Icon 3517-0282 Black Squad 3 Backpack

As a lightweight daily commuter bag, this is a fantastic option. My use case was pretty simple: I ride 60 miles round-trip with a 5-pound, 14" laptop, some small tech tsatskes and a change of clothes, and wanted something relatively small with good weight distribution. Regular backpacks, even with a small chest strap, pulled back on the shoulders and didn't center the weight well, so I began looking at motorcycle-specific bags. After debating between this and the venerable Kriega R25 for a while, I ultimately landed on the Squad pack for being more compact.Functionally, I couldn't be happier with it. The laptop slots in nicely into the back compartment with a little room to spare, and the main compartment is just large enough to accept a rolled up pair of jeans and shirt. Weight distribution and range of motion is excellent. With the straps fitted appropriately to your gear, the chest harness does a great job of keeping the pack anchored without any uncomfortable strain on the shoulders. It's a night-and-day change from riding with a typical backpack configuration, and having the additional weight move with you consistently helps when you have to make a quick swerve. The small outer pocket is handy for quick-access items, and the internal pouches in the back compartment and lid of the main compartment are great for stashing cash and other necessities.The bag is definitely on the smaller side, and I actually see this as a positive thing. It has enough space for the essentials but not much more, so the incentive is to leave all the random stuff that tends to accumulate in backpacks at home. Normally, I find Icon's product branding brash, but other than the one prominent logo this bag is pretty tame by cycle gear standards. The bag looks great, if you're not opposed to the military-scifi fanfic design.The only real cons I've found are that the buckles on the chest harness look and feel a bit cheap. Not to the degree that there's concern about them breaking anytime soon, but I'll probably replace them with something a bit sturdier anyway. Having some ventilation in the chest harness would be nice in the summer months, but given that it's responsible for taking the weight of the pack that may not be feasible. The big Icon logo is a minor annoyance, though that's a personal pet peeve.All in all, it's a great pack and I'd highly recommend it to anyone with similar needs. In terms of value for price, it's a a definite win.

Three different pieces of plastic all snapped in half while wearing at different points over the last few months. One on each shoulder, and one on the front of it. The side is now ripping apart as well, I assume due to the awkward way I had to tie it back together. It's a shame that going cheap on one particular aspect of it has made me throw it away, as I really liked it prior to this.

To small

Great backpack, good space for laptop or tablet. Wish the chest strap was made for normal size men... other than that, great backpack

Great backpack. its very comfortable and removes the weight off my shoulders and puts it on my chest. only draw back is there is less cargo space than a traditional pack. It is so cool looking i get a lot of questions about where to get one!.

This backpack worked great for about a year...gave an extra star bc I got a lot of use out of it, but no support from icon. I was using it to hold my old laptop as I rode to do homework at Starbucks... Then the plastic part of the backpack strap broke and had no left strap... It was out of warranty by the time I tried to call to replace it. I also had the inner small zipper compartment fray and after trying to call Icon to stand by their product...they didn't get back to me...I ended up fixing the issue myself with parachute thread and a drill to secure the parts together again... I think I can still use it...now.

very well made but I bought it as a gym bag for bike and you can't even get a pair of shoes in it without struggle, would not buy again

This is an awesome product. Very stylish and compact. I like how the front buckles and it makes the pack feel secure to the body. It is adjustable so you can tighten or loosen the pack depending on the amount of clothing you have on. It has 5 zippered pockets. 2 are on the inside of the shoulder straps on the chest area with a little opening for ear buds. The 2 pockets are just big enough for a wallet/cellphone. It does have reflective strips on it which helps with visibility without going over the top. The other compartments aren't really that spacious but you could fit a laptop/tablet/notebooks and so forth. Looks exactly like the picture. I went with black because my bike is black. Overall a great product and I would buy again. I've never been disappointed with Icon products. Highly recommended.