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

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