


My cursory water-proof test (stick a roll of paper towels inside – flick, then dump, water at it – check paper intermittently) yielded strictly positive results.

I’ve had past experiences with AquaGuards “peeling” over time, but no such occurrences with this specific style of AquaGuard. The 840D nylon face is water-proof, and all the zippers are YKK AquaGuards (as one would expect!) – so this bag isn’t scared of a little drizzle. I would not question recommending this to men or women, as I think it would function well on many body frames. My wife (about 63″) did find it a little large – but she’s also much less familiar with daily carrying a backpack, and I imagine some of the comfort comes from familiarity. I’m a relatively small-framed person (about 69″ and 130 lbs.) and this bag, while sort of wide in shape, didn’t look out of place on my back by any means. Even when fully loaded (including 2 laptops – unnecessary for me, but worth a test), it didn’t feel overly heavy or uncomfortable on my shoulders. They aren’t mutually exclusive, of course, but this is a workhorse bag, and it better have fit the things I need before I worry about its shoulder straps.įortunately, as with my previous Aer experiences, the Tech Pack 2 carries extremely well. Whereas most packs I start with how it carries on my back and shoulders and then work inwards, my first priority for the Tech Pack 2 was how much stuff I could fit in it, and then how comfortable it was once fully loaded. The Tech Pack 2 is a bag that I sort of evaluate “inside out” (figuratively, and in this case, literally). And, most of all, I cannot express how many compliments of “rad bag!” I received. COVID-19 has a put a damper on all of our EDCs, and while I have been lucky enough to get the Tech Pack 2 safely, and sanitarily, out of the house, I have only limited experience with use on public transit, which is a huge factor for a commuter like me. I’ll add here – writing bag reviews at a time like this must, of course, be put in perspective… especially when discussing a bag that’s meant to travel around town with your mobile office. This photo is from Aer – I can never get my knolling shots right. well to the office, once, but also around my block, around my condo, up and down my stairs a bunch, to the grocery store, to Staples, to Walgreen’s, and basically everywhere – even if it as somewhere I wasn’t bringing tech – to get this thing tested. So I loaded it up with my iPad (2018), my LG ThinkPad 14″, my Microsoft Surface Book, my iPhone 11, my Kindle (2019), my Logitech mouse, my bag of dongles and chargers, my external battery pack (hey, they said it was for tech, didn’t they?) and headed…. Like any good technology accessory, it’s built to last, and built to work with you. At $210, it’s not cheap – but also not exuberantly expensive. pockets that even the most dongle-reliant users will have a space for their stuff. The Tech Pack 2 is, on (digital?) paper, my dream bag. Oh, but it is! The Tech Pack 2 is the bag for nerds, for geeks, for hustlers who aren’t out to ruck in the backwoods or trek cross-country with a single bag, but instead for those who have a lot of work to get done, and need a lot of gear to do it.

Perhaps no bag brings together those themes like the Tech Pack 2, a distinctly black backpack that’s so subtle, you might not (were you not a dedicated TPP reader) recognize it as something special. There are several different styles, but all seem to riff on a similar motif: muted colors, stripped-back design (especially in the exterior), and 21st century features. They’re centered around (as they profess) simplicity, durability, and utility. By now, you’re likely familiar with Aer – a relative newcomer that’s been designing packs in San Francisco in a distinctly modern and practical way.
