Recommendations for a daypack that A) is able to be stashed into a larger carry on backpack, and B) can carry a MacBook around during the day? Ideally packs and smushes quite flat when empty, but a bit of padding for the laptop
@christianselig oh! I also have a timbuk2 carry on piece (thank you thrift store!) and it’s perfect for me and I would legit buy more of their stuff if my ten year old dakine backpack ever started showing wear.
@christianselig ooo yeah that is kinda weird. Wouldn’t work with the 40oz hydro flask I lug around, and it takes a monumental effort to get my coffee thermos out of my hands…
@christianselig fair, the padding is very minimal. I have a plastic shell on my MacBook so it doesn't concern me too much, considering how infrequently I actually have to carry it around. my old "commuter” bag from The Before Times™️ is a more padded backpack.
@christianselig Id say you could smush it down to about 2.5 inches thick, give or take. It has a padded bottom, so that has to be folded down or in half. Kind of hard to describe, but I’d say about 2.5.
@jjlsetter@christianselig Agree! That has TWO water bottle pockets, haha! Evergoods stuff is just phenomenal. I love the PLC but I have a 40oz Takeya bottle that I can keep inside.
@boateng@christianselig I'm with Nate on Evergoods. The CHZ22 went with me to my 9 day trip to Ireland and loved it. Especially the outside pockets for my wife and I's water bottles when touring.
@christianselig@boateng Sure! Like Nate said it's around 2" to 2-5" when "compressed". It was hard to take pics of it full squished down but hopefully this helps
@christianselig I recently picked this up as my packable day pack for an upcoming trip. It might fit the bill. Not the best padding for the laptop sleeve, but you could use a separate sleeve. Sleeve padding can sometimes make them less packable. https://bellroy.com/products/lite-daypack
@christianselig I have an Osprey farpoint for travelling, and I’ve been using the daypack that comes with it for 5 years now as a daily backpack. I can’t find the exact model on their website any more but the ‘arcane small day’ comes closest (might need the large day version if you’ve got a 16” laptop).
It’s sometimes kind of small, but that’s also why I love it
@christianselig I randomly got this Mountainsmith day pack with a separate padded laptop pocket and I love it, especially because you don’t have to open the main compartment to get to the laptop area. Fits my 2021 MBP 16” perfectly.
EDIT: It’s called the Divide although today’s version looks slightly different.
@christianselig Mines not a day pack and more a laptop bag, but I have had my Thule since like 2011/2 and it’s been overseas, it was on my back every day when I took my motorbike to work. They do make pretty good quality stuff so worth checking what options they have
@christianselig This is my go to EDC pack when traveling. It folds flat in the suitcase, has a laptop compartment and can be washed in a machine (and dries fast):
@christianselig does Matador make anything that would suit your needs? They are the absolute kings of packable bags. Maybe a Laptop Base Layer + ReFraction or Freefly?
No experience with this brand, but they’re definitely doing something different. I love my Peak Everyday Backpack 20L, but don’t like that it doesn’t pack into a larger bag. The NIID Uno and Decode though…
@christianselig my setup for a similar purpose is a Tom Bihn Synapse 19 that I store in an Aeronaut 30. I traveled multiple time with this setup since 2018 and I love it. Ridiculously pricy for Canadians though.