Peak DesignTravel Backpack 45L, Sage, Expandable 35-45L Design, Rear and Top Access, Weatherproof Shell, Laptop Sleeve, Ideal for Travel or Everyday Carry, Versatile Backpack for Men and Women

This item gets a lot of returns, and I bet it's because people get it to try it out but end up going with something that better suits their uses and is cheaper. The quality is obviously very high so I doubt it's due to defects.The biggest flaw (no comfortable handles) is easily fixed. While it has great "grab handles" in strategic locations for putting it on, taking it off, and getting it in and out of vehicles, it doesn't have good handles for carrying when you're not using the backpack. Simple solution: use any shoulder strap clipped to the handy attachment points. They're not intended for that, and look like it might be off-balance, but it turns out it works quite well.It's narrow, so you'll tend to use it with smaller compression sacks.While it's a decent packpack, it doesn't have load lifters, so while the hip belt is good enough to carry the load, your shoulders will always carry part of it -- how much depends on your torso length. I'm 6'1" but long legs so medium male torso, but my shoulders carried about 1/3 to 1/2 the load. I tried to rig up some load lifters using the attachment points and it almost worked -- it would have worked had my torso been an inch or three shorter. So, this is NOT a long trek hiking backpack. Almost but not quite.The pockets and access points are nicely laid out and useful.It does weigh an extra pound or two, but once I get 30-40 lbs of stuff in it, that doesn't matter to me.

A great bag that was surprisingly comfortable for the weight. In 35L form it was 27.5 lbs fully loaded with:- 4 outfits in a Peak Design Medium packing cube- A shirt, blazer, and sweater in an Eagle Creek garment folder- Jacket- Pair of running shoes- Full Osprey UltraLight toiletries kit- First aid kit- Protein bars and instant coffee- Water bottle- Sunglasses- Hand sanitizer- Pens/stylus/microtool- N95 masks- Anker GaN US/UK/EU USB-C AC adapter- Large Anker PowerBank- Matador Laptop Base Layer with Pixel Tablet- Old 1st gen Apple wireless keyboard- Hat- Steam Deck- Bag of USB cables- Tech pouch with docking station & adapters- Samsung SmartTag- Shaving kitI was a little worried about the tablet being sandwiched between my back and 27 pounds of gear, hoping it wouldn't bend or break from the stress. After all the travels & tossing it was fine however. I ended up not needing the waist belt or the sternum strap, it didn't ride as I walked.Looks great and has huge capacity - use this for when you want your carry on to be on your back as opposed to pulling it behind you, which is great when you check out from the hotel but have another twelve hours before you need to be on a flight. I hate dragging luggage behind me on NYC sidewalks.

It's a great bag, very well-made and thought out albeit possibly just over-engineered for my needs. The materials are premium and the features like the magnetic stowaway straps and hip belt are genius. The hidden lash straps are also a solid feature. The main reason I returned this bag was that I found it to be a much heavier/ less-comfortable carry when fully packed out with clothes + 13" MacBook Pro and iPad Pro. Without load lifters you can really feel that weight on your shoulders. At 5lbs when empty, it isn't a light bag either.

Sometimes you want to wear it like a backpack, and sometimes you need to put it somewhere (in my case, an overhead rack on Amtrak or an airliner). When you need to stow this, the straps hide behind a cleverly engineered panel with a few magnetic catches to keep the result flush and tidy. The straps don't catch on anything. Then, to wear it again, just pull the straps out in literally three seconds and shrug it on.Genius.The rest of the design is simple and effective. It's mostly a one-big-bag design but you do get water-bottle pockets on each side and a slot for a laptop.The fabric and stitching feel sturdy and abrasion-resistant.It's not cheap! But it's a high quality piece of travel kit, and its thoughtful design means you will want to use it, and you will appreciate its better-than-most utility.(I also bought Peak Design's matching Wash Pouch to replace a 45-year-old Dopp kit that was fraying and disassembling itself at last. The Wash Pouch is, like the backpack, a clever critter. It has just the right combination of small and large interior spaces to hold deodorant, toothbrush, toothpaste, shaving essentials and smaller stuff like wipes, Q-tips, nail nippers, whatever... while keeping wet and dry things separate. )

I’ve been using the Peak Design 45L Backpack, and I’m really impressed. The look and feel are fantastic, with a sleek design and high-quality materials. One of the standout features for me is the abundance of well-thought-out pockets and compartments, which make the bag extremely user-friendly. Previously, I used the Nomatic backpack, but I found its pocket placement awkward and hard to access, especially on the go. The Peak Design bag completely resolves that issue, offering better organization and easy access to essentials. It’s a great upgrade for anyone seeking a more functional travel backpack.

Love this bag and its my go to as a carry-on for travelling. Combined with a medium packing cube, tech pouch and wash pouch from Peak Designs, I've travelled all over Asia and Europe.

We recently bought the black and wanted a second in a different color. I ordered the sage and when it arrived, it looked used. No packaging like the black one. Upon inspection, it did not have any of the removable straps. They were all completely missing.

My son requested this as an early Christmas gift and was very pleased with it. It has so many unique features and is very well made. We researched it on the product website but ultimately ordered it from Amazon to make the shipping easier.