SlimFold broke with their amazing line of wallets. They make the thinnest, most wonderful front-pocket wallets available to buy. Minimal, yet can hold more than enough. Following the success of the little ones they went on to a larger project, and in 2016 launched the Slim Pack Minimal Commuter Backpack. That backpack, ladies and gentleman, is the best packable daily carry today.
Pros
This pack can do a much of what bags usually do. It’s extremely comfortable, has a bottle holder, adjustable straps, you know the drill. Here are some of the more unique and travel oriented features it has.
Packable
First and most important, it’s packable. It weighs just 1.5 lbs (~680 grams) and can pack flat.
At 17 x 12 inches (~ 30.48 x 43.18 mm) the bag fits perfectly in the smaller single carries such as the Tortuga Outbreaker 35L, in which I’ve carried the Slim Pack several times.
Resistant and Water Proof
The bag is made with the abrasion resistant, hydrophobic soft shell fabric (responsible for some of Snarky Nomad’s favorite pants), and the YKK zippers have the best water resistance I’ve seen on a zipper. No need for a rain cover!
Stands on Its Own
If you pack it just right, the bags stands on its own. That is a fantastic feature I use all the time.
Cons
Nothing is perfect, and neither is this bag. So far, I have seen one main drawback.
Weak front zipper
While the soft-shell fabric it’s made of is very durable, the front zipper is very thin and broke on me. That’s the biggest drawback a bag can have – you do not want it to break on the go.
I have spoke to SlimFold and they have offered me great support in dealing and fixing the issue. In the long run, a larger zipper may do the trick and solve this issue.
Conclusion
It’s a great bag, and honestly, nothing comes close. The other packable bags are so packable, they feel more like a groceries bag, and the ones that usually feel like actual backpacks don’t fit into a single carry.