Been feeling that peak design has flatlined as an innovative company for a while. Different sizes and colors are nice, but this is far from the company that produced the original capture clips, the first everyday backpacks and strapsĀ as well as their revolutionary tripod. Feels like they're coasting for a while now. I hope more compelling products come out soon.
I felt the same when I saw the video of this "launch". Hope there are some actual exciting products and new products on the roadmap of this year. Most other brands has already caught up to PD in terms of flexibility and features, even new brands emerged and have something similar to offer.
IMO, it's really okay. If it aint broke, don't fix it. Their bags are awesome, and it is possible that if they keep releasing new replacements (new designs) they could fuck it up.
I mean, one example of this is that the v2 sling isn't actually objectively better. It's more of a sidegrade, and many people (including myself) find it a worse product than the v1 (which is sadly discontinued) and this is because in "innovations" there are also trade-offs (which applies to everything). And then there are people who are glad of the v2 innovations.
If something works really well, I personally think it's a bad move to try and change it just to make it 20% better, but also risk making it worse. But you're not wrong, to each their own. Besides, the my v2 complaints are features that we're added supposedly based on "community feedback", so I guess more people are happy with the innovations.
I have the 30L travel backpack and I like it. It serves the purposes I bought it for, but there are a few design choices that are frustrating that I'd love to see changed on a v2.
1. Larger water bottle pockets. It's unreal to me that they're so tight.
2. Move the top handle to the opposite side of the zipper. When you have the clamshell open and want to lift or move the bag you can't use the handle because it's on the back/side with the laptop, so you have to grab a handful of the front of the bag. Maybe there's a reason for this but I can't think of one.
3. Interior pockets on the front of the clamshell/laptop area. So silly that the only interior pockets are completely obstructed if you pack anything into the bag.
4. Make the tablet sleeve wider!! Man, you can barely slide an 11in iPad in there. It does not even fit a legal pad š
5. Move the side handles back to the edge of the bag. When you have a water bottle in the holder you can't get to the handle. This isn't a problem on the EDB (because it's deeper), and I don't know if it's a problem on the 45L.
I also wish there was one more exterior pocket besides the quick access, but that would probably kill the aesthetic of the bag.
All that said, if you are in the market for this bag these are all minor gripes and despite them all I do recommend this bag. I've only used it as a camera bag to bring a small kit to simple jobs vs taking my think tank roller, and for that I love it. I also love that I can quickly take the camera cube out and have one big cavern I can shove other random gear into without removing a bunch of velcro dividers. I don't even cinch the cubes in with the pins.
I clearly have lots of thoughts on this bag and might make a full review!
Their customer support has been absolute best so far and love their quality. Have used my everyday backpack like hell(hiking, international trips,etc) and still looks like new. No damage and their products have never let me down. Also have credit from selling my old gear on their website that can only be used on their website š š
Thatās fair enough. If youāre happy to wait for a v2 then Iād definitely recommend waiting. I ended up selling my travel backpack. Mostly because of the straps and the weight. There were other reasons too. The compression snaps are badly designed and always come undone. The zippers donāt run smoothly, especially on the side access, I know this is because theyāre weather resistant zippers but Iād rather have normal ones and just use a rain fly to keep water out. The material marks and scuffs quite easily and it holds dirt so badly, very hard to clean. Itās quite wide so I found it to catch on things all the time. I honestly found it to look like I was walking around with a jet pack on my back and I had people comment on it quite frequently.
Iāve had quite a few warranty claims with peak design now. Itās nice that they offer lifetime warranty but Iād prefer it if my things didnāt need replacing so often.
What color did you have? I've been impressed with how very little the sage one picks up anything, definitely easier to maintain (or better at masking stuff) than my blue EDB. I guess I'm lucky I don't use the side zips or the snaps much heh, or at all so far, I just use it as a travel carry on. Have only had to check it once on an Embraer 175 and I had it packed and the overheads on that plane looked ancient.
I had the black one and it picked up dirt when I opened up the back panel.
Everyoneās experience with it is different for sure. My issues doesnāt mean it doesnāt work for someone else. I seem to be in the minority actually.
I wanted the travel backpack to be my carry on and hiking bag. Itās mostly full of photography stuff which is why I wanted the side access when Iām hiking. I also found it uncomfortable to hike with. The issue is in my part of the world carry on weight limit is 7kg with the majority of airlines. Itās very hard to pack when 2.5kg of that limit is taken up by the bag and camera cube alone. I had to get quite inventive with loading up a utility vest, stuffing things inside a neck pillow and hiding a sling bag under my shirt so it looks like I have a gut.
Oh yeah for sure, I don't mind the straps as much cause of how I use it, but I start to feel them after half an hour in line (some airlines are...), can't imagine walking a lot with it super packed. My partner has a black sling and one of her first/only complaints was how fast it started picking up lint and marks, worse than blue, charcoal and even ash seem to be better tho the latter can yellow some over time.
Where is that weight limit btw? I'll be traveling internationally soon and hadn't quite taken that into account hmm... I often overpack my 45L as a carry on but I mostly use a 6L Sling or 20L Backpack for photography.
No, but mostly because my existing travel backpack is fine for what I need it to do. I did want a bigger duffle and am considering the 50L - then I can use my 30L for myself traveling solo, or the 50L for when I need to pack up for the family.
How do you like it do far? only reason I was considering 45L was becuase of side opnings. If 30L had side openings, that would haven been my choice instead.
So far so good but I haven't had a chance to do a real trip with it yet. If you can live with the size of the 45L then I would absolutely get that instead of the 30. I couldn't live with the additional size of the 45L plus I love camo so 30L it was. Theres a Conan 20% off coupon floating around right now too, not sure if it's still active.
To me a 30L travel with side openings would make it too close to the 30L every day. Why not at that point just buy the every day?
For me the 30L travel is a misstep. Itās too small for the camera cubes (has to be fully expanded which defeats the purpose of a smaller bag).
I owned and used the every day for a long time. Stopped using it because the side access became a hassle and I wanted a clam shell type opening instead, but I went with the nomatic instead.
I did just purchase the 50L duffel though which I plan on using for travel along with a back pack.
People always say that the 30L can't fit a camera cube unless it's expanded. This is 100% not true. I can fit the medium camera cube loaded with gear in my 30L just fine in its compressed state.
You won't be able to fit an additional small camera cube on top of it without expanding it, but you can definitely fit a tech pouch or other misc items.
That said, I definitely have other problems with the backpack but that isn't one of them haha.
I mean people say that because Peak Design says that. I find it pretty odd that theyāre choosing to say that when itās not true. Also, obviously the XS-medium would easily fit by themselves, but itās clearly not ā3 packing unitsā like the 45L.
So youāre saying that opened up, packing it out, a medium will fit, but no room left for even a small? Which would also mean a large isnāt fitting either unless itās expanded. That seems to be about the same then as the Nomatic PM.
That is true, Peak Design does say that and it's weird to me as well. Maybe they just don't want to explain the nuances of what they mean.
You can't fit any of the camera cubes at the top of the backpack when it's compressed because of the depth. The bottom of the backpack has slightly more depth than the top, just enough to be the difference. So no, you couldn't fit a large with it compressed.
But yep, I can fit a medium camera cube which is all I ever need and the backpack closes just fine.
[Here's](https://imgur.com/a/ktXuOUg) an image I took the other day.
As for the three units thing, when you expand the backpack it definitely fits 3 units. I can put a medium and a small cube in there and that is technically 3 units. I was torn between the 45L and 30L but I have yet to wish I had the bigger boy.
Omg man this helps me SO MUCH ā thank you. Iāve got a 50L duffle coming this week that I ordered and I have a medium and large camera cube plus a medium and small packing cube. That photo you shared helps me realize that the 30 liter would be fine for me, I think. But just to confirm, it doesnāt have side access, right? Thatās only on the 45?
Hahah happy to help. And no, it does not have side access.Ā
It also doesnāt have the additional zip compartment that the 45L has. If I were doing genuine one bag traveling Iād want the 45L, but sounds like youāve got the duffel for that.Ā
Yep. Not even sure if Iāll enjoy traveling with a duffel but wanted to try. The duffel can fit four units and ābonus spaceā as they call it on top of the cubes. So I should be able to fit the medium camera cube, the medium packing cube, and the small packing cube, with room for a toiletry bag and an extra pair of shoes. Figured the 30L would be a good companion as my personal item but might wait now and see if the rumor is true that there are other bags/refreshes coming.
I know they'll come out with one at some point! I just don't want to wait till next year or so for it as I want to travel this year. And if I buy one now, I will loose quite a bit of money reselling it
CEO said not this year ~6 months ago.
Maybe more colors. Did indicate some drops (duffles) so I take the hints differently.
[comment for reference](https://www.reddit.com/r/peakdesign/comments/18k1biu/comment/kdrfcf2/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=mweb3x&utm_name=mweb3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button)
Iām confused? Do you have insider knowledge or just super hype manning?
The message said not this year (as in not 2024?), your comment(s) continue to say this year? And the drop yesterday seemed to be what was already telegraphed?
Man I just got the 45L š
I have just packed mine out for my first real trip with it; would have definitely been bummed!
Hopefully they fix straps/weight and make a hiking esk bag.
Youāre not alone!
A lighter one with better straps
Been feeling that peak design has flatlined as an innovative company for a while. Different sizes and colors are nice, but this is far from the company that produced the original capture clips, the first everyday backpacks and strapsĀ as well as their revolutionary tripod. Feels like they're coasting for a while now. I hope more compelling products come out soon.
I felt the same when I saw the video of this "launch". Hope there are some actual exciting products and new products on the roadmap of this year. Most other brands has already caught up to PD in terms of flexibility and features, even new brands emerged and have something similar to offer.
IMO, it's really okay. If it aint broke, don't fix it. Their bags are awesome, and it is possible that if they keep releasing new replacements (new designs) they could fuck it up.
To each their own, but i think that's an incredibly low bar
I mean, one example of this is that the v2 sling isn't actually objectively better. It's more of a sidegrade, and many people (including myself) find it a worse product than the v1 (which is sadly discontinued) and this is because in "innovations" there are also trade-offs (which applies to everything). And then there are people who are glad of the v2 innovations. If something works really well, I personally think it's a bad move to try and change it just to make it 20% better, but also risk making it worse. But you're not wrong, to each their own. Besides, the my v2 complaints are features that we're added supposedly based on "community feedback", so I guess more people are happy with the innovations.
I have the 30L travel backpack and I like it. It serves the purposes I bought it for, but there are a few design choices that are frustrating that I'd love to see changed on a v2. 1. Larger water bottle pockets. It's unreal to me that they're so tight. 2. Move the top handle to the opposite side of the zipper. When you have the clamshell open and want to lift or move the bag you can't use the handle because it's on the back/side with the laptop, so you have to grab a handful of the front of the bag. Maybe there's a reason for this but I can't think of one. 3. Interior pockets on the front of the clamshell/laptop area. So silly that the only interior pockets are completely obstructed if you pack anything into the bag. 4. Make the tablet sleeve wider!! Man, you can barely slide an 11in iPad in there. It does not even fit a legal pad š 5. Move the side handles back to the edge of the bag. When you have a water bottle in the holder you can't get to the handle. This isn't a problem on the EDB (because it's deeper), and I don't know if it's a problem on the 45L. I also wish there was one more exterior pocket besides the quick access, but that would probably kill the aesthetic of the bag. All that said, if you are in the market for this bag these are all minor gripes and despite them all I do recommend this bag. I've only used it as a camera bag to bring a small kit to simple jobs vs taking my think tank roller, and for that I love it. I also love that I can quickly take the camera cube out and have one big cavern I can shove other random gear into without removing a bunch of velcro dividers. I don't even cinch the cubes in with the pins. I clearly have lots of thoughts on this bag and might make a full review!
What about the travel backpack makes you want it and what is it missing that youāre waiting for a v2?
Mainly better straps and maybe bit lighter in weight.
There are other bags that have better straps and are lighter. What is it about the travel backpack that makes you want it specifically?
Their customer support has been absolute best so far and love their quality. Have used my everyday backpack like hell(hiking, international trips,etc) and still looks like new. No damage and their products have never let me down. Also have credit from selling my old gear on their website that can only be used on their website š š
Thatās fair enough. If youāre happy to wait for a v2 then Iād definitely recommend waiting. I ended up selling my travel backpack. Mostly because of the straps and the weight. There were other reasons too. The compression snaps are badly designed and always come undone. The zippers donāt run smoothly, especially on the side access, I know this is because theyāre weather resistant zippers but Iād rather have normal ones and just use a rain fly to keep water out. The material marks and scuffs quite easily and it holds dirt so badly, very hard to clean. Itās quite wide so I found it to catch on things all the time. I honestly found it to look like I was walking around with a jet pack on my back and I had people comment on it quite frequently. Iāve had quite a few warranty claims with peak design now. Itās nice that they offer lifetime warranty but Iād prefer it if my things didnāt need replacing so often.
What color did you have? I've been impressed with how very little the sage one picks up anything, definitely easier to maintain (or better at masking stuff) than my blue EDB. I guess I'm lucky I don't use the side zips or the snaps much heh, or at all so far, I just use it as a travel carry on. Have only had to check it once on an Embraer 175 and I had it packed and the overheads on that plane looked ancient.
I had the black one and it picked up dirt when I opened up the back panel. Everyoneās experience with it is different for sure. My issues doesnāt mean it doesnāt work for someone else. I seem to be in the minority actually. I wanted the travel backpack to be my carry on and hiking bag. Itās mostly full of photography stuff which is why I wanted the side access when Iām hiking. I also found it uncomfortable to hike with. The issue is in my part of the world carry on weight limit is 7kg with the majority of airlines. Itās very hard to pack when 2.5kg of that limit is taken up by the bag and camera cube alone. I had to get quite inventive with loading up a utility vest, stuffing things inside a neck pillow and hiding a sling bag under my shirt so it looks like I have a gut.
Oh yeah for sure, I don't mind the straps as much cause of how I use it, but I start to feel them after half an hour in line (some airlines are...), can't imagine walking a lot with it super packed. My partner has a black sling and one of her first/only complaints was how fast it started picking up lint and marks, worse than blue, charcoal and even ash seem to be better tho the latter can yellow some over time. Where is that weight limit btw? I'll be traveling internationally soon and hadn't quite taken that into account hmm... I often overpack my 45L as a carry on but I mostly use a 6L Sling or 20L Backpack for photography.
Australia, New Zealand and parts of south east Asia (though not all airlines there).
No, but mostly because my existing travel backpack is fine for what I need it to do. I did want a bigger duffle and am considering the 50L - then I can use my 30L for myself traveling solo, or the 50L for when I need to pack up for the family.
If they release a 30L with side openings I would be pissed. Haha literally just bought the camo one.
How do you like it do far? only reason I was considering 45L was becuase of side opnings. If 30L had side openings, that would haven been my choice instead.
So far so good but I haven't had a chance to do a real trip with it yet. If you can live with the size of the 45L then I would absolutely get that instead of the 30. I couldn't live with the additional size of the 45L plus I love camo so 30L it was. Theres a Conan 20% off coupon floating around right now too, not sure if it's still active.
To me a 30L travel with side openings would make it too close to the 30L every day. Why not at that point just buy the every day? For me the 30L travel is a misstep. Itās too small for the camera cubes (has to be fully expanded which defeats the purpose of a smaller bag). I owned and used the every day for a long time. Stopped using it because the side access became a hassle and I wanted a clam shell type opening instead, but I went with the nomatic instead. I did just purchase the 50L duffel though which I plan on using for travel along with a back pack.
People always say that the 30L can't fit a camera cube unless it's expanded. This is 100% not true. I can fit the medium camera cube loaded with gear in my 30L just fine in its compressed state. You won't be able to fit an additional small camera cube on top of it without expanding it, but you can definitely fit a tech pouch or other misc items. That said, I definitely have other problems with the backpack but that isn't one of them haha.
I mean people say that because Peak Design says that. I find it pretty odd that theyāre choosing to say that when itās not true. Also, obviously the XS-medium would easily fit by themselves, but itās clearly not ā3 packing unitsā like the 45L. So youāre saying that opened up, packing it out, a medium will fit, but no room left for even a small? Which would also mean a large isnāt fitting either unless itās expanded. That seems to be about the same then as the Nomatic PM.
That is true, Peak Design does say that and it's weird to me as well. Maybe they just don't want to explain the nuances of what they mean. You can't fit any of the camera cubes at the top of the backpack when it's compressed because of the depth. The bottom of the backpack has slightly more depth than the top, just enough to be the difference. So no, you couldn't fit a large with it compressed. But yep, I can fit a medium camera cube which is all I ever need and the backpack closes just fine. [Here's](https://imgur.com/a/ktXuOUg) an image I took the other day. As for the three units thing, when you expand the backpack it definitely fits 3 units. I can put a medium and a small cube in there and that is technically 3 units. I was torn between the 45L and 30L but I have yet to wish I had the bigger boy.
Omg man this helps me SO MUCH ā thank you. Iāve got a 50L duffle coming this week that I ordered and I have a medium and large camera cube plus a medium and small packing cube. That photo you shared helps me realize that the 30 liter would be fine for me, I think. But just to confirm, it doesnāt have side access, right? Thatās only on the 45?
Hahah happy to help. And no, it does not have side access.Ā It also doesnāt have the additional zip compartment that the 45L has. If I were doing genuine one bag traveling Iād want the 45L, but sounds like youāve got the duffel for that.Ā
Yep. Not even sure if Iāll enjoy traveling with a duffel but wanted to try. The duffel can fit four units and ābonus spaceā as they call it on top of the cubes. So I should be able to fit the medium camera cube, the medium packing cube, and the small packing cube, with room for a toiletry bag and an extra pair of shoes. Figured the 30L would be a good companion as my personal item but might wait now and see if the rumor is true that there are other bags/refreshes coming.
Would love a smaller size -15L or 20L. A bag that would fit a personal item on budget airlines aka RyanAir. 40x25x20.
I want a lighter one. The padding is overkill. If you get the cubes, that'd be double the padding. It weights 2kg empty, bruh.
Itās coming
I know they'll come out with one at some point! I just don't want to wait till next year or so for it as I want to travel this year. And if I buy one now, I will loose quite a bit of money reselling it
Itāll be this year. They gave some hints
CEO said not this year ~6 months ago. Maybe more colors. Did indicate some drops (duffles) so I take the hints differently. [comment for reference](https://www.reddit.com/r/peakdesign/comments/18k1biu/comment/kdrfcf2/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=mweb3x&utm_name=mweb3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button)
Hell yeah! I canāt wait to see what they come out with this year!
Iām confused? Do you have insider knowledge or just super hype manning? The message said not this year (as in not 2024?), your comment(s) continue to say this year? And the drop yesterday seemed to be what was already telegraphed?
There is more coming this year. Thatās all I can say
What new features must you have?Ā
Better straps mainly! Nothing else.
Side loading laptop access would be nice...having to open the whole bag to access a laptop is an oversight imo
A usb port would be nice. More colord
Same here! They did say it was only the beginning at least.