Whether or not you live in the rain-drenched Pacific Northwest like me, having a commuting backpack that staves off moisture is essential. There are many things other than rain that can assault your precious cargo鈥攄rizzle, slush, errant puddle splashes, and cans of Diet Coke heaved by road-raging drivers. And I鈥檓 especially cautious when it comes to my laptops, having lost two to submersion and spilled drinks over the years.
It鈥檚 not all about protection, though. I value packs that boast comfort and versatility. With that in mind, I set out to find the one that best struck that balance with waterproofing, subjecting these four to no small amount of torture. I came away with the commuting pack that鈥檒l accompany me to and from the office for a good long time.
The Test
I tested water-resistance in a few ways, from a light spritz to full-on dunking. First聽I placed the packs under an for five minutes, timing with my phone. Then聽I took out a garden, setting the packs聽upright on a chair (outside, of course) and blasting them from five feet away for a minute. Finally聽I held each聽pack聽under water in my hot tub for 30 seconds. Not all of them were built to handle submersion, and the manufacturers don鈥檛 claim that the packs will聽withstand a test like this, but I wanted to play out a worst-case scenario and gauge if they could have crossover potential for travel.
To measure the amount of leakage, I rolled a bath towel up like a burrito and stuffed it in the main compartment of each pack. I then placed a single sheet of 8.5-inch by 11-inch paper in the back or laptop sleeve (if the pack had a dedicated laptop compartment). I checked both, plus the front compartment of the packs, after each test to see if they鈥檇 collected any water.
For the user-friendliness portion of the test, I carried the packs as I rode my bike along my 1.3-mile commute. Short, yes, but a nice opportunity to test their usability. I loaded each with my usual work accessories: , (for water), (for coffee), and an extra layer鈥攊n this case I took notes along the way about聽how the pack rode, user-friendly details, and capacity.
The Results
#1: North St. Bags Davis Daypack聽($115)
Mist: Water beaded off the Davis鈥檚 1,000-denier Cordura exterior in the mist test, leaving everything completely dry.
Garden Hose: This wasn鈥檛 a problem for the main pouch, which stayed resolutely dry thanks to a sail-cloth liner, but the front pocket got wet enough that聽it would鈥檝e totaled an聽iPhone.
Dunk: This came out the wettest in the dunk test. Three-quarters of the towel soaked through, and the paper was left in pieces.
Usability: I鈥檒l admit that this might not factor into performance, but the was by far the best-looking pack I tested. At 20 liters聽it sat nice and high on my back while riding, and it tipped the scales at 1.4 pounds鈥攖he lightest of the bunch. It lacked padding but remained comfortable due聽to its low profile. The Davis has oversized plastic pulls at the ends of the straps that were awesome for adjusting fit on the fly. But my relatively light load maxed out the capacity, and you definitely wouldn鈥檛 want to cram a whole change of work clothes in there.
#2: Stio CFS Backpack聽($195)
Mist: The CFS remained impressively bone-dry in both the main pouch and front pocket, due to 600-denier polyester that looks like the material used to make rubber rafts.
Garden Hose: The main pouch was completely dry after a good spray down, with about a dozen little droplets聽of water in the front compartment. The CFS鈥檚 front pouch was聽the second wettest after this portion of the test.
Dunk: Though some water did seep into the main compartment, this was the driest out of all the packs. The towel was decently wet, so I wouldn鈥檛 use the CFS聽to carry electronics聽if you鈥檙e expecting a deluge.
Usability: The zipper plus magnet-aided roll top made for an absolutely bomber closure. Stio eschewed plastic buckles for much more heavy-duty metal hooks. On the bike, the 35-liter CFS rode large on my back. It felt a little cumbersome, and I would have sweat through an entire shirt in hot weather. The payoff, of course, is that there is a ton of room, though it lacked niceties like back padding and a laptop sleeve.
#3: Timbuk2 Ltd. Void $229
Mist: There was zero moisture in both the front pouch and main compartment.
Garden Hose: Still聽both compartments stayed completely dry.
Dunk: ended up being the second wettest (after the North St.) post-dunk, because of an inch-long hole that opened up along the top zipper. About 60 percent of the towel soaked through, and the paper was ruined. I鈥檓 not sure how this delamination聽occurred, but it didn鈥檛 take much for a pack that costs $200-plus.
Usability: This pack made me feel like Robo Cop聽(in a good way)聽with its聽incredible fit and smart tech details. It rode the most comfortably of all the packs. My computer was pinned down in the snug, padded laptop sleeve, and nothing was sloshing around as I rode. The roll enclosure that folds over the zipper was simple and required no fussing.
#4: $150
Mist: Main compartment and front pouch? Both dry.
Garden Hose: Both stayed moisture-free here as well. I credit the fact that even though the zipper on the front pouch isn鈥檛 fully waterproof, it runs vertically rather than horizontally, giving falling rain a smaller聽target to dribble in.
Dunk: Half the towel was soaked, and the paper was wet through and through.
Usability: Surprisingly聽the minimal padding didn鈥檛 rob聽the of any comfort, and the tight laptop pouch kept my computer from sliding back and forth. This pack is a happy medium between a drybag聽and a commuter backpack. It still rode pretty high and comfy despite having the largest capacity.
The Verdict
From now on, I鈥檓 using the North St. Bags Davis as my commuting pack. It looks the best, rode extremely comfortably, was by far the least expensive in the test, and delivered everything I needed in a no-nonsense, heavy-duty聽Cordura-enforced pack. Kudos to North St. for nailing that tricky balance of capability with urban good looks.