Imagine you had a secret formula on how to find a quality backpack. Wouldn’t that be perfect? All doubts, questions, and fear of regrets are just like that….puff….gone! No worries that the stitches are cheaply fabricated, no doubts if your items are safe inside, no paranoia that it will break just after buying it.
While the most immediate factor determining quality is believed to be pricing, we are going to teach you a few precious tricks to think with your own head.
How to find the perfect backpack
1. Comfort
Comfort doesn’t come easy! And it is the most important thing with all and anything you wear or carry. If something is not comfortable, that product is not for you! It doesn’t mean that it isn’t comfortable for someone else, but you should not buy the product for yourself!
A backpack has many features that make it comfortable or uncomfortable. Should straps, padding, size, length, and weight are just some of the determining factors. Wear the backpack to understand if it’s a fit for you. Try it on, walk with it, shake, test the handle…
If you are not in a shop and want to purchase a backpack online, there is little chance to try the backpack on. So, make sure that the brand or shop where you are buying the new backpack has a great return policy! But more about that later.
2. Padding
Paddings are features that come at a cost. A cheap backpack will have near to no padding. That is easily explained. Paddings add manufacturing procedures, which are pricy. Therefore, you will pay some extra money to get some good padding. And it is worth it! GET SOME PADDING!!! You will carry among the most precious items of your life in your backpack:
– Laptop
– Smartphone
– Sunglasses
– Notebook
– E-reader
– Documents
– Books
– And much more…
And you want them to be safe! That’s why padding for backpack straps exists. They protect your items from harmful daily-life accidents. Are you in a hurry and accidentally hit your backpack on the wall? Your padded backpack will absorb the hit for your laptop. Are you getting squeezed in the subway? Your padded backpack will protect your important documents from deforming.
Backpacks can be padded on the back, bottom, front, side, and shoulder straps. We will talk about the shoulder strap later. For the rest, be advised that a padded backside is important for both your items and the health of your back. It is therefore highly recommended. A padded bottom has the advantage of being rigid, which might be good for optical reasons and to protect your items if you throw your backpack on the floor. On the other side, it can be problematic if you carry many heavy items such as books. The weight will all rest on your shoulders. A padded front and side add some extra protection. Not necessary, but they can be useful.
3. Pockets
When wondering how to find a quality backpack, one quick and easy test are the pockets! Pockets show how much thought, dedication, and passion has been invested in a backpack. If a backpack has one large pocket, you will carry everything in a mess. Items will scratch each other, pens will open and dirt your stuff. You will never find your keys who love to hide in the darkest angles. On the other hand, a well-thought backpack is made for a purpose. It will have some extra pockets such as:
– External pockets are made for ready-to-use items. Need a tissue? You don’t want to start scavenging through your backpack in search of some. Open a zipper, and get your tissue. It is a valuable pocket!
– Internal pockets are useful to find your items quickly. If your pen has a specific pocket for it, you will find it immediately. If your phone, passport, tablet, and power bank have their own pocket, you will never search for them. And that might safe you some heart attacks on whether you lost your phone or not. And prevent them from getting scratched and damaged.
– Secret pockets are a must-have if you are worried about pickpocketing. They are hardly visible and hardly accessible, which makes them a great tool for sorrow free sight-seeing.
4. Zippers
Quality zippers are made of metal, run smoothly and quickly, and don’t get entangled in fabrics. They close well on all sides, don’t fall out of the zip line, and don’t get loose. To test a zipper, the best thing to do is to run it a few times on the line.
If it has any problems during the testing phase, it will have problems later on. Zippers don’t repair themselves. They only deteriorate with use and time. So, make sure to have a sturdy, strong zipper. You don’t want your zipper to break or open when your backpack is filled to the top. A good company will tell you which zipper brand they are using. Here you can see the top 10 zipper brands. They are proof of backpack quality and durability.
5. Stitching
Stitching is a key point on how to find a quality backpack. After all, a backpack is made of different pieces stitched together. The quality of the stitches will have a huge impact on your backpack. It will determine the lifetime, usability, and aesthetics of the backpack.
high-quality stitch instead:
Clean, precise, without messy overlapping stitches. High-density stitches are also a primary proof for quality. They ensure that pressure is released on various points instead of one, increasing the lifespan of the product.
6. Warranty
Warranty is a clear statement from a company telling you “We are sure that our product will last this long. And if not, we will come up for it”. Better proof of quality is hard to find. Find out what the warranty policy of the backpack is. The longer the warranty, the better. A safe method on how to find a quality backpack.
7. Shoulder Straps
Good shoulder straps make it easy to carry the backpack. They alleviate some weight, distribute it smoothly on your shoulders, are adaptable in length, and make it easy to take off/on the backpack. Bad shoulder straps have exactly the opposite effect.
Bad shoulder straps are thin, easily twistable, unpadded, and have a weak grip. Their length changes by the day, so that you need to regulate their length all too often.
Good shoulder straps are wide, strong, padded, and with a strong grip. They won’t get longer if you don’t actively make them longer and will even make your body posture look better, stretching your shoulders backward.
8. Extra Features
As stated in the beginning, a backpack should be produced for a purpose. A company that takes its time to think about tiny particulars, is a company that takes care of details. So, make sure that your backpack has some little extra features such as water-resistance, glass holders, or external pockets for bottles.
9. Details
A German saying goes “der Teufel steckt in Details”, which means “the devil is in details”. What it means, is that you should never undermine the importance of details. By now you have inspected all major features and technical things about the backpack. In the end, get a bit closer to the backpack, check if the tissue is dense, if there are loose ends, if some parts are already over-stretched, if the logo is fixed straight, if the color is uniform, the internal color, and patterns…just give it a thorough last check.
10. Return Policy
A good return policy is of great advantage if you want to buy something online. Most of the points listed here will be hard to check online, so it is necessary to do it once the item has been delivered. Unfortunately, it happens that the ordered backpack doesn’t fit your shoulders, looks different than expected or simply, doesn’t pass the quality test that you will use from now on.
A good company is confident that you will be happy with their product, and will, therefore, offer a great return policy. A return policy is already good if you can send the backpack back and get a refund. The longer the time frame offered to you from the company, the better. Seven days is usually enough, but great companies will offer even longer time frames. Make sure to check the return policy before buying a backpack.
Conclusion
what makes a good backpack is a bit of work that is well rewarded. You now have the tools to distinguish a quality backpack from a bad one. Be advised that price can influence the quality of the backpack, but it won’t determine it! Some brands invest in product quality, and some prefer to spend money on marketing. The same price will, therefore, have great differences. Also, make sure to ask yourself the following questions before buying your new backpack. It will help you to find the right backpack for your use.
At RUIGOR we have developed a special pattern to assist our customers in never losing an item in the backpack. It is a useful extra when on the move, like discovering Switzerlands 7 natural wonders.
Finally, we invite you to check out our RUIGOR products with free delivery worldwide, 30 days return policy and 5 years warranty!
And if you are looking for a super-strong multipurpose backpack, here is the RUIGOR ICON 08
