Osprey Europe Unisex Daylite Plus Backpack

Product Information

All of the zippers on this thing are from the reliable and trustworthy YKK brand, and the attached zipper pulls make them a joy to use. Also, the two side mesh pockets are great for storing your water bottle or other items you need to chuck somewhere quickly. Internally, the Osprey Daylite offers a modest 13 liters of packing room while the Daylite Plus gives you 20 liters plus an additional front shove-it pocket (more on this below).

Osprey Daylite Plus Pack | REI Co-op Osprey Daylite Plus Pack | REI Co-op

This provides a great deal of versatility for air travel (you can connect your checked bag and carry-on for easier portability). If that sounds like your cup of tea, great; otherwise, consider heavier and more well-featured packs. We found all the features useful and found the overall construction and main compartment to be functional. In testing, we’ve been impressed with the versatility of this backpack, and it works well as a complimentary daypack to larger one bag travel packs as well.The Daylite Plus from Osprey is a most elegant combination of a hiking daypack and an everyday or travel laptop bag. Unfortunately, just like the smaller Daylite, we’ve noticed a few abrasion marks on the front of the pack. ounces, you get a more substantial, lightly padded mesh hipbelt for carrying heavier loads and traveling longer distances, as well as technical features like a bike helmet carry system, ice axe loop, and trekking pole attachment points.

Osprey Daylite Review | Tested by GearLab Osprey Daylite Review | Tested by GearLab

The Osprey Daylite and Daylite Plus both offer an internal sleeve for a laptop or tablet that doubles as a hydration pocket. The Osprey Daylite Plus is a versatile daypack that delivers a comfortable carry—we just wish the side water bottle pockets were a bit more secure. This is designed to keep everything in place, but in reality, we think it’s pretty unnecessary and just ends up getting in the way.The Daylite Plus also gets the edge in durability—we found the Flash’s foam backpanel insert and nylon shell to be relatively thin (REI doesn’t list the exact thickness), especially when stacked up against the Osprey’s burly fabrics. It is almost simultaneously a great hiker's pack and a high-functioning laptop, travel, or daily-carry backpack. We think of the 13-liter Daylite as a good option for travel, but its utility for hiking is limited due to the smaller capacity and lack of storage. You can go lighter and cheaper at this capacity with a streamlined pack like the REI Flash, but that comes with compromises in carrying comfort and durability.

Osprey Daylite Plus Backpack Review | Pack Hacker Osprey Daylite Plus Backpack Review | Pack Hacker

The hip belt is pretty basic and only comes in useful if you need to secure the pack tightly to your back, like when you’re mountain biking, running, or rock climbing. Surprisingly enough, Osprey includes the same sized shoulder straps on both the Daylite and Daylite Plus despite their overall size differences. This minor change makes accessing this pocket without fully taking the pack off more difficult than the previous side zipper.During this time it’s seen use as a tech daypack on trips to the coffee house in the UK, and it’s even come along with us on a one month trip to Porto, Portugal.

Osprey Daylite Plus Backpack - Ordnance Survey Limited Osprey Daylite Plus Backpack - Ordnance Survey Limited

On a positive note, these side pockets can be used in conjunction with the compression straps at the top to secure taller objects, like a tripod, to the side of this bag. Given that the Osprey Daylite Plus is a cheap daypack, picking up the rain cover (which is also cheap) is not a big investment.

If you need a pack to carry around town in wetter climates, the Ortlieb Atrack 25 is our favorite specialty pack for this purpose — but it is significantly more expensive. Given their similarities, you really can’t go wrong with easier design, but we do like the fact that the Daylite is compatible with Osprey’s larger-capacity backpacks for air travel.