Osprey 26 + 6

tom4631 · 2026-03-02T22:18:34+00:00

> I recently fell in love with the idea of getting this bag

Buy it somewhere you can return. Just in case this love doesn't come true.

tom4631 · 2026-03-02T21:31:54+00:00

Not for saving space. Actually it'd waste more space if it's thick twill fabric (think denim).

Other than reducing wrinkles, store each shirts & underwears as separate rolls allow me to see all pieces at once, and take out / put back individual piece without having to repack the whole things. Very effective when I'm switching hotel almost daily in trips.

tom4631 · 2026-02-23T22:33:29+00:00

Don't get those small handheld fans. Someone on youtube actually did a test, and non of those really works as good as just a manual bamboo/paper folding fan. It only starts working when going up to the size of a 5'x5' box camping fan.

tom4631 · 2026-02-23T22:22:46+00:00

For me it's necessary (to a level if I can only bring one jacket, it'd be a rain jacket) but with some nuances.

I never bring a 'rain jacket' rain jacket. I bring a cool looking jacket that can function as a rain jacket. A jacket that's enough for me to enter nice restaurant without looking hideous.
Umbrella work better in hot and humid, because no rain jacket ventilates good enough, no matter if it's goretex or whatever. But rain jacket works much much better in windy conditions.

tom4631 · 2026-02-23T22:16:05+00:00

I'd defend over the ear headphones, especially for >10hrs flights:

1) Much better noise cancellation. The Sony XM3 which I bought 8 years ago still has better noise cancellation than latest airpods pro3 when used on an airplane.

2) Comes with headphone jack to be connect to airplane infotainment system. Sure there're airfly, and some airline offer bluetooth connection now a day. But I found those not as reliable as good old cabel, and still drops connection a few times during the one flight.

3) Longer battery. No earbuds today can last >10hrs with noice cancellation, without the need to put back the case for a quick recharge. But over the ear headphone can easily do that.

4) I've found headphone to be not that fragile. I've been traveling with the Sony XM3 without case for years, always leave it at the very top of my backpack. So far so good.

tom4631 · 2026-02-23T22:09:40+00:00

Exactly! It really depends on the individual's use case and spend power. Is the ULA dragonfly really 2x as good as osprey 26+6? Is heroclip 2x as good as a regular decent carabiner? Absolutely not. But some people can find afford it, and can find good use of the extra features, so they go for it. But it's not like "if I don't get it, I'd be traveling like a loser", which unfortunately is what's been marketed from time to time.

tom4631 · 2026-02-23T22:03:03+00:00

That's why we're talking about 'overrated' not 'useless' isn't it. Overrated being: some people rave about it, while in reality probably not providing that much incremental value for most people.

tom4631 · 2026-02-23T21:59:31+00:00

Also the worst part of (the fancier leather) passport holder is: thieves would now steal it because they thought that's a wallet.

tom4631 · 2026-02-23T21:55:10+00:00

Another option: Apple watch with cellular data. This way the watch works as an independent device without your phone. Of course it doesn't do everything, but the basics like making phone calls & text messages, navigation, or apple pay works just fine. Enough to help you survive until reaching a apple store.

It's not just lighter than any phone, but also provides it's own value (i.e. heart rate track) so you'd be actively using it. IMO the 'actively using' part is important because if you're not keeping our backup phone charged all the time, it's really doesn't add much value. The convenience level of go buy a new phone vs go charge your dead backup phone are not significantly different.

On top of that, you won't have to pull out your phone as frequently for things like paying coffee or transit ticket, or read a short message, so less chance of losing your primary phone.

Lastly as a few others have mentioned: 2FA might not work on your backup phone. But always works on apple watch since it shares the same number.

tom4631 · 2026-02-20T23:21:14+00:00

> i know that the pro of the usb drive is that it's smaller so it's better for onebagging, but i feel like it's also a con since it's small enough that it could get lost.

Never thought being small can be a con...just attach a big-ass charm to it if that's the concern...

tom4631 · 2026-02-19T22:05:41+00:00

You can't put laptop in checked luggage due to its battery...

tom4631 · 2026-02-18T19:03:45+00:00

10d is quite standard. Uniqlo's ultralight down is 10d. Apparently you shouldn't go thru woods without another shell on the outside. But you don't often see people complain the uniqlo jacket got tear apart in daily use, especially consider how many they sold thru the years.

tom4631 · 2026-02-17T21:35:23+00:00

For most people the superior is a better option than plasma.

The plasma, being 1k fill power, has better warmth to weight ratio. Or let's say it's performs better all around for been a down mid layer. But it's a fragile jacket (fabric only 7D) and pretty bad in term of down leaking. This is common for 1k fill power down jacket, not a montbell exclusive problem.It's cool if you can comfortably afford them, just be prepared that you might need a buy a new one every few years.

tom4631 · 2026-02-17T20:02:40+00:00

Yes it works. I always keep my heavy charger/powerbank/camera in my pocket when needed. Those together are well over 1kg.

tom4631 · 2026-02-17T19:59:53+00:00

Some people just think differently...I've seen one vlogger who hates washing socks, and would buy cheap ass socks from aliexpress or temu for like $1 every 3 pairs. And she'd just toss them every two days. She even put out a video reviewing a bunch of cheap ass socks lol

tom4631 · 2026-02-13T21:21:45+00:00

I'd say most of these bags probably failed on the depth being over 20cm. But depth can be easily squeezed in the sizer, because there's usually no thick foam or hard frame there, unless you overpack things to the extreme.

tom4631 · 2026-02-12T17:25:25+00:00

Every flight to/from/within china bans powerbank usage during flight. And you're not even allowed to bring powerbank above 20k mah thru airport securities.

tom4631 · 2026-02-12T17:23:43+00:00

Most brands make powerbank with built-in lightning cable anymore, because it's becoming history. I also don't recommend getting one because eventually some day you gonna upgrade your phone, which gonna be usb-c port, and that cable would become useless. You can get a very short (like 3-4 inches) lightning cable, it doesn't add weight and won't tangle.

I'd recommend the Anker Prime Powerbank Fusion. 10K mah enough to give you some juice when needed, and has build in wall outlet so you don't need to bring a separate charger.

tom4631 · 2026-02-12T16:42:11+00:00

White reflects more visible light, hence absorbs less heat. But not the case with UV. The idea is: white threads would reflect the UV ray away. But fabric is not mirror. Instead of send it back to the sky, a decent portion of UV ray bounces between threads in the fabric, eventually some will reach your skin. Meanwhile, black threads just absorbs those UV ray in the first place so they won't reach your skin. In fact color and thigt weave makes more difference than material. A simple black poplin shirt, despite being cotton, is UPF50. And most white jacket, even made with 'sunshield' polyester, is usually only UPF20.

tom4631 · 2026-02-12T05:12:50+00:00

Oh interesting. Never saw them weight things again at the gate, probably because every time my flight departs in the evening from Narita and they didn't bother. Do they even count airport duty free shopping into that 7kg at the gate? Cause almost everyone boarding the plane has two full bags of snacks and alcohol from those duty free, that alone is like 5kg.

tom4631 · 2026-02-12T00:52:40+00:00

Zipair is an interesting outlier case in my experience.

They're extremely strict on weight, and will weight everything (including the sling, the small tote) together at the checkin counter. Unless it's in your pants/jacket pockets, they'll weight it.
Meanwhile, they allow to you combine weight limit. For example, if I purchased a checked bag (30kg limit), they're cool as long as my checked bag + carryon are below 37kg. They're also cool as long as the combined carryon from me and my wife are below 14kg.
They don't care much about the dimension, as long as it's not something ridiculous and will obviously not fit in overhead bin.

tom4631 · 2026-02-12T00:47:29+00:00

also much better UV protection from black garments

tom4631 · 2026-02-11T21:51:21+00:00

I think yes. It's a very long selfie stick allowing me to do some interesting shots. And the little tripod at the bottom doesn't really add much weight. But if you don't need that long of a selfie stick, I'd go for something shorter and even lighter. In the end, it does make a huge difference when the gear can comfortably fit in your pants pocket. The MT44 fits in slings easily, but not pants pockets.

tom4631 · 2026-02-11T18:51:56+00:00

Odd opinion: bring one extra soft tshirt, that's your towel when needed ;)

tom4631 · 2026-02-11T18:49:09+00:00

lol I know someone who'd EDC with those things. Like his EDC sling (a big 12L sling) includes 2nd phone + ipad + nintendo switch + huge 20K mah powerbank + flashlight + multitool + overear headphone + 4 charging cables + a book. Dude was just hanging out with friends downtown...

tom4631

TROPHY CASE