Focus: + Durability/longevity + small one for caving / everyday + ~ 40 l medium one, also airplane carry on + ~ 75 l big one, groceries / trekking tours + I EDC depending on mood, but even 75 l, have to walk 10 mins to the car, and got used to it
My first “good one”, lasted almost 5 years (daily use), back straps broke on an Italy-motorcycle-tour when i probably packed too many beer cans into it. Laptop compartment isn’t really protecting… never really used it.
Lasted some years, great protection for 15 ” laptop. A bit small when trying to fit something else in there when laptop present.
Current medium backpack (2019+), lot of space, had to bend the aluminium backbone a bit to match my backbone, but then it was great comfort.
Never used the girdle (closed the clips bending around the backpack instead of my hip) as it’s never that heavily loaded.
You need to think a bit of where to put stuff to keep an aesthetic form though. Somehow when wearing it it looks like an Eastpak school backpack.
Current (2020) big daily / trekking backpack.
Awesome fit (for me).
Looks awesome, but you’ll get looks from people when using it in the city / as a daily. That’s why i also wear a $IndianaJones hat to kill last doubt in people on what to think of me :)
Never tried a laptop in it.
After ~7 months of daily use the material on the two main shoulder belts is a bit worn, but i often didn’t use the tensioner that goes in front of my breast, so there was a lot of rubbing against my clothes. Anyway, this seems to get worse…