Best Everyday Carry Backpacks: Tortuga Setout Laptop Backpack - Gear Hacker

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Tortuga Setout Laptop Backpack Review: Best EDC Backpack for Carry-on

Best EDC Backpack for Carry-on

  • Storage and Organization 90% 90%
  • Comfort 70% 70%
  • Durability 80% 80%

Price: $125

Dimensions: 18.75x12x6.75”

Weight: 2.8lbs

What We Like: Laptop and tablet pocket

What We Don’t: Straps take time to break-in

The Tortuga Setout Laptop Backpack will be your favorite carry-on travel companion if you give it the chance. The organization is simple but versatile and very convenient. There is a great laptop pocket that will hold a 15” laptop and a tablet as well as your cables. The main compartment opens fully, with additional mesh pockets inside for added organization, and the shoulder straps are stowable for easy side carry. It’s easy to see how we chose it as the Best EDC Backpack for a Carry-on.
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Amazing Organization

Cons

A Bit Too Small For Everything You Might Need In A Day.

Dimensions: 18x12x5” 

Weight: 2.8lbs

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Great Organization

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Cons

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Weight: 2.9lbs

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Pros

Shoe Pocket

Fully Accessible Main Compartment

Cons

Limited Accessory Pockets On Exterior

Dimensions: 18x12x7” 

Weight: 2.4lbs

Best Everyday Carry Backpacks: Tortuga Setout Laptop Backpack - Gear Hacker
  • Storage and Organization 90% 90%
  • Comfort 70% 70%
  • Durability 80% 80%

Pros

Laptop And Tablet Pocket

Cons

Straps Take Time To Break-In

Dimensions: 18.75x12x6.75”

Weight: 2.8lbs

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Pros

Extremely Durable

Good Internal Storage Options

Cons

Limited External Organization

A Bit Big For An EDC Pack

Dimensions: 20x12x6.75”

Weight: 3.20lbs

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Versatile For Urban Or Backcountry Uses

Cons

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Cons

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Design Quality

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Cons

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Pros

Side Access Pockets

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Cons

Price

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Pros

Simple Pockets And Top Handle

Cons

Thin Shoulder Straps

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Weight: 1lbs

Tortuga was featured heavily in our Travel Backpacks article with their Setout and Outbreaker backpacks. Those bags were both excellent candidates for single bag travel. The Setout Laptop Bag does not quite fit into the single bag travel companion category, as it just is not as big as you would likely need. However, with its smaller size and excellent organization, the Setout Laptop Backpack makes for a great EDC backpack or a carry-on bag with accompanying checked luggage. These are some of the reasons that it won our Best EDC Backpack for Carry-on.

Best Everyday Carry Backpacks: Tortuga Setout Laptop Backpack - Gear Hacker

Storage and Organization

Tortuga backpacks are efficient yet simple. With the Setout Laptop Backpack, this principle is no different. There are only three pockets on the exterior of the bag. The front pocket is thin and a great place for notebooks, passports, and other smaller items. It also includes a burly key clip, so you don’t have to worry about your car keys falling out of your bag at the airport.

The main compartment is large and fully opens so that you can access everything quite easily, and this fact also makes packing a breeze. Along the top flap of the main compartment, there are two mesh zippered pockets that help to increase the main compartment organization These are the perfect pockets for toiletries and other personal items. The backpack itself has about 25l of storage, which is good for a change of clothes and other essentials for a commute or day at the office.

Best Everyday Carry Backpacks: Tortuga Setout Laptop Backpack - Gear Hacker
The laptop pocket is great, well padded, and includes two open top pockets—one that will accommodate a 15” laptop and the other that will hold a 9.7” tablet. There is also room for an ereader, so all of you electronics are looked after while you travel. Inside of the laptop pocket, there is another mesh zippered pocket for cables and to keep all of your electronics organized.
Along the front of the bag, there is a small thin zippered pocket for small things—maybe a pack of gum? On the side of the pack, there is a hide-away water bottle pocket that is great, because it is zippable and will not hang out on the side while you are trying to go through security.
Best Everyday Carry Backpacks: Tortuga Setout Laptop Backpack - Gear Hacker

Comfort

Tortuga has used injection molded padding throughout the backpanel and shoulder straps. Though not the most comfortable, the straps are stowable, which helps with travelling, and the backpanel has some air channels to allow for breathability while you wear the bag.

The shoulder straps are contoured to improve comfort while wearing the bag, and this is always a nice addition for the overall carrying comfort of the bag. There is an adjustable and removable sternum strap that helps to distribute the weight of the pack along the chest.
Best Everyday Carry Backpacks: Tortuga Setout Laptop Backpack - Gear Hacker

Material and Durability

Tortuga never disappoints with the material and durability of their bags. The Outbreaker is one of the hardiest bags that we have seen, and that’s partly because it is made of sailcloth—pretty cool. The Setout Laptop Backpack uses the exact same material as their Setout Backpack, unsurprisingly. The main material of the Laptop Backpack is 900D polyester and is coated in a DWR finish.
The zippers are a lockable YKK, and the other buckles and hardware are Duraflex. So everything on this bag is hardy and will be able to handle the abuse that occurs while traveling throughout the city or jet setting across the planet.
Best Everyday Carry Backpacks: Tortuga Setout Laptop Backpack - Gear Hacker

The Bottom Line

Tortuga backpacks never let us down. They are well organized, never complicated, and made to last. The Setout Laptop Backpack checks all the boxes of a great EDC backpack. Whether you need a great secondary backpack for travel or a single backpack as a working weekender bag, this bag can do it all. At $125, the price is also really reasonable for the quality and the versatility that the Tortuga Setout Laptop will offer. This is why it is our Best EDC Backpack for Carry-on.

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We participate in affiliate programs to help us fund Gear Hacker. Some of the links in this website are affiliate links, which means that if you purchase a product using our link, we will earn a small commission. Don’t worry! This comes at no additional cost to you, and we will never base our reviews on whether or not we earn a commission off of a product. With that said, if you find our review helpful and decide to purchase an item we review, we would be very appreciative if you use our links to do so. It will help us bring you more awesome content in the future!