MATEIN Carry on Backpack, Extra Large Travel Backpack Expandable Airplane Approved Weekender Bag for Men and Women, Water Resistant Lightweight Daypack for Flight 40L, Black

This backpack/carry-on is perfect in every way.--Quality: It is sturdy with strong stitching & the zippers are solid/smooth, & don't get caught on the nylon interior or exterior.--Sizing: I bought the Large & it's the perfect size for 2-3 days worth of clothes/items. It has many interior pockets & even bungee straps to secure your clothing. It also is expandable.--Comfort: It has padded adjustable straps, & a chest buckle for security. It has a top handle, AND side handle.--Appearance: It just looks well-made & expensive. I got the Navy & it's a gorgeous, rich shade.--Value: At under $30 for the Large, it's extremely reasonable & it looks like it will last a very long time.-- Shipping: I had it in a day!To recap, it's pretty much the perfect bag for short excursions. I travel a lot & this is BY FAR my favorite carry-on. If you're thinking about it, I'd encourage you to go for it! (If you need a bag for something more than 2-3 days, just size up to the Xlarge.) Also should mention that the zippers have the round holes in them so you can add a cable lock to secure items, & also put a luggage tag through them.

I have a heavier more padded version of this type of bag. The extra padding , makes the other bag more comfortable to carry but harder to stow on a plane. I bought this bag looking for less padding and good durability and found it. My suggestion to maximize this bag is to add compression packing cubes. I easily packed 3 days worth of clothes and a raincoat. I still had room for my toiletry bag, computer and several balls of yarn. I even bought 2 more shirts on my trip and they fit. I appreciate the roomy pockets and how understated this bag is. I can carry it into the office during work trips and No one can tell it's a suitcase. I'll probably buy one for my son for school and his sports uniforms.

This large suitcase/backpack is exactly as described. It can hold quite a lot of things for short or long trips. There is a zipper that you can unzip to give another inch or two of space. I really like the two handles: one on top. and the other on the side. The backpack handles are neatly tucked away when not needed, but can quickly be attached when you want to switch over. It appears to be well-made. The best part was the price.

I have traveled internationally with this backpack several times and it has been great. The only time it wouldn’t fit as a carry-on was when I was flying in a tiny plane that seated about 30 people. For the cost, I can’t recommend it highly enough. It doesn’t have a hard back or top so it will not protect valuables, but for clothes and things that are not breakable it is perfect.

I concur with Paul’s review below. My use for a backpack travel bag is so I can be hands-free when making my way through transportation terminals, fumbling for tickets, or reaching for handrails. Also, in some countries there are lots of stairs in terminals (particularly subways) and dragging a roller bag up and down them is hardly fun. It should be obvious that someone planning long hikes or carrying lots of specialized equipment should probably use an internal frame backpack. I don’t expect to walk more than a mile or two at any one time with a bag like this. My travel is rather conventional tourism, and having visited all 50 states and 17 countries on four continents I’ve had a chance to work out a minimalist system that can keep me going through any weather, wet or dry, from about 40°F to over 100°F, and for an indefinite period of time. I do not take a laptop, but an iPod or iPad. Everything fits into this Matein bag and a lumbar pack from Mountainsmith.I’ve previously used a book bag as a travel backpack, but being a top loading bag, digging down into it to get what I need is an inconvenience. When constantly on the move, unpacking for one or two nights is a chore, so a bag like the Matein that opens out like a suitcase is a much more practical choice.I bought this bag along with an eBags Mother Lode as both seemed to be good and I couldn’t decide just from the online info. Both look to be well made, but I kept the Matein and returned the eBags Mother Lode.The eBags Mother Lode has more padding in the shoulder straps but no padding on the back. The padding on the Matein straps is thinner than the eBag but adequate, and it’s nice to have some padding at your back so you don’t get completely poked if you don’t pack right. The eBags Mother Lode came with a shoulder strap and a waist belt, neither of which I need.The overall fit and finish of this bag is quite nice. All of the walls are padded. The zippers look to be rugged and of good quality. I did not have any problems with snagging when running the zippers around the corners of the bag.There is a strap on the back of the bag to secure it to the handle of a roller bag. The shoulder straps are stowed inside a large pocket that could be used for a laptop; there is no separate laptop compartment. The straps attach at the bottom of the bag with metal clips and rings that are easy to operate, in contrast to the plastic ones on the eBags Mother Lode unit, which I found a little hard to disengage. The Matein straps look to be well attached at the top and the bottom rings are sewn into reinforced triangle-shaped flaps that look like they will take quite a bit of stress.The hand straps at the top and side of the bag aren’t as well padded as the eBags Mother Lode, but considering that this is supposed to be a backpack, I don’t have any issue with this; they’ll serve just fine.The product description says there are Velcro compression straps inside the main compartment. This is incorrect (The description may have been corrected by the time you read this.). The retainer system consists of four elastic bands that connect in the middle with a clip. This is the only weakness I found in the bag, and was a disappointment to me, and why my rating is four stars instead of five, as the elastic doesn’t seem much stronger than that in my Jockey shorts, and doesn’t look like it will last all that long. But in the event that the elastic fails, the external compression straps will more than likely suffice. By the way, compression straps are important. I once took a trip with a large backpack bag that had none and the bag sagged like a plastic trash bag and the contents sloshed around uncontrollably.The secondary compartment of the Matein has two zippered inner pockets and a couple of smaller ones that would be handy for pens and such. There is a smaller compartment on the back (the angled zipper in the photos) that measures about 9 x 11 inches which would be a good spot for the small liquids and other stuff you’ll have to remove at security screenings.The construction of the bag looks good. All the seams are straight; exposed seams are covered with binding, and I found only one loose thread. The bag came packed in a drawstring bag that I think I’ll take along as a laundry bag. Empty, the Matein bag weighs about 2 1/2 pounds vs. almost 4 for the eBags Mother Lode, although the eBags Mother Lode is slightly larger and has more pockets. (One of the reasons I returned the eBags Mother Lode is that I don’t like lots of pockets.)This Matein bag is about half the price of the eBags Mother Lode and I am so far quite happy with what I see. When compared to the eBags Mother Lode and another nameless bag I saw in a local department store, this is a good deal. I’ll be traveling with it for about six weeks this summer and if I have anything to add to this when I return, I’ll update then.__________Update:Here’s a follow-up report. I took the backpack on one domestic trip for a week and an international trip for a month. On this latter trip we moved every two nights, and the trip took us through three countries, four airports, numerous busses, boats, trains, taxis, subways, the legendary Heathrow Terminal 5, and the ultimate travel survival test, the London underground during afternoon rush. The pack survived well. I remain disappointed with the flabby elastic retention straps on the inside, but the exterior ones took over and kept things under control. I’m a minimalist traveler — the pack was roomy enough for all my stuff excepting a few things I carry in a small waist pack. The pack came with a thin bag I used for laundry; and it folds in half easily to be stored in its original box. I have no problem recommending this for anyone needing a carry-on pack and I look forward to using it on future trips

Honestly it’s a great bag, only thing I wish it came in a XXX-Large. I managed to fit 5/6 outfits with two bottles of cologne, two hygiene packs my belt, soap dish all in the inside storage and the bag also had outer storage spots as well. It’s great comfort bag that supports the weight can wear it as a backpack or carry it like a duffle bag by the handle I love it. And can’t wait to see how it hold ups for my trips to Florida.

This was wonderful for my trip!! I was able to pack so much in it for a carry on. The zippers worked nicely and I had no trouble getting things in or out of it while on the plane. It is expandable and had lots of compartments for organizing my things.

I just can’t say enough about this backpack! I used it as my carry on for two weeks in Europe and it was amazing! Stuffed it beyond capacity and it was ready for more. I used it for everything that was not clothing on my trip. And it just did exactly what I needed.You can tuck the straps out of site if you are not using them and it hooks perfectly onto my rolling suitcase for ease when not on my back.This bag was thrown from bus to bus and hiked up hill and down the zipper is strong and it was just perfect for my trip.