

The Response
I’ve never received so many pauses and mixed responses when getting feedback about something. While I thought the bag simply looked unique and stands out, others had more to say. Just about everyone eventually described the Built NY Backpack as a bullet proof vest or a CamelBak water bladder. Unfortunately it can’t stop bullets or store water. While the bag looks unusual enough, it can easily begin to look horrible if you throw your laptop’s power supply into the secondary compartment. Wearing it with anything other than the laptop or something that has a similar form factor takes away from its streamline design since it bulges.

Bottom Line
While I had plenty of criticism, there’s plenty of pros too. This bag forces you to travel light. When I was using it, I almost never took anything I didn’t need with me, which I would have done with a traditional backpack. The streamline design is definitely an interesting look. The simplicity and style will have people asking questions. It’s actually a lot more convenient than carrying an over-the-shoulder messenger bag. However this product isn’t for everyone. In fact, there’s only a small niche that would probably be interested since it can hold only a laptop. I definitely will not line up to pick one of these up, but would might be more interested if it were a bit more affordable and if some more padding gets added, the stitches get reinforced, and the carry handle gets redesigned. The Laptop Backpack will run you nearly $50 for the medium-sized model. While that’s a bit pricey, it’s still a great bag for those that have an active lifestyle and want to commute with a light load.

Buy: Built NY Laptop Backpack – $50
Links: BuiltNY.com Laptop Backpack

With school starting just around the corner, students everywhere are looking to purchase new backpacks to start the year. We would like to thank JanSport was kind enough to provide us their Revolt day pack for this review. An important aspect of backpacks these days is included protection for laptops and electronics. And with that being said, it must be done without adding too much bulk or weight to make the bag uncomfortable to wear. The Jansport Revolt is fairly lightweight, looks great, and was spacious.

The day pack features the new “Biovent” padded shoulder straps and the “Ventech” cushioned back panel. This is essential for those who have longer commutes as it helps reduces strain and adds some comfort. Plus the design is suppose to improve airflow between you and the bag, to keep yourself cooler. After a few days of use, I actually have to say that I actually found it uncomfortable. I continued to use it for another week and breaking it in helped it become a lot better.  The bag weighs just under 2 pounds and can hold up to 2001.6 cu in, which is about the average size for a backpack. The Revolt also has adjustable chest and waist straps, to help transfer the weight.

The front of the pack has a bungee compression which allows holding something without using either of the main compartments, which is often great to keep something wet or dirty out of the innards. The Revolt has two large compartments and one small padded pocket for sunglasses. The main compartment has enough room to fit a 15.4” laptop which would also technically doubles as a sleeve for a water bladder. I would highly not recommend storing both a laptop and bladder in the same pouch for obvious reasons. This laptop sleeve, disappointingly, was very thin and offers literally no padding for protection. All it would do is keep the laptop from moving around inside. This was a major blow for the back pack. I would strongly suggest picking up a padded laptop sleeve or case to put your laptop into before throwing it into your Revolt backpack. Accessing the laptop pouch is fairly easy and can be plucked out within a few seconds. This is helpful especially at airport security when traveling. The second compartment has three small pockets, great for storing calculators, pens, and pencils. And if you happen to be a tech geek, it’s also great for dropping your flash drive, memory cards, portable hard drive, or cables into. Adding a zipped mesh or more pockets for further organization would have been an appreciated addition. There are slots for water bottles on both sides of the pack, which is great for both left and right handed people. These mesh pockets can easily double for storing an umbrella or laptop power supply.

The Revolt is a simple everyday pack. There are no exceptionally special features, but at the same time it does not lack any necessary element of a good backpack. There are some improvements that can be made on comfort. Despite begin advertised for holding laptops, which it does, it doesn’t protect them. There are also not enough divided pockets on the inside, which might be an issue for those who carry a lot of small things with them. Overall, for the average student heading back to school, it’s a great looking bag and has just about all the things one would need. And it’s durable enough to last for at least a couple of years. The bag is available in 4 colors; Blue Ridge, Black, Cilantro Green, Red Curtain. The JanSport Revolt is available for purchase today for about $75.

Buy: JanSport Revolt for $74.99 (no tax + ships free)
More Details: JanSport.com Revolt

Camelbak is company not short on innovation. Bringing to market a line of very handy and convenient hydration systems has benfitted us all. We got a first look at two brand new packs from Camelbak, the Urban Assault and Urban Assault XL. The Urban Assault packs at first looks like an intimidating, menacing, ready to kick some butt pack. Loaded with features and hidden surprises, the Urban Assault is prepared for your day.

The Camelbak Urban Assault packs are constructed of a middle-ground 500D Cordura. As stated before, Cordura is pretty much the best material you can use, and at 500D the Urban Assault combines a good balance of strength to weight ratio. The zippers are genuine YKK and surrounding them is a rubbery flange meant to help keep water out. Camelbak had the right idea when they made their zipper pulls as well. The zipper pulls are made of cord with a plastic tube around them. This offers the flexibilty and silence you need, while offering the rigidity and strength required to open/close the zipper. Located on the back is a very intimidating, yet comfortable looking design. Three large foamy pads are arranged in an ergonomic design and allow for ventilation. The organization of the pads keeps the weight off of your spine and moves it to the sides and lower parts of your back. On the shoulder straps is some dense 15mm EVA foam. All of the side release buckles on this pack were made by ITW Nexus which is an industry leader in tough buckles.

The design of the Urban Assault packs is an adventure. With a plethora of pockets and many hidden features learning this pack may take a bit of time. I’ll start with the Urban Assault pack first.

Even though this Urban Assault doesn’t carry the “XL” moniker, it is by no means a small pack. The large internal frame sheet on the back is definitely needed to keep this pack upright. The pocket located next to the back is a small “comms” pocket as Camelbak likes to call it. It’s lined in padded in felt and will accommodate your phone or mp3 player quite nicely. Next to that is the laptop compartment. This pocket was large enough to fit 17″ notebooks which was a nice feature. Unfortunately inserting/removing your laptop was decently difficult due to the mouth of the pocket not being very large. An extra inch or two on each side would have been very greatly appreciated without taking away from the overall look of the pack. Camelbak also states that this pocket can double as a hydration reservoir pocket. Next comes the main pocket. In here is a cargo net which at first appears as conventional laptop pocket. I wouldn’t recommend putting your laptop there however. On the front of the main compartment is a felt lined accessory pocket. You do need to open the main compartment to access it. Following the main compartment is the secondary pocket with organizer. There aren’t any frills here and it offers the space and organization you need. Next is an interesting blow out pocket. At first it’s secured by a Velcro flap, but when fully expanded two fastex buckets can be found hidden within the top of the tongue. These connect to two hidden fastex buckles on the back of the Urban assault. The sidewalls of the expansion pouch have some elastic in them. On the inside of this pouch is a hook and loop enclosed pocket. It seems the right size for folded documents. If you’re looking to stow important documents and want them hidden, this would be the pocket to do it. Back to the rear of the backpack are the shoulder straps and secondary straps. The Urban Assault contains a removable sternum strap as well as a removable waist strap. The two side pockets on the Urban assault are insulated water bottle pockets. A very nice 750ml bisphenol A free water bottle is included with every pack. These pockets also double as laptop power brick/charger storage pockets. Something that really made this pack stand out from the others was the addition of strap keepers. With all the adjusting that can be done the keepers kept all of the loose stuff nice and tidy. Most packs don’t pay attention to this detail and it was a pleasure having them on the Urban Assault.

The Urban Assault XL is the larger brother of the Urban Assault. With a huge main compartment and increased size the Urban Assault XL can be classified as a 3-day pack. For the most part, it’s the exact same as the Urban Assault. Once you get past the main compartment however, things change. Instead of moving from the main compartment to the secondary compartment you go straight to the expansion pouch. This expansion pouch isn’t retained by a hook and loop cover, but instead always needs to be closed via side release buckles which aren’t hidden anymore. Having to do this extra step every time you open/close the pack does get annoying. On the front of the expansion flap is the organizational pocket. It’s increased in size, and also contains an internal accessory pouch. The back straps and sides are the same as the normal Urban Assault. If you need to carry a lot however, the Urban Assault XL is for you.

While the dimensions are a little different, the Urban Assault and Urban Assault XL both have the same comfort. Although they had what appeared to be a well thought out ergonomic design, I had a really hard time finding a comfortable position for these packs. I felt as if it placed too much weight on the lower back. Opposite to my problems, Lauren felt this pack placed too much weight on the upper portion of the back leading to discomfort. The shoulder straps carried the same misgivings as the back. What appears as a shoulder strap pivot (to adjust to each user’s width of shoulders) didn’t help much at all. The hard and dense foam in the shoulder straps didn’t have much cushion to them and you could definitely feel all the weight digging down in certain areas. The sternum and waist straps helped, but not significantly enough to make the pack comfortable. It was a shame that such a great looking pack had to fall so far in the comfort department.

Camelbak Urban Assult XL
Pros:

• Sternum strap (removable)
• Removable waist strap
• Internal frame sheet
• Padded separate laptop compartment
• Zipper pulls
• Can hold 17″ notebook
• Good back ventilation
• Soft glasses and iPod pockets
• Included waterbottle
• Strap keepers
• Shoulder strap pivots
• Shoulder strap routers
• Internal cargo net
• Clamshell opening
• ITW Nexus snaps
• 17″ laptop (TIGHT fit)

Cons:

• Shoulder strap foam too hard
• Difficult to get laptop in and out
• Too much weight on shoulders loaded up
• Too much weight on lower back loaded up
• Single stitching
• Shoulder strap pivots
• Must unbuckle sides to open

Price: $179

Links: Camelbak.com

RELATED: Day Pack Reviews: The Roundup

Tactical Tailor is a company that truly knows what “tough” is. Founded by a US Army scout sniper, Tactical Tailor has the expertese and experience in what a tough pack requires. Tactical Tailor’s Enhanced Day Pack exhibits this knowledge throughout from the materials used for construction, a “KISS” attitude, and the inclusion of almost everything you need, without everything you don’t.
Constructed of mil-spec 1000D Cordura no other pack in our lineup contained such a rugged material. Cordura is a type of nylon developed by the DuPont company. The Cordura brand is now owned by Invista. Cordura is 3x more durable than normal polyester and 2x as durable as normal nylon. Both inside and out the Enhanced Day Pack is made of this almost bomb proof material. All zippers on the Tactical Tailor Enhanced Day Pack are genuine YKK and pull smoothly. There aren’t any flanges near the zippers to get caught making it very hassle-free. On the shoulder straps a nice amount of 1/2″ thick foam is spread throughout. Along your back is 3/8″ thickness foam in a 1000D Cordura enclosure. This pack doesn’t have a true internal frame-sheet per say, but the sturdy foam in the backing keeps the pack’s shape nicely and is a suitable substitute.

At first glance the Tactical Tailor Enhanced Day Pack really doesn’t look very intuitive. It appears rather simple, bland, and boring. Using the pack however you’ll discover that this pack was designed by pure geniuses whose apparent goal was to make a very functional pack while keeping it simple. Located closest to the wearer on the side of the pack is a long zipper. Unzipping this reveals a side opening laptop compartment. While not very conventional, this design turns out to be a most splendid idea. The ease of removing or storing your laptop is increased as well as the speed. If you travel by air a lot, this side opening option is a godsend making taking out your laptop for screening much quicker and easier. As grand as this laptop compartment is, it does have a downfall. Users with 17″ notebooks have been sadly left out. The max this pocket will hold is a 15″. The next pocket down is the main compartment. This pocket is generous in size and will easily accommodate your textbooks and binders. No surprises there. The next pocket down is the organizational pocket. The size of this pocket is very roomy as well. You shouldn’t have any problem stashing another notebook or binder in there either. Located inside is a very sturdy key clip as well as a functional organizer. Past this pocket are two more standard pockets. One’s fairly tall should you have a smaller sized notebook and the farthest one acts a quick accessory pocket. On the sides of this pack is a water bottle pocket and an external organizer. While some may prefer an extra pocket to the external organizer, I’ve found the external organizer to be one of the finest features on this pack. Should you need a pen or pencil it’s very easily accessible. Initially you won’t think this feature as very grand, but soon you’ll begin to wonder why all of your packs don’t have an external organizer. The opposite side water bottle compartment folds out to reveal a mesh with shock cord retention. This will expand to fit large nalgene bottles. You can also choose to store small camera in this pocket and zip it back up. The carry handle on this pack is very beefy and is reinforced on the inside. A welcome addition to this pack is the inclusion of double stitching. This significantly reinforces the pack and adds to the peace of mind. Out of this tank of a pack, the only complaint I had were the zipper pulls. When I first received the box this backpack was in I heard a good amount of metal clanking. At first I thought, “Oooh, Tactical Tailor must’ve sent me some extra goodies!” That turned out to be sadly untrue, and it was the large metal zipper pulls clanking against the zippers. While this is an annoyance, it’s nothing a little wrapping of 100mph/duct tape can’t fix. On the front exterior of the pack is a large hook and loop panel for fun patches or ID.

However simple and plain looking the Tactical Tailor Enhanced Day Pack may seem, it definitely doesn’t sacrifice comfort. While there aren’t any specially engineered, space-age, rocket-science ergonomic designs built into the back, the Enhanced Day Pack was a leader for men and women in this lineup for comfort. The nice wide shoulder straps distributed the weight well in conjunction with the padded back. There is hardly any ventilation for your back, leading to some sweaty moments, but the comfort is supreme. I would rate the Enhanced Day Pack a hair short of first place for light loads comfort, but with a strong lead in first with heavy loads.

Pros:

• 1000D Cordura construction
• 3/8″ closed cell foam padding all around laptop
• Side opening laptop compartment
• Made in USA
• Comfortable with light or heavy loads
• External organizer
• Heavy Duty drag handle
• Velcro panel
• Stands up on own
• YKK zippers

Cons:

• Loud zipper pulls
• No back ventilation
• No frame sheet
• 17″ laptop incompatible

Price: $97.75
Links: TacticalTailor.com (Product Page)

RELATED: Day Pack Reviews: The Roundup

High Sierra’s grid is a light-weight sporty backpack that does not disappoint. It has a range of bright, yet not gaudy, color mixes and is very nicely styled for the active day-adventurer. Loaded with functional pockets, the High Sierra Grid makes separating your goods easy and convenient. This pack excels when you need something mobile and comfortable on the fly.

The High Sierra Grid is constructed of 600D “Duralite” material. This is a type of polyester that is incredibly light. While the Duralite construction isn’t as strong as some of the other ballistic nylon and cordura materials used in the other packs, the significant weight savings of Duralite are certainly appreciated. The Grid uses a “waffle-weave” construction which while not necessarily adding more strength, is more aesthetically pleasing and stands out as something different from the other packs. The back of the Grid uses very soft padding covered in vapel mesh. This padding has plenty of play and and is quite comfortable. The same padding can be found generously on the S curve shoulder straps. One interesting thing about the rear padding configuration is the large gaps it leaves around the sides of your back while wearing the pack. This allows for generous amounts of airflow and ventilation. On the inside, the Grid disappoints. A much thinner and weaker material is used. Looking at the stitching in some areas just screams, “cheap!” Looking at the laptop compartment elastic top keeper we see how it’s only held on by a weak cross stitch which isn’t very re-assuring. Where the stitching is most disappointing is the front pocket. The accordian like wings that fold out to hold your items are very poorly stitched and appear as if they’ll rip from the slightest persuasion. Nowhere on this pack are there any signs of double-stitching. While it seems the outside of the pack is sturdy enough with the standard stitching, the extra added peace of mind from double stitching would be nice to see. One thing that is appreciated is the internal frame sheet located in the back adding rigidity and protection for your laptop.

The High Sierra Grid also follows a conventional pouch layout. Located closest to the user is the laptop compartment. This pocket might seem like the main pocket, but is really just meant to hold your laptop and a small spiral notebook or two. Keeping along with the “any laptop compartment can double as a hydration bladder compartment” ideal, this separation of the main pocket and laptop compartment is a great idea as should some water escape from the bladder, it won’t soak your contents in the main pocket. Moving out, we see the main compartment. While not huge, this main compartment is sized normally to carry an everyday load. It’s interesting to see the lower front pocket expand into the bottom of the main compartment though as that could either limit how much you put into the main compartment, or would severely limit the space of the lower front pouch. A small accessory pocket is located up top next. This is a very convenient pouch and is greatly appreciated. The following pouch is the front organizer. High Sierra left a good amount of room here for your writing utensils and gadgets. Unfortunately the key hanger seems very cheaply made and doesn’t seem as if it will last long. The most interesting pouch is the front lower pouch. It has a good amount of room once expanded and seems like the ideal place to stash your lunch or piece of clothing. Unfortunately it intrudes on the main compartment’s inner space and is thus severely hindered. One main difference between the High Sierra Grid and the other packs was the inclusion of the carry handle on the shoulder straps. This method has a sleeker look, but led to a few bugs later. Located on the shoulder straps are a mesh elastic pouch for your keys or cell phone and a zippered mp3 player pouch. The mp3 pouch isn’t very large and the thought of cramming an ipod touch in there is a long shot. It does however work well for flatter cell phones and I ended up swapping spots (cell phone in mp3 pouch, mp3 player in cell phone pouch) frequently. Overall I’d say the Grid contains a very functional and convenient design for everyday use.

The generous amounts of padding make the High Sierra Grid a pleasure to don. The S-shoulder straps provided a very comfortable experience and distributed the weight well. I found it interesting how the majority of the padding on the back was located right down the center of the pack, where your spine is. While this may sound like a bad idea loading up all of the weight on your spine, High Sierra’s implementation of it proved comfortable. With heavier loads the Grid performed well. You knew the weight was there, but it never irritated any one pressure point. Going back a little I mentioned the awkward carrying handle. While walking the handle wasn’t a terrible annoyance. While riding a bicycle however, the handle became very intrusive. If you like to wear your backpacks loosely and let them hang down the carry handle shouldn’t be a problem, but if you’re looking for a proper fit and weight distribution like the pack was designed for the carry handle will be an obstacle. Aside from this single bug, the High Sierra Grid gets high marks for comfort.

Pros:

• Internal frame sheet
• Very cushy padding
• Accessory compartments on shoulder straps
• LOTS of pockets
• Well padded laptop compartment
• Laptop top keeper
• Back Ventilation
• Beefier carry handle
• Strap keepers
• Lifetime warranty
• Zipper Pulls
• Great with full loads

Cons:

• 600D Duralite
• Weak stitches
• Intrusive carry handle
• Weak internal construction
• Useless waist straps
• Weak laptop top keeper
• Doesn’t stand on its own
• Weak/small and non-YKK zippers
• 17″ laptop non-compatible

Price: $70
Buy Now: High Sierra Grid for $51 (no tax + ships free)
Links: HSSC.com (Product Page)

RELATED: Day Pack Reviews: The Roundup

The North Face Recon is a very sleek and functional urban pack. It is a frequent sight at college campuses everywhere and should just about have it’s own plug in the campus tours as well. Coming in at 19 different colors/combos the Recon holds the most variance of styles and is guaranteed to offer a style for everyone. While not a large pack (main compartment 1520 cu in, secondary compartment 330 cu in), the North Face Recon offers sufficient space for the majority of people out there.

The North Face Recon is constructed out of 420D Nylon (main body) and 1680D Nylon (bottom). 420D Nylon works fine strength-wise, but won’t hold up to rugged or harsh conditions. Luckily, this pack takes most of its beating on the bottom where the beefy 1680D construction should ensure a long-lasting bottom portion of this pack. Looking over this pack the stitching is fine, although no hints of double-stitching can be found anywhere. It’ll hold it’s own, but don’t count on being able to push it to the max. Since this pack is made of all nylon it is decently water-resistant and you can safely put this pack under a faucet for a minute without worrying about your belongings getting all soggy. This water-resistance also makes cleaning the outside much easier. All the zippers on this pack are tried and true YKK built to last. The Northface Recon is made in Vietnam, but was one of the better made non-USA made packs.

The pouch layout of the Recon is fairly standard. Peeking into the main compartment of the Recon you’ll notice a very conventional, and not the most safe/secure, laptop holding sub-pouch. It’s comforting to see a 1″ nylon fastex top fastener for your laptop. I much prefer this to a simple hook and loop fastener featured in one of the other packs. The laptop compartment can accomodate a 17″ laptop, although it will be a tight squeeze. As a general rule of thumb, all laptop compartments double as a hydration bladder compartment and the Recon functions just as well with a hydration bladder in the laptop compartment as a laptop. Moving around the pack some more are your standard assortment of pouches. An organizer pouch, snack pouch, ect. One interesting thing on this pack are the dual water-bottle pouches on the outside. I suppose North Face caters to both right and left-handers by placing a water bottle pouch on each side, although they might just be advocating their customers have extra water. It may have been more useful to replace one of those pouches with a zippable pouch that can double as another accessory pocket (to hold your laptop charger perhaps?) as well as a water bottle holder. I can’t say I found much use for the external cargo net on the front of the pack, although many people use it to stuff a spare piece of clothing. It’s convenient for quickly stowing larger objects, or dirtier ones that you wouldn’t want to gunk up the insides with. On the right shoulder strap is a handy compression pouch. It’s perfect for your cellphone or keys. Located above that is a cable/wire/hydration hose router which is always a nice touch. A very useful feature on the bottom of the Recon are some compression straps. They allow the user to adjust how far out they want the bottom of the pack to be able to go. This sets up the pack so that it doesn’t slouch as easily or fall over all the time. A very welcomed feature on the Recon is the rigid internal frame sheet in the back. This adds to the comfort of the pack and helps it maintain it’s shape while under load.

For both men and women comfort with the North Face Recon stands at the pinnacle. With a standard load none of the other packs came close to the Recon in the comfort department. Although the shoulder straps are fairly thin, their width spread the load very well. To supplement heavier loads a sternum strap and concealable waist strap are included. These show their worth with heavier loads (such as a few large textbooks along with your laptop), although still couldn’t make the Recon retain its spot as king in the comfort department with heavier loads.

Pros:

• Cargo net
• YKK zippers
• Depth adjuster
• Laptop top keeper
• Internal frame sheet
• Sternum strap
• Tuck away waist strap
• Dual water bottle pockets
• Shoulder strap routers
• Zipper pulls
• GREAT with light loads
• 17″ laptop ok (bit tight)
• 1680D Ballistic Nylon (bottom)

Cons:

• 420D Nylon construction
• Not much laptop padding
• Single stitched
• Small holder on shoulder strap

MSRP: $79
Buy Now: North Face Recon for $69 (no tax + ships free)
Links: TheNorthFace.com (Product Page)

RELATED: Day Pack Reviews: The Roundup

My quest led me to see if makers of high end enthusiast and professional backpacks offered anything for the average Joe. The companies were The North Face, High Sierra, Camelbak, and Tactical Tailor. The North Face has been making rugged outdoors enthusiast products for decades and seemed like a good place to start. High Sierra is another classic outdoors company that routinely provides packs and bags to professionals requiring ruggedness and function. The innovative Camelbak has always been there for the sportsman with their hydration system. Their packs are not only outdoors qualified, but battle proven around the world. The last company, Tactical Tailor is a smaller company than the others, but is known exceptionally well in military and government circles for their tough gear.

The Packs

Starting from the left to the right we have: The North Face: Recon, Camelbak: Urban Assault, Camelbak: Urban Assault XL, High Sierra: Grid, and Tactical Tailor: Enhanced Day Pack

Testing Method
The standard/control for this pack comparison is going to be the Recon backpack from The North Face. The Recon is an extremely popular backpack and has many great qualities. While not as obviously rugged as our other models, we felt it would display the differences between a more mainstream backpack and our overbuilt rugged packs.

Grading is based on a few different criteria on a scale of 1-10:

• Construction: Many cheap backpacks are constructed “just good enough” and the poor effort put into them shows. Blown seams, ripped stitches, as well as inferior materials can all lead to many annoyances in a backpack. We’ve taken a look at the materials used in the construction of our test packs, how durable the stitching is, down to the brands of the zippers.
• Design: All of our test packs had to meet a few criteria to be included in our tests. Since we are a tech blog, every pack had to accommodate a laptop. Along with the laptop compatibility we graded these packs on how well they stored your everyday gadgets such as mp3 players and phones.
• Comfort: One of the most commonly overlooked part of a backpack is how comfortable it really is. Seeing as it’s difficult to load up a backpack at a store this often taken for granted. We tested the ability of our packs to stay comfortable with both average light and heavy loads. Thanks to special correspondent Lauren Steussy we were also able to include any comfort/fit differences for women.
• Price/value: You can have the best pack in the world, but if it’s priced too high what difference does it make? Each pack will be graded on just how much it’s worth the price as well.

The Round-Up
Well here we are at the end of our journey and ready for the judges. Grading is based on a 1-10 scale. Here’s what the scale denotes:

• 1 – poor
• 2 – not great
• 5 – average
• 9 – excellent
• 10 – perfect

The Northface Recon
This pack exhibited much user friendliness. While not the best in utility due to the smaller size, for what it will carry the trip will be a comfortable one. With a price of $79, good design, moderate construction, and excellent comfort the Recon deserves respectable marks.

• Construction: 6
• Design: 7
• Comfort: 9
• Value: 6
• Overall: 28

High Sierra Grid
The Grid can easily be summed up as a well-rounded pack. With good looks, a good amount of pockets, and a comfortable fit the Grid was a pleasure to use. The construction of this pack is a bit disappointing, so if you need something near bomb-proof unfortunately the Grid will have to pass. For a light-weight pack at only $70, the Grid is a favorite.

• Construction: 5
• Design: 7
• Comfort: 8
• Value: 7
• Overall: 27

Tactical Tailor Enhanced Day Pack
The Tactical Tailor Enhanced Day Pack exceeded everyone’s expectations and came out the leader of the pack with ease. With a simple, yet functional design, extreme comfort, near bomb-proof construction, and plenty of cargo room the Enhanced Day Pack is a near-perfect buy at $97.75 for anyone looking for a pack.

• Construction: 9
• Design: 8
• Comfort 9
• Value: 8
• Overall: 34

Camelbak Urban Assault
The Urban Assault is the most ferocious and action packed pack in our lineup. With many pockets and hidden features to impress, the potential utility of this pack is mammoth. If you’re looking for a pack that can carry a good deal and is average sized the Urban Assault ready for your mission, but at the price of $159.

• Construction: 7
• Design: 7
• Comfort: 4
• Value: 5
• Overall: 23

Camelbak Urban Assault XL
This behemoth of a pack is sure to carry whatever you need. Armed with large pockets, and secure connections you can count on this pack should you need to go out for a few days. Don’t underestimate what you can stash in this pack, but be prepared to feel it at the end of the day. The large offerings of this pack come at a large price of $179.

• Construction: 7
• Design: 7
• Comfort: 4
• Value: 5
• Overall: 23