Osprey Arcane Large Laptop Backpack

Overall 4.5 stars - Stonewash black 0.5 star down due to material of backpack: picks up lint easily, and easily marks. I attached a photo where you can see a slight white area on the fabric created by me gently trying to rub/brush some lint off. I was doing this with clean hands, but it was over a charging cable I had placed in the external pocket. Similar to when you are shading with a pencil over something and get that outline / indentation of what’s underneath your piece of paper. Otherwise, great backpack, very sleek/compact, and very comfortable. Exactly what I expected and was looking for (functionally). I was looking for a slim, nice looking backpack with the functionality and space for a daily bag for work, carry-on, and/or as a diaper bag! I have used this backpack for the past 2 weeks, both to work and as a diaper bag. I tend to carry more on the minimalist side of things, and when not overly full, this backpack looks and feels great. For the sake of this review and photos, I tried to fill the bag up to show what can fit. Even then, it was still very comfortable, definitely did not feel the weight like I would when using any other backpack I own. I think this is due to the how little this protrudes away from your back, and the ridged foam back panel that gives it a nice flat surface that comfortably rests on your back. (pic of empty backpack staying flat when I’m holding it up horizontally) Photos are for size and volume. I do not have the best lighting, and the backpack looks much nicer in person. Also, in most photos, I left the water bottles in the outer pocket, which gives makes the backpack look uncharacteristically lumpy. I personally like the J-zip opening, and I do not find it difficult to access everything in my bag. Its actually easier/quicker to open the bag since I know exactly where the zippers will be (if zipped to the water-bottle side). I could see it being an issue for a larger backpack. Inner organization is great: Large padded laptop sleeve ends ~1 inch higher than the bottom of the backpack to help protect it if you are a bit rough when setting your backpack down. The document sleeve is perfect for my iPad. The zippered compartment is nice for thin items (cords, small chargers, etc). This spans the width of the document sleeve, so there is still space within the zippered compartment behind the pen holder and adjacent pocket. I wouldn’t put anything thicker than ~3/4” to 1” or so, because then any folders/binders/books won’t lay flat against the back. Outer pocket is much larger than I thought, and the space above the zipper is usable (see photo). I put 2x 17oz water bottles in the pocket to show the size. Water bottle side pocket is nice and feels very secure - no more worrying that my bottle is going to fall out when bending down to pick something up. It’s large enough to fit my 24oz water bottle if needed. If the backpack is not completely full, the bottle has a tendency to push into the large compartment space instead of outwards, which allows the bag to keep that slick / smooth look. Might need two hands to put a large water bottle in the pocket when the backpack is full due to the tight fit. My wife has one of the popular diaper backpacks, and they just have way too many pockets and compartments for my liking. I like to take a more minimalist and streamlined approach. This bag works great for my diaper bag needs. School/work bag: easily fits my 15” MacBook pro, 11” Pad pro, both chargers/cords, pens, AirPods, backup headphones, 2x 5/8” ring binders, 2x 60 sheet National Chemistry notebooks (as seen in photos). I threw my Nintendo Switch (in case) inside the backpack to show the remaining room. Even after that, I could still fit a compact umbrella and a thin / light jacket if needed. Diaper bag: This fit everything I need for now (baby is 2 months old). Because it’s basically one large compartment - I do use packing cubes / bags to help keep myself organized (color-coding helps too). I easily fit: travel changing pad, 5x size 1 diapers, full pack of 56 wipes, my “go bag” which includes 2x size 1 diapers and 10 wipes for quick diaper changes, 2x 3month sized change of clothes, 1x burp cloth, 1x bib, 1x blanket, 1x pacifier in pacifier case, hand sanitizer, roll of disposable trash bags, and a few ziplock bags. Although not pictured, I can still throw in 1-2 bottles of breast milk in an insulated case, with spare room for a small umbrella and/or light jacket. I imagine the carabiner on the right shoulder strap could come in handy to secure it to a chair or stroller when out in public and not wearing it on my back.

I love the organization and pockets in this backpack. It’s not too bulky and looks very nice. I got the osprey large pouch and it fits perfectly in the second pocket. The support foam on the back is surprisingly good at keeping the pack upright.

This is a very nice looking functional backpackpack. It does pick up a bit of lint and cat hair, but it is easy to brush off so I wouldnt let that deter you from getting a nice commuter/edc pack.

I’ve owned many different kinds of travel backpacks. Although my luggage collection tends to be quite nice, my travel backpacks tend to be of the lower-end variety. I’ve heard great things about this brand, so I decided to give this a try. Here are some thoughts after a few daily uses along with a short weekend trip: • Size: This is labeled as a large backpack. While it is certainly long and wide enough to fit a 15.6” laptop, the depth is not quite what I imagined as it is built to be a little flatter than most large backpacks. • Pockets/Compartments: This is a fairly simple backpack when it comes to pockets/compartments. The front contains just one compartment. While it may seem that the front pocket extends to the bottom of the bag, it actually only goes about 6” down, so it’s designed to hold smaller items only. The interior has a three layers of “stacked” compartments. As shown in the pictures, the largest slot comfortably fits the 15.6” laptop while the middle slot can fit an iPad 7 that has a fairly bulky keyboard case on it. The smallest of the three slots contains a zipper that opens into a half closed / half mesh pocket. Lastly, there is a small slot opposite the mesh, along with the rest of the bag to hold additional items. As noted above, this is slightly on the flatter end though it does comfortably fit my two computers, travel headphones, and rolled up lightweight jacket. My only complaint with the design is that this is not a full zip-around. This is because one side has a sleeve to hold a water bottle. To be honest, I would have preferred the traditional side compartment and kept the full zip-around in order to make it easier to organize the interior contents. • Comfort and Look: On the contrary, this is perhaps my favorite aspect of the bag. I got the Stargazer Blue and absolutely love the color. It just screams “chic”! This is also very comfortable when worn, as the shoulder straps and back of the bag are very well-padded. • Durability: As noted, this is well-padded and made of a solid polyester fabric material. As I intend to wear this for walks to/from the office and daytrips, I believe this should hold up just fine. In summary, I love the color and comfort. I’m not a huge fan of the water bottle slot because it prevents the full zip-around, but I support I can live with it. It’s not quite as deep of a bag as I would prefer for weekend trips, but I believe this is a great size from intraday use. If that fits your needs, go ahead and give it a try!

Let me start by saying that this bag is so nice! The material is breathable and the style is very appeasing. However, I carry multiple devices for work and could not easily fit all that needed to come with me on a daily basis in this bag. I thought getting the large would suffice, but if you carry more than a notebook and a laptop, this bag may be too small for you. Additionally, I found the lack of pockets somewhat frustrating. There was very little space to put all my pens/highlighters/bandaids/toiletries, etc. Overall, I really wanted to love this bag but I couldnt get over the lack of space and pockets so it went to my husband, who carries very little with him to work and loves it!

I loved the color of this bag and it is quite lightweight. Perfect size for daytrips and looks good in the city. I returned it due to a lack of pockets. Was just too much of a pain having everything jumbled at the bottom of the bag. For the money, I think Osprey could have added some more pockets (esp inside) and a back hidden pocket to guard against pick pockets. I returned the bag for these reasons.

Fabric is great and color is awesome. I love the water bottle pouch. Perfect size for daily essentials.

PROS: Looks sharp and beautiful, lovely branding Really nice materials, feel nice to the hand, super robust Very well made, rugged Well padded Just-right capacity for less-stuff people (if used with a separate lunch bag) CONS/NEUTRAL: Metal slide on the shoulder strap scratched the glass on my smart watch Key tether is on the wrong side where its covered by stuff in bag, and where you cant use it without taking your keys off Your stuff can fall out of the organization panel pockets if you set the bag on its back Organization panel is often covered by stuff in the bag, to see it you have to unzip the main zipper to the point your stuff in the main compartment starts to fall out Zipper flap over front pocket gets pulled tight when bag is full, hard to see in or access pocket contents Zipper doesnt go down far enough and opens further on the wrong side Water bottle pocket kind of stinks and is on the wrong side Theres only one water bottle pocket so the backpack is heavier on one side The fabric is a lint magnet, dog hair poked through fabric and wont come out Flat profile means its best for things like binders and notebooks, otherwise you have to stack everything Unisex but still too long for short-torso people, shoulders hurt because the back of the bag is rigid and causes strain if I tighten the shoulder straps enough that the bag doesnt hit my butt Minimal organization with kind of odd pocket sizing/placement No closure on laptop compartment so laptop can slip out, and you cant hang a hydration bladder I tried to carry this bag for a few months. It looked so cool, I liked looking at it. I just enjoyed it as a physical object. But packing it and finding stuff again were too awkward, and it was uncomfortable to wear. I also couldnt wear my smart watch with it because every time I slid my arm in, my wrist would drag over the metal slide on the shoulder strap, which damaged my watch the very first time I did that. I would have to loosen and tighten the strap every time I take it off to avoid that. Its easier to get a nice bag with plastic slides and better pockets.