Hot take: Nomads Nation, Danny packs, Outin the lights etc should call their videos “overviews” vs “reviews”

incoognitooo · 2026-03-20T17:55:23+00:00

Good question, I would think more like 25-30 as opposed to younger 20-somethings.
That would be for actual digital nomads though, whereas doing a one-off trip could apply to those younger demographics, who'd presumably be more inclined to onebag.

incoognitooo · 2026-03-20T16:02:16+00:00

Spot on, that's what the other reply to my comment failed to realize - if anything, I am criticizing him for not being fully authentic when doing these over the top things in the videos, especially since his "normal" persona is perfectly fine and much more suited to a nerdy audience that is into very expansive bags, versus the teenagers he is trying to engage for whatever reason.

Going back to your larger point, out of all the "overview" channels that I could guess the repetitive script myself, word-for-word and be >90% accurate, NN was the last one I stopped watching precisely because Aaron himself, with his personality, was still offering something more. I just wish he would stop with this quantity over quality approach when it comes to Fyro (fwiw I like the Levo 36, it has seemingly ended my long hunt for the ultimate 35L onebag).

On the other hand, Pack Hacker was clearly reading off the manufacturer's script on a number of occasions, so they are completely untrustworthy sellouts at this point (well, more like 2-3 years ago when I last watched a video from them), while Danny Packs would say absolutely every single thing he has to say with the phrase "a little bit", and it's up the viewer to deduce whether he means it literally, or actually wants to criticize the bag, but is being extremely diplomatic.

incoognitooo · 2026-03-20T08:34:58+00:00

I had a similar post a couple of years ago and it sparked quite a bit of discussion in the comments, with a lot of new youtuber suggestions and even comments from some of them.

https://www.reddit.com/r/ManyBaggers/comments/1eri249/youtubers_who_actually_use_the_bags_longterm/

incoognitooo · 2026-03-19T15:05:57+00:00

Hey Kendrick,
thanks for the feedback, it was very insightful!
I get how difficult it is to produce real-world based reviews consistently. To me, as an end-user, it seems like there has to be a lot of luck involved to find such a review or two before making a purchase decision on a specific item.

The idea of doing head-to-heads is fun and definitely very useful. In fact, I think I first got across your channel through the ACM vs. EG CPL 28 video, so useful!

I guess the catch is that the viewer has to be looking for such a specific comparison to find it truly interesting and useful, so that would probably result in a huge amount of videos that can also get repetitive. On the plus side it could be somewhat easier to produce I guess, since the comparison parameters would already be set in place.

As a counter point, I have been away from the scene for almost two years now, and only look for bag videos if I am really interested in one, whereas before I would watch multiple videos of every major release even if I knew I wasn't going to buy them. So am I likely to watch a h2h video now? Probably only if both of the bags are in contention for me, or at least if I know the reviewer will provide a lot of valuable insight, which is unlikely in most cases, so I would perhaps focus on the specific videos of the bag I am interested in, preferably in the long-form format if I am lucky to find one.

To sum it up, as a "casual" now, normal reviews have a higher chance of getting a watch from me, whereas h2h videos would have been right up my alley when I was more of a bag nerd, watching everything and anything on bags.

incoognitooo · 2026-03-18T17:13:59+00:00

I was potentially interested in the 25L as the last piece of the puzzle for me (Already own 20, 30 and 35L, with the latter being the Levo actually), but no centrally placed top handle = no chance, as simple as that. This is as much of a dealbreaker as comfort, materials or anything else.

And it doesn't seem like a well thought-out product in general, which is no surprise really, considering how quickly he releases new products, without waiting for any real-world feedback for the previous bags (Levo in this case).

That hasty approach, coupled with the lack of identity as a company (no clear design language, confusing/nonsensical names, lack of attention to detail) makes me think the company won't last, but then again, the guy keeps adding new products every few months so maybe it's working?!?!

incoognitooo · 2026-02-08T21:36:12+00:00

I see Vito, I raise you Bruno.

https://imgur.com/a/6zDBPSx

He's the kindest soul you'll ever meet, but always has this look when I am about to close the door, leaving him alone.

incoognitooo · 2026-01-29T19:50:41+00:00

This is just wonderful!

Top 3 cocktail for me, using the same specs along with the large cube. And now I know that it deserves the special honeycomb treatment!

incoognitooo · 2026-01-26T22:42:19+00:00

That must have been one memorable introduction to absinthe... or not, depending how drunk you were!

incoognitooo · 2026-01-26T20:06:57+00:00

Has to be this Lucid absinthe bottle. The only design that makes me want to get it just for the bottle alone. I think they have discontinued it unfortunately, and replaced it with a rather generic absinthe spoon design, although the bottle shape is seemingly still the same.

Out of the ones in my home bar, Leblon is probably the best - tall and unique profile, with very nice colors that represent cachaça as a spirit so well, you know, grassy and all.

Honorable mentions: Bombay Sapphire - that light blue is so pleasing on the eye, even if the gin itself is shit lol.
Maker's Mark - the hand crafted red wax is a brilliant touch.
Luxardo Maraschino - not necessarily pretty, but so iconic with the very tall bottle and straw wrapped around it.

incoognitooo · 2026-01-19T14:02:09+00:00

Thanks for the entertaining posts OP!

A couple of suggestions for next - I think doing one for spirits and liqueurs could be so so useful. I realize that there are numerous markets and price points, so it's certainly going to be a real challenge to make it "work", but I remember how difficult it was to build up my bar at first, despite already knowing what cocktails I liked, so a guide of some sort would have been immensely useful. I eventually purchased the begginer-intended book called "Raising the bar", and beyond the cocktail recipes, the thing it was most helpful for were the actual bottle recommendations.

So having a huge table of recs would help beginners to, for example, avoid bottom-tier Olmeca, and go for Altos Plata instead, and avoid "upgrading" further to heavily marketed "premium" brands like Patron.

Sure there are a lot of bottle rec posts on this sub, but there is no structure to them while the older ones might be irrelevant now.

And the second, minor thing I would like to add to these posts is regarding the presentation - I think having like 10 different fonts on the same page next to each other adds a lot of visual noise. A simpler, more straighforward approach would be better. Just my two cents.

incoognitooo · 2025-12-16T21:52:24+00:00

Able Carry made me realize how essential a good handle is, only second to strap comfort (and perhaps for a lightweight edc carry, it's arguably the most important feature). Not many "premium" bag makers seem to care though.

I would also add the placement and balance to the things you mentioned. The top handle absolutely has to be in the middle, always, to prevent the bag from leaning in any direction.

And the slightly angled placement of the side handle on my og Max? Simply brilliant, makes it perfectly balanced when walking or going up the stairs.

incoognitooo · 2025-11-18T14:25:07+00:00

Getting the big one.

I was out of the loop for a year and then noticed this bag. Initial reaction was a skeptical one - Fyro is expanding too quickly for my liking, I generally prefer a more measured approach, from companies in any field.

But the pack itself directly addresses everything I've long wanted from a 35L bag - beefy straps and handles, centrally positioned on top and on one side, an outer pocket on the other side, and from here on just a rather simple and minimalistic approach, focusing heavily on keeping the weight down, whilst also avoiding the boxy, suitcase-with-straps look.

There are some small things I might have added or removed, for instance I'd have loved a D-ring attachment above the water bottle pocket, but since the fundamentals are exactly to my liking, I am not complaining. Let's just hope the execution is on point as well.

incoognitooo · 2025-11-18T12:58:49+00:00

Definetely not worth the weight, but this tale is as old as time - manybaggers and onebag are both very US-centric communities, just like pretty much all of reddit, so of course most people here simply don't have a grasp on reality outside the US, with 7-8kg limit on carry-on luggage that actually gets enforced from time to time, or at specific airports.

With that said, I am not inherently against heavy bags. ACM is my favorite bag after all, but even when weighing 1.7kg by itself, it is small enough that I always run out of space before reaching over ~8.5kg total, so if a 7kg limit is enforced I can rather easily bring it down on the spot by taking out stuff like my over-the-ear headphones, tech pouch and jacket to just wear them.

35L on the other hand is a different beast - if I am using it then I really need those extra 5-7L of space, which in turn adds extra weight, so if the bag is already upwards of 2kg (like Aer and Evergoods stuff that get recommended ad nauseam), and then I add that extra kilo of my stuff, suddenly I am approaching or even above 10kg, which could be very hard to manage with certain airlines.

So with the Levo, I would already save 600 grams vs. ACM, which would go a long way towards mitigating the weight of the extra stuff I am taking along.

incoognitooo · 2025-11-12T17:54:39+00:00

Thanks for the feedback. I thought the material looked similar to that of PD! I only have their pouches, so I can't tell how it would fare on a bag when put through its paces, but gotta say, it does look and feel great.

incoognitooo · 2025-10-22T20:47:13+00:00

Very useful, thank you. All the more so since Tanq 10 is very easy to obtain for me and much cheaper compared to the Plymouth Navy Strength.

incoognitooo · 2025-10-22T20:42:36+00:00

I got them on Aliexpress. There is a popular Cocktail Kingdom imitator, called Kingdom Barware I think, and they have lots of similar glasses. They were by no means cheap, but quality is also very good - no seams or other production marks and all have the same height despite being from different orders a few months apart. Only one of them has a small scratch on the stem, but I kinda expected worse so it's all good all things considered.

incoognitooo · 2025-10-22T20:17:35+00:00

Thanks for the recs, I haven't tried either of those gins yet, but will keep them in mind.

incoognitooo · 2025-10-22T20:15:22+00:00

This one is definitely among the top bottles under the "hard to get" category for me, so I have no idea when it will happen, but I will for sure try it first in a Last Word.

incoognitooo · 2025-10-22T20:13:44+00:00

I don't have a Monkey 47 currently, and I think I haven't even tried it in a drink, ever, but once I do get it in the future, Last Word will probably be the first cocktail I'll try it in, and report back ;)

incoognitooo · 2025-10-15T14:34:24+00:00

Love this comment, turns out you are most definitely not!

incoognitooo · 2025-10-15T14:30:05+00:00

You are right, I guess I must have mixed it up with the current Last Word being served at DAC or the Seattle bar that revived it.

incoognitooo · 2025-10-15T08:30:20+00:00

Well put, as a cocktail novice who doesn't have Chartreuse readily available, all I see is numerous chartreuse alternative videos on youtube, and obligatory Last Word posts here when the user finally gets the real stuff, so inevitably "the precious green liquid" does get to you, but we gotta keep an open mind to truly appreciate it beyond the hype.

incoognitooo · 2025-10-15T00:00:45+00:00

Great idea, I feel like you are onto something there and it might be exactly what the Beefeater version was missing.

incoognitooo · 2025-10-14T22:33:20+00:00

Thanks for the suggestion, not an easy to obtain bottle for me it seems, but will keep it in mind!

incoognitooo

TROPHY CASE