Patagonia

Black Hole Mini MLC 30L Backpack

Such a great travel pack

Familiarity:

I've used it several times

Size Bought:

30L

I love this pack. As intended, it's the perfect size for a personal item carry-on. Although it is *slightly* bigger than some airlines allow (e.g., Frontier). I suspect if you're not rude and don't have it stuffed to capacity, you'll get by just fine because it's got a little give to it. That said, it's also got great structure to it. When you set it down, it stands up on its bottom without toppling over, which is nice. The laptop/tablet compartment is nicely separated from the bottom to protect it from drops. I have a Cotopaxi Allpa and, while it is significantly larger, this Patagonia pack is so much more well thought-out. The water bottle sleeve is nice and stretchy and fits big bottles like Nalgenes without issue. All the little compartments and the nice large top pocket are great and large enough to be useful (unlike the Cotopaxi bag, which has a couple of pockets too small to be useful in most situations). The pack is very comfortable to wear and I really like the understated design of the Smolder Blue color I got (but wow that Pufferfish Gold looks amazing too). I'm about to take this on a long trip to Central America, where I really don't want to stand out as a target, so it's probably good that gold colorway wasn't available when I bought. What else? The zipper pulls are super smooth. The hooks all over are handy - I've got carabiners attached to a few and ran some shock cord through the front loops so I can stuff something like a puffy or hoodie on the outside. Overall, I'm super impressed with the pack and very happy with my purchase.

Great pack!

Familiarity:

I've put it through the wringer

Exactly what I was looking for. Holds a couple days worth of clothes and fits under the airplane seat :)

If you’re thinking about this

Familiarity:

I've put it through the wringer

It’s absolutely worth it. I spent weeks hemming and hawing over different bags and I wish I just got this immediately. Comfy, spacious, smart design. Best bag I’ve ever owned.

Bulletproof but pricey

Familiarity:

I've used it several times

Size Bought:

30 l

Well designed and totally functional. Like my other Black Hole bags it is indestructible . Perfect for my 10 day trip to Costa Rica!

Fantastic bag!

Familiarity:

I've used it several times

Size Bought:

30L

At first glance it looked a little small but I was able to fit 5 days worth of clothing, my laptop and ipad with no problems!

Great for travel, fits as personal item

Familiarity:

I've used it once or twice and have initial impressions

I’ve used this on a couple different trips and am really happy with it. It holds a decent amount of stuff, but does fit under the plane seat (see photo). I noticed its dimensions are a bit larger than what a couple airlines have listed as a personal item, but it worked out fine for me. I got a lot of compliments on it. It’s comfy on shoulders too even when heavy. Love the laptop sleeve and handy pockets. It’s great!

Worth the money

Familiarity:

I've used it once or twice and have initial impressions

Size Bought:

30L

This bag/pack pack is not inexpensive for a personal carry on bag. However, the fantastic design features and heavy duty construction make it worth the expense. The way the back pack shoulder straps store into the padded portion of the pack is pure genius. Then the waist belt doubling as a shoulder strap is great too. I am not sure how much I will use it as a pack, only when we are shopping and walking on vacations.

One issue with color

I bought this backpack for a trip coming up in a few months, and haven't yet used it. I bought it based on reviews, and expect it to perform well. HOWEVER--what Patagonia calls "Pimento" is really orange. Pimento is red; this backpack is orange, if that matters to you.

Great size

Familiarity:

I've used it once or twice and have initial impressions

Size Bought:

30L

I am 5'4 and this pack fit me very well and have a decent capacity. I only used it as a backpack, but it worked incredibly well for my trip (carryon). Only thing for me, is I didn't need the extra thin pockets, would have rather had the extra inch or 2 for the main compartment.

Almost perfect

Familiarity:

I returned this product before using it

This had all the features necessary and was designed super well to help you optimally pack. The straps were very comfortable as well. It was just slightly too small for my needs.