Osprey Packs

Parsec 26L Backpack

Love this! Great quality, stands

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] Love this! Great quality, stands in its own (game changer), and holds just enough!

My fifth Osprey - still great packs!

Familiarity:

I've used it several times

Size Bought:

One size

I bought this a month ago - replaced a 10 yr old SwissGear backpack.

Great pack, fits all my

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] Great pack, fits all my gear and is very comfortable to wear.

A Mixed Bag

I originally bought this bag specifically for the kickstand so whenever I changed camera lenses in the woods on a hike, it wasn’t this awkward, tippy bag on the ground mess that it usually is. I’ve had this bag for probably 18 months now and I’ve used it to do that once. The kickstand is amazing but the bag when loaded and walking around is not as comfortable as my other Osprey packs. The rigid portion of the kickstand that connects to the back panel and suspension does not have enough padding when doing long hikes. It’s at the same spot that the other reviewer said pulls his shirt up. I have that happen as well but it hasn’t bothered me as much to notice. This backpack and the kickstand are far too useful for me to return this. I end up using this bag as a carryon when flying. I’ll have a 16” computer, 12” iPad, mirrorless camera, 2-3 coke can size lenses, NC over the ear headphones, battery pack and cables, and an assortment of other flying necessities. It just eats it all with space leftover for like a light jacket. Being able to set this down anywhere and grab what I want out of it without it falling over is so nice. When I don’t have to wear it for super extended amounts of time, I love this pack. I don’t personally have an issue with the water bottle holders, but it is definitely a two handed operation. I prefer this secure it holds the water bottles over the accessibility since I fly with this more than say walk around a campus with it.

My everyday carry love it

So yeah. I don’t spend the time to write reviews often so it must be awful or amazing to get me to spend the time. This is amazing. The internal compartment can hold 2 laptops and an iPad with keyboard case. The water bottle sleeves are deep and hold a good bottle well. The front organization is nice. The one and only flaw of the bag is the droopy nature when it has stuff in the front organization pocket and super front pocket. Let’s get some interface or palstic ridged pipe here and this bag would earn six stars. Kickstand seems like something a kid would have and adults would not need, and that’s just wrong. I can not say how many times I have slung this off my shoulder into the kickstand mode and it’s just perfect as it stays upright and ready to easy deploy what I need. Carrying. Look if you know you know and if you don’t get it. The mesh and straps make this float as much as any ruck you’re going to carry and frankly I carry more junk than I need but I get away with it thanks to the carry system. I can’t speak to the water our outdoor cross over nature of this bag as I just use my mini 8 year old osprey which is still going like a tank and soiled me with again the same carriage system this has. Lastly I went through no less than 10 bags from various other places to arrive here at this bag. I feel like I did not settle but found home. Carry with care and enjoy this bag of

This pack is great for

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] This pack is great for an everyday work carry. The straps and back panel combo are make this the most comfortable pack I’ve ever owned. The kickstand is an awesome feature and the fabric is great. I’ve yet to be disappointed from a osprey pack to date.

Great work/travel bag

I've had this bag for several months now, and have taken several trips with it. I think it's pretty close to a goldilocks bag for my needs. The kickstand feature is just simply the best, I don't like floppy backpacks. It fits just fine under the seat on airplanes, unless you have it completely stuffed. The frame makes it a little long, so that on some planes it will stick out a little into where your feet are. I am 6'4", so for me getting anything out of it while on a plane is not happening with my knees in the way. The water bottle pockets are great, I had to use a taller skinnier kleen kanteen that I had, rather than the wider hydroflask, but no big deal. Water bottle pockets are always going to be a tradeoff, do you want it secure so it doesn't fall out, or do you want to be able to put a bottle back one-handed? You can't really have it both ways. For me, I want things to be secure, and these are. And if I'm traveling and have an extra day to go for a hike, plenty of room for anything you'd want to bring with, and comfortable.

Delightfully lightweight, but with some annoying problems

This is a mixed bag, unfortunately. In the end, I've decided to keep it, but I was really close to returning it. I think what ultimately caused me to settle was that I really appreciated how lightweight it was and how the suspension felt on my back. Here's what I didn't like: 1. It has this super annoying thing where, no matter what I'm wearing, it hikes my shirt up and exposes my lower back while I'm walking. This is because of the suspension: all of the weight of the bag sits on two points that contact my lower flanks just above my butt. As I walk, those to points rub up and down on my shirt, pulling it up but not pushing it back down. I've found that if I flip the tabs from the belt strap over to cover these points (exposing the smoother fabric on their outsides to my back, rather than the rough mesh of the back panel), it fixes the problem, but then it's uncomfortable. No winning here; I'm just hoping that eventually the fabric will wear smooth from use and the problem may go away.... 2. I strongly dislike that it only has one compression strap and it's in the middle of the back. Additionally, that one strap doesn't have the nice quick-release clips that straps usually have. If you want to adjust it - say to put your water bottle in it -, it's a two-handed operation on both sides. So not only is it annoying to adjust, but it also just pinches my bag in the middle, leaving the top and bottom to be floppy :( :(. 3. The front zippered compartment is a big pocket with a somewhat small opening. Not a huge deal, but certainly annoying. As I said, in the end, I was happy enough to keep the pack, but just barely. I think if I didn't love the Osprey brand so much I'd probably have returned it and gotten something else, but they've got me hooked.....

Well-featured bag for everyday use

There is a lot to like about this bag for everyday carry. I'll list out some pros and cons. Pros - Good size for carrying standard tech plus couple garments. My phone fits well in one of the admin compartment stretchy pockets. - Comfortable harness system with exceptionally breathable back panel to keep the sweat down - Stands on its own. (awesome) Cons - Stretchy fabric water bottle pockets are oddly sized, and the compression straps can prevent you from easily slotting in a bottle. I'd rather see fabric matching the exterior of the bag with hidden elastic gussets. - The kickstand becomes less stable for a bag without any weight in the bottom of the main compartment. This can cause it to topple if you have a water bottle and a laptop but not much else. - The lower part of the admin panel has no pockets. Why not use the space? - Packing out the two front pockets can restrict access to items at the bottom of the admin pocket, as they can protrude into the interior space. For example, my tech pouch will sometimes get caught up on the underside of a glasses case or power adapter in the outer pocket. - No secret pockets accessible via the side or back for passports or wallet. Conclusions: This is an attractive bag that straddles the needs of outdoor enthusiasts and everyday commuters. I recently took mine to a tech conference where its ultra-breathable back panel and ability to stand served me well. It has just enough tech organization to get me by, but I could have used more pockets in the admin panel area to have dedicated spaces for a usb power bank and charge adapters. I found the stretchy pockets made it overly difficult to slot water bottles quickly single-handed because they would get tripped up on the compression straps. Also, I found myself wanting a more hidden space for my wallet that would both make it easy to remove and not visible every time I opened the admin space. Overall, it's still a great bag.