comments:
For me, I like the exterior top pocket my bag has, so that I can put my phone, passport, watch, reading glasses that I carry in my pocket, in the top pocket when in line at security. I will switch back to them being on my body once through security. I like the large exterior pocket on the lid of my bag. I can store my liquid ziplock and my tech bag in it for easy retrieval for going through security. Once through security, I pack the two bags in the main compartment for getting through any bag size check at the gate. Once on the walkway, if there is a back up, I will take off my rain jacket and stuff it in the outside pocket towards the bottom, and then move the two bags back on top of jacket in the exterior pocket on the lid, to make it easy to retrieve them at my seat. I will grab the tech bag and water bottle out of my backpack before placing it under the seat. The liquid bag, I may, or may not, use on the flight, so I still want it handy in the exterior pocket. I keep a small med kit in the tech bag for on the plane and then later will move it to my EDC bag at the destination. The tech bag should get me through the flight. I like the mesh pockets on the interior of the lid on my backpack. They take up all the space available on the lid and with the large area, allow me to keep everything I pack in them in a single layer. I keep small things that I use at the accommodation in one as well as my small flat EDC bag in the other with a few things I carry everyday in it. I like an elastic bottle pocket on the side of the bag and I carry a flat 500ml water bottle in it. I normally get a hot tea and sparkling water on the plane, will drink any bottle of water if they offer, and have 500ml of water in the bottle from the airport. I want to stay hydrated, but not having to pee constantly during the flight. I mostly like to stop at cafes for drinks at the destinations, so the 500ml bottle is enough for EDC there. My bag has an inside mesh pocket for holding a power bank and a cable hole in the side of the bag for charging. I don't use it for this purpose and instead keep a laundry wash bag in the mesh pocket. I still need to patch the cable hole, but haven't decided how to do it yet. I like the hidden pocket in the back of the bag. I keep a waterproof, rated to 30ft, pouch in it to store my passport, and other documentation in. I don't normally carry my passport in my bag, but the pouch fits in the pocket and it is the most secure pocket on the bag so it is good to have. I don't normally travel with a laptop, so I looked for a bag without a separate compartment for one for most of my traveling. I have another backpack with a laptop compartment if I do need a laptop. If my bag had a waterproof pocket on the bottom bag with a zipper on the side of the bag that I could slide my sandals into, it would add a lot of value for me. Right now I pack them inside the main compartment at the bottom in a plastic ziplock. I really would like them separate from my clothes. This is my backpack. It is almost 17" tall but I don't pack it tight so it squishes to 16" without trouble. The width and depth are fine for 40x30x20 personal item limits, 16.7"x10"x8"/42cm x 25cm x 20cm. The flat bottle I use is about 2"/5cm thick, so I don't need to worry about it in the pocket while in the sizer. The bag weighs 1.5lbs/680g. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CSJLNXBK