I used this bag while on vacation walking around town. Carried my diabetes supplies, water bottle, sunglasses, cap, windbreaker, and phone. What I liked the most was not having to take it off to access the pockets; just slide it to the side or front; perfect when sitting in restaurants or bars. I suppose the same can be said for any sling bag, but I found the size of this one to be just right. If I needed to carry an iPad or anything more, I’d opt for a backpack.
This bag is actually on the short list for me for a sling bag of this size. My use case is basically: empty my pockets, but also carry a packable jacket, small first aid pouch, memobottle a6, and pair of work gloves. I don't honestly need much more. Outside secondary pocket gets gloves and nothing else. The trouble is the compartment lacking any form of organization beyond that divider. I have no use for it at all and would rather the older version with the more traditional tablet sleeve. Competitive options: Northface Borealis sling, Hydro Flask Slingback sling, maybe the 7L Tomtoc edc sling. The Hydro Flask seems like the best organization, but worst strap. Maybe I can transplant the strap from another bag.
I love mine Atom Sling. Going on 4 years now. For travel, I use it for phone, chargers, 8" tablet. Only thing I wish it had was a small side pocket for water bottle. In winter, i also use the front straps for my vest. I roll it up tight and then tighten straps on it. Works great. Everything on the sling is still performing and no issues at all. I love it.
I think you may not be the right customer, but it isn't a case of your use case is the only one. I come to bags from hiking experience, and that carries over to my wants and needs for a sling. The Atom is small because sometimes small is the right choice. It has compression straps to put external cargo on, like a poncho or windbreaker. I can clip runners' belt bottles to the straps for water (when did putting water in your bag with your gear become a thing, anyway? Asking for expensive accidents). Likewise, a cheap carabiner lets me give a ball cap a home if I need that off. The front pocket is for quick small items. The main divider lets you put your tablet in with something between it and all the other things. The water resistant material is a plus. It isn't a big cargo carrier, but it serves a purpose. I appreciate your review. There isn't only 1 right application for a bag.
We have been getting more into hiking lately and I can definitely see that it would be popular with hikers. I think my primary issue is that the bag is still rather large given the relatively small volume it carries. At first glance it would appear that it can hold much more. I think the packable version might have been a better fit for us in hindsight.
I have one and I like it. I see many of these sling videos where people complain about the product. I think many people treat a sling bag like a regular backpack, and they expect it to work that way too. It is a sling bag to carry only essentials. If you are going to carry a laptop or games, use a backpack. I have the first release and it works great. I don't need to carry all the stuff you bring out, but if I do, I just pull out my back pack. No worries. Oh and I do exist!!:)
I use this for walking the dog - I put a water bottle, ball, lead in the main compartment, treats in the front pocket and poo bags fit nicely in the carry strap pocket. The best thing about it is that it is easy to swing to the front and open while on the move. I have also used it for light EDC use when on Jury duty - it was great for dumping stuff into when going through security at the court. It may not have a specific purpose but I think that’s the point - it is a versatile, multi purpose bag.
This is exactly what I'm looking at this sling for, when you say lead, is this a normal lead or a long/drag lead? Looking at something that can fit my long lead and a water bottle plus small things like a pair of gloves.
@@HunterSol I use a normal lead. It might fit a larger lead too, but to be honest I have now switched to using a Chrome Industries Kadet, because it has a built in stabiliser strap and I found it annoying that the atom slipped to one side of my back on dog walks.
For anyone watching this video, most people put their water bottles outside through the front’s tuck away storage straps, that’s kind of what they were conceived for. It’s meant for people to be able to compress down a water bottle, or umbrella, or slides etc to the outside of the bag for more storage
I just ordered this sling.. i own other two strap type backpacks, but wanted something smaller for the not so serious day hikes.. I dont need a 20 liter day pack for a water bottle and a subway sandwich.
This is a bag I'm looking at currently. I want a smaller pack with quick access to the bag without taking it off for the medical bs I have to take around with me. Thank you for showing a nalgene in it as that was one of the specific items I was wondering how it would fit.
Can I ask what kind of stuff you were able to slot into it? It seemed like everything we tried that was more than a pocket dump and a small water bottle didn't really work.
Where Atom Sling offers me to put my wallet securely from the thieves in some hidden / protected / not so easy to teach zippered inside pocket?! Every time I use Atom Sling behind my back = I worry a lot if I still have my cards and IDs and money with me or I’ve presented crucial valuables to the thieves in the subway or just in the urban crowd?! Where to put a bunch of small items like power bank, cables and Bluetooth in-ear headset so they not flying all around the whole inside space of main big pockets and catch scratches hitting with your keys or something solid and big inside?! It sucks exactly when I don’t need bigger items but have to free my pockets from small valuables like wallet, keys, power bank, headset, sunglasses and etc!!! Deuter Organizer Belt 1.8L waist bag does so much better job to keep all small items securely and firmly in place than this nonsense aka Atom Sling 8L, not to mention up to 2L of volume is enough for everyday small items or up to 4L if I’d wish to have kindle or iPad Mini with me as well! And yes, when I have to take something big with me - Atom Sling 8L is NOT enough, you’d better have at least 12L or even 16L of volume to have it all at once = some extra layer of cloth, thermo bottle, sunglasses, snacks, some A4 papers maybe etc!!! Atom Sling 8L falls in the middle of nowhere = too big and clumsy for smaller valuables while too small and awkward for bigger items, alas! P.S. The closest to ideal sling bag I had was Thule Crossover Sling 17L: - 17L is enough for everything including 13” ultra book or 11” iPad Pro with big on-ear headphones if necessary! - external stretch mesh water bottle pocket helped to keep your drinks securely from gadgets inside! - a lot of internal small pockets and hidden zippered pockets allowed to keep all small valuables perfectly organised and secure!
I found this bag most useful when snowboarding/skiing. It's nice to be able to quickly swing the bag to the front when getting on the ski lift. It holds the right amount of stuff I need for a day trip on the mountain. I use it when flying too. Usually this doesn't get counted as a bag. It could definitely use more organization but I do like the quality/construction of the bag.
To your point, we are hikers who have hiked with this bag several times and found that it gave us both shoulder pain. Having a reversible strap may have alleviated this. We cover that in the video.
The issue is mostly that the design, including the strangely shaped pockets and short zippers really rob it of any versatility. Sling bags have existed for decades, well before we started putting fanny packs around our torsos and calling that a sling. People seem to conflate the two. One is a suitable for a pocket dump and the other is meant to straddle the line between that and a full sized backpack. A sling of this size and price, advertised with this many liters of storage, should at least be able to comfortably hold a standard sized water bottle and a few other things, as every other sling of this style that I've used has been able to do. Overall, this sling has the feeling of a purpose made case for something unidentifiable you'd find in the wild. Like finding a nice looking bag at a garage sale that it turns out was only intended to ever carry a Game Boy. Increasing the size should increase the versatility. There are much smaller and cheaper, fanny pack style slings than this that will comfortably carry some of the items we tried out in this video.
This bag is NOT for everyone. For example, my partner likes the "black hole" bag style. Everything just goes into the bag, she will dig through it later to find what she needs. Lots of things go in there throughout the day. The Atom 8L is not for her. However, it IS the perfect bag for me. I only carry with me what I absolutely need. I like all of the things I'm carrying around to be organized and easily accessible. This bag is perfect for me. The front most pouch contains my wallet, keys, and other things that would normally go in my pockets. The back pocket(s) carry my small travel instrument, my notebook, and some other small items; leaving me a little room in case I find a small thing I just need to carry with me outside of my pockets. I also really love the shoulder strap. I wear a lot of tank tops and wide necked shirts and the padded strap really does make a difference for me carrying my bag around on long days. It's exactly what I needed from a bag. But this bag is not for everyone. I think it just depends on your bag needs and how and what kind of stuff you take with you.
I went with the same size Patagonia Black Hole Sling with its larger opening, it’s packable so I can use it when I need to and it’s more comfortable. I’m in a major city and have a backpack on me 99% of the time so I wanted an alternative, specially when walking the dog. I can fit a decent sized thermos for the dog + my water bottle and whatever else I need.
I got it because I walk to the gym and don't want to take my purse and a separate gym bag. This fits my water bottle, towel, locker lock, wallet, a couple resistance bands, keys and phone. I don't need a full size backpack for just that stuff.
While I disagree with you in the end, what I like about your video is that you give us your honest view which made me think twice about getting this bag and you respect different opinions. So 👍
Thank you. I do pull this bag out regularly when I'm considering what EDC solution to use for the day, and have considered creating a follow up review, but ultimately I arrive at the same conclusions every time I use it. The primary problem for me is that any water bottle over 12 ounces dominates the available space inside. I think having a separate water bottle sleeve or pocket on the right side would greatly aid the overall usability of the Atom and I imagine I would use it regularly.
In my opinion in bags if you do not compromise I have to carry a large weight , as a woman I carry a lot, my only leather wallet is pretty heavy, but thank you for few points you highlighted, very useful. Shame as these are well known brands and products should be well thought through, but often they are not, yet we pay a lot of money for a their imperfect products.
lovely colour but we do not get in the UK, but not many colours, I like colourful bags with good taste ;); we are waiting for Patagonia to supply more colours to Europe before buying it
Great bag for a day out or for commuting to work to have some bits n bobs in and a spare jacket. If you wanna carry round 3 games consoles and litres of water i agree this isn’t the bag for you but i feel like most people with common sense would get a larger bag for that…
I'm not implying that you would try to carry three gaming systems. A standard nalgene is about one liter, which this bag did not accommodate well. Patagonia is a well known brand that may not be available at retail for everyone. Some people are likely to be purchasing this bag online without seeing it in person. It's a given that this would hold a jacket, wallet, and keys, as any sling bag (or even a fanny pack) might. The goal is really to show a few larger standard items that someone might try to put into a sling of this size and show you how it performs. The primary issue I take with this bag is that it's large and bulky, yet the strange pocket design and short zippers prevent the space from being utilized effectively. There are other sling bags that are of a similar size that can accommodate these larger items, as there are physically smaller bags that can hold as much as the Atom does.
My mom got me one as a gift and I wish she hadn't spent the money. I appreciate that the phone pocket is stretchy but the zipper is absolutely too small for me to get in my phone (Galaxy S22 Ultra, which is fractions of an inch longer than the other current Galaxy S-series phones....)
We did give that a try. It sort of works but puts a lot of pressure on the stuff inside the bag. Probably fine as long as there's only soft stuff inside.
Couldn’t agree more! Patagonia Atom Sling 8L just sucks due to a lot of reasons! Put it straight in more details, just take a look on my regular mandatory EDC: 1. Wallet with bank cards, some cash, office pass and ID = no place to securely keep it inside Patagonia Atom Sling away from thieves and it’s the major flaw!!! 2. Thermo flask with some drink, hot or cold according to the season = no external pocket so you risk every time you put such flask inside right next to any gadget, cause even the best flasks in the world sometimes leak and could literally kill your iPad or Kindle! 3. Smartphone, keys, iPad and/or Kindle = no problem to find a right place for them inside Atom Sling, wow, great done! 4. Power bank with cables and in-ear Bluetooth headset = no organisation small pockets in Patagonia Atom Sling, once again a huge problem!!! …cause I don’t like small items are flying across the whole space inside the sling and no way to keep them and find them exactly where you put them!!! Keep them within pocket with key holder - it’s still way too big for it, not to mention the keys are going to hit and scratch such stuff like power bank or headset case, while stretch pocket on the strap of the sling already occupied with your smartphone! 5. Sunglasses in the hard case = once again, the second external is a must not to waste the space inside and to keep them at hand to use right away if need it! As a matter of fact to conclude with: 1. If sometimes I don’t need water bottle with me for short urban trips cause I have easily find where to buy any small drink anytime I want and drink it all at once not keeping it with me plus gadget wise I don’t bring iPad with me as well (only smartphone, power bank and in-ear headset)… Well, nice small waist bag is my preferable choice in this case!!! …something like Deuter Organizer Belt 1.8L or Osprey Daylite Waist 2L solve the task much better than Atom Sling 8L! 2. If I need to carry with me bigger gadgets like iPad and/or on-ear headsets, and still no flask though… Well, it’s anyway the waist bag like Fjallraven Ulvo Large 4L / Thule Tact waist bag 5L or even something like small messenger bag aka Mammut Shoulder Bag Round 4L / Thule Crossover 2 Crossbody 8L bag! 3. If I need water bottle anyway - I will have some small and light backpack with appropriate external stretch pocket, Thule Crossover Sling 17L or Deuter Stepout backpack 16L… 4. Finally, if I have big gadgets with me = laptop as a must and/or some extra cloth layer like hoodie or rain jacket or even change of cloth for gym = welcome to the big urban backpacks area, The North Face Kaban 2.0 27L or Gregory Border 25L or Deuter Giga 28L or Kelty Redwing 22L and so on!!! Where, in which category from above to put this nonsense aka Patagonia Atom Sling 8L - I just don’t know, it doesn’t fit any!!!
“We have a front pocket of indeterminate use” - No no, it’s very determinate. That’s where your keys and other quick access items like a wallet can go. Hence the internal key clip and general wallet-size of the pocket. “The back pocket has a divider in the middle for an unknown reason” - No no, it’s actually there for an exceptionally known reason. It’s a tablet sleeve. Like Patagonia states on the website description for this product. This type of sassy faux-uneducated review style is so cringey. We get it, you personally don’t happen to like this bag. Don’t pretend like there aren’t good reasons for why certain features exist. Lame.
You can feel any way you want to about the video. That is fine. However, may I ask why you are looking up review videos on a bag you clearly already own and like? If you know and feel these things, why don't you make your own video?
@@RideorDieGaM I don’t own the bag, I’m doing research on it and unfortunately stumbled upon your “review” in the process. Another hilarious thing about your assessment of this bag: in your replies to various commenters pointing out similar flaws that I have, you claim to know and understand that this bag is primarily aimed at light hikers, but you focus so much on what mobile gaming platforms will fit or not fit in what pocket as if that’s something that anyone other than you is concerned about for this product. I’m glad you found the tomtoc, a *tech sling* for the very hyper specific use case you personally happen to think a sling should satisfy. Why you ever felt that this Atom sling would be something you’d get use out it is beyond me, let alone why you took the time to craft this annoying and intentionally off-putting review of what is essentially at this point a classic of the bag world that only you apparently happen to have a problem with.
@@michaels9574 The review includes an attempt to fit some daily use tech items someone might want to carry because I didn't see that in any other videos and seemed to be a common question. If you look at Amazon reviews there are tech fit questions on almost every bag. It's not indicative of my use. I rarely, if ever, take these items out of the house. As I explained, we have used it for hiking and daily use multiple times and it wasn't comfortable and didn't fit basic hiking items, like a water bottle, camera, light jacket, etc. without bulging. Unfortunately for me, I thought I could rely on peoples media literacy to bridge the gap between the fit test and the bag assessment. I was wrong. I still own this bag and I still consider it for daily and hiking use and unfortunately every time it has come up short. The tomtoc is a better sling because it's more comfortable and daily use items fit in it better, tech or not. I didn't get paid to make this review. You didn't pay to watch it. You're complaining about something that you didn't have to watch with with the few precious minutes you have on this earth. My opinion is not the only one on TH-cam. I'm failing to generate sympathy here. If you would like to heap fawning praise on a very popular product produced by a large corporation in your own video, best of luck. Maybe this is the push you need to bridge the gap from upset commenter to upset video creator.
I used this bag while on vacation walking around town. Carried my diabetes supplies, water bottle, sunglasses, cap, windbreaker, and phone. What I liked the most was not having to take it off to access the pockets; just slide it to the side or front; perfect when sitting in restaurants or bars. I suppose the same can be said for any sling bag, but I found the size of this one to be just right. If I needed to carry an iPad or anything more, I’d opt for a backpack.
Great video. The testing of the devices helps everyone. Thank you
This bag is actually on the short list for me for a sling bag of this size. My use case is basically: empty my pockets, but also carry a packable jacket, small first aid pouch, memobottle a6, and pair of work gloves. I don't honestly need much more. Outside secondary pocket gets gloves and nothing else. The trouble is the compartment lacking any form of organization beyond that divider. I have no use for it at all and would rather the older version with the more traditional tablet sleeve. Competitive options: Northface Borealis sling, Hydro Flask Slingback sling, maybe the 7L Tomtoc edc sling. The Hydro Flask seems like the best organization, but worst strap. Maybe I can transplant the strap from another bag.
What is the issue with the strap on the Hydro Flask Slingback Sling?
I love mine Atom Sling. Going on 4 years now. For travel, I use it for phone, chargers, 8" tablet. Only thing I wish it had was a small side pocket for water bottle. In winter, i also use the front straps for my vest. I roll it up tight and then tighten straps on it. Works great. Everything on the sling is still performing and no issues at all. I love it.
I think you may not be the right customer, but it isn't a case of your use case is the only one. I come to bags from hiking experience, and that carries over to my wants and needs for a sling. The Atom is small because sometimes small is the right choice. It has compression straps to put external cargo on, like a poncho or windbreaker. I can clip runners' belt bottles to the straps for water (when did putting water in your bag with your gear become a thing, anyway? Asking for expensive accidents). Likewise, a cheap carabiner lets me give a ball cap a home if I need that off. The front pocket is for quick small items. The main divider lets you put your tablet in with something between it and all the other things. The water resistant material is a plus. It isn't a big cargo carrier, but it serves a purpose. I appreciate your review. There isn't only 1 right application for a bag.
We have been getting more into hiking lately and I can definitely see that it would be popular with hikers. I think my primary issue is that the bag is still rather large given the relatively small volume it carries. At first glance it would appear that it can hold much more. I think the packable version might have been a better fit for us in hindsight.
I have one and I like it. I see many of these sling videos where people complain about the product. I think many people treat a sling bag like a regular backpack, and they expect it to work that way too. It is a sling bag to carry only essentials. If you are going to carry a laptop or games, use a backpack. I have the first release and it works great. I don't need to carry all the stuff you bring out, but if I do, I just pull out my back pack. No worries. Oh and I do exist!!:)
I use this for walking the dog - I put a water bottle, ball, lead in the main compartment, treats in the front pocket and poo bags fit nicely in the carry strap pocket. The best thing about it is that it is easy to swing to the front and open while on the move. I have also used it for light EDC use when on Jury duty - it was great for dumping stuff into when going through security at the court. It may not have a specific purpose but I think that’s the point - it is a versatile, multi purpose bag.
This is exactly what I'm looking at this sling for, when you say lead, is this a normal lead or a long/drag lead? Looking at something that can fit my long lead and a water bottle plus small things like a pair of gloves.
@@HunterSol I use a normal lead. It might fit a larger lead too, but to be honest I have now switched to using a Chrome Industries Kadet, because it has a built in stabiliser strap and I found it annoying that the atom slipped to one side of my back on dog walks.
@@proodscot awesome, thanks! I'll take a look at that one too 😊
For anyone watching this video, most people put their water bottles outside through the front’s tuck away storage straps, that’s kind of what they were conceived for. It’s meant for people to be able to compress down a water bottle, or umbrella, or slides etc to the outside of the bag for more storage
I just ordered this sling.. i own other two strap type backpacks, but wanted something smaller for the not so serious day hikes.. I dont need a 20 liter day pack for a water bottle and a subway sandwich.
This is a bag I'm looking at currently. I want a smaller pack with quick access to the bag without taking it off for the medical bs I have to take around with me. Thank you for showing a nalgene in it as that was one of the specific items I was wondering how it would fit.
No problem! It's the one thing I wish I saw in more bag reviews so I always try to include a fit test in mine.
I guess if you have bigger things, just put in a bigger bag or a backpack.. 😂 but this bag served me very well
Can I ask what kind of stuff you were able to slot into it? It seemed like everything we tried that was more than a pocket dump and a small water bottle didn't really work.
Where Atom Sling offers me to put my wallet securely from the thieves in some hidden / protected / not so easy to teach zippered inside pocket?!
Every time I use Atom Sling behind my back = I worry a lot if I still have my cards and IDs and money with me or I’ve presented crucial valuables to the thieves in the subway or just in the urban crowd?!
Where to put a bunch of small items like power bank, cables and Bluetooth in-ear headset so they not flying all around the whole inside space of main big pockets and catch scratches hitting with your keys or something solid and big inside?!
It sucks exactly when I don’t need bigger items but have to free my pockets from small valuables like wallet, keys, power bank, headset, sunglasses and etc!!!
Deuter Organizer Belt 1.8L waist bag does so much better job to keep all small items securely and firmly in place than this nonsense aka Atom Sling 8L, not to mention up to 2L of volume is enough for everyday small items or up to 4L if I’d wish to have kindle or iPad Mini with me as well!
And yes, when I have to take something big with me - Atom Sling 8L is NOT enough, you’d better have at least 12L or even 16L of volume to have it all at once = some extra layer of cloth, thermo bottle, sunglasses, snacks, some A4 papers maybe etc!!!
Atom Sling 8L falls in the middle of nowhere = too big and clumsy for smaller valuables while too small and awkward for bigger items, alas!
P.S. The closest to ideal sling bag I had was Thule Crossover Sling 17L:
- 17L is enough for everything including 13” ultra book or 11” iPad Pro with big on-ear headphones if necessary!
- external stretch mesh water bottle pocket helped to keep your drinks securely from gadgets inside!
- a lot of internal small pockets and hidden zippered pockets allowed to keep all small valuables perfectly organised and secure!
I found this bag most useful when snowboarding/skiing. It's nice to be able to quickly swing the bag to the front when getting on the ski lift. It holds the right amount of stuff I need for a day trip on the mountain. I use it when flying too. Usually this doesn't get counted as a bag. It could definitely use more organization but I do like the quality/construction of the bag.
The purpose of the bag is a light pack for hikers who prefer a sling to a two strap backpack. That is sole purpose. It is a specialized bag.
To your point, we are hikers who have hiked with this bag several times and found that it gave us both shoulder pain. Having a reversible strap may have alleviated this. We cover that in the video.
I think you need a backpack instead of a sling bag for all the stuff you want to carry.
The issue is mostly that the design, including the strangely shaped pockets and short zippers really rob it of any versatility. Sling bags have existed for decades, well before we started putting fanny packs around our torsos and calling that a sling. People seem to conflate the two. One is a suitable for a pocket dump and the other is meant to straddle the line between that and a full sized backpack. A sling of this size and price, advertised with this many liters of storage, should at least be able to comfortably hold a standard sized water bottle and a few other things, as every other sling of this style that I've used has been able to do. Overall, this sling has the feeling of a purpose made case for something unidentifiable you'd find in the wild. Like finding a nice looking bag at a garage sale that it turns out was only intended to ever carry a Game Boy. Increasing the size should increase the versatility. There are much smaller and cheaper, fanny pack style slings than this that will comfortably carry some of the items we tried out in this video.
This bag is NOT for everyone. For example, my partner likes the "black hole" bag style. Everything just goes into the bag, she will dig through it later to find what she needs. Lots of things go in there throughout the day. The Atom 8L is not for her. However, it IS the perfect bag for me. I only carry with me what I absolutely need. I like all of the things I'm carrying around to be organized and easily accessible. This bag is perfect for me. The front most pouch contains my wallet, keys, and other things that would normally go in my pockets. The back pocket(s) carry my small travel instrument, my notebook, and some other small items; leaving me a little room in case I find a small thing I just need to carry with me outside of my pockets. I also really love the shoulder strap. I wear a lot of tank tops and wide necked shirts and the padded strap really does make a difference for me carrying my bag around on long days. It's exactly what I needed from a bag. But this bag is not for everyone. I think it just depends on your bag needs and how and what kind of stuff you take with you.
I went with the same size Patagonia Black Hole Sling with its larger opening, it’s packable so I can use it when I need to and it’s more comfortable. I’m in a major city and have a backpack on me 99% of the time so I wanted an alternative, specially when walking the dog. I can fit a decent sized thermos for the dog + my water bottle and whatever else I need.
You may like the maxpedition noatak
I got it because I walk to the gym and don't want to take my purse and a separate gym bag. This fits my water bottle, towel, locker lock, wallet, a couple resistance bands, keys and phone. I don't need a full size backpack for just that stuff.
While I disagree with you in the end, what I like about your video is that you give us your honest view which made me think twice about getting this bag and you respect different opinions. So 👍
Thank you. I do pull this bag out regularly when I'm considering what EDC solution to use for the day, and have considered creating a follow up review, but ultimately I arrive at the same conclusions every time I use it. The primary problem for me is that any water bottle over 12 ounces dominates the available space inside. I think having a separate water bottle sleeve or pocket on the right side would greatly aid the overall usability of the Atom and I imagine I would use it regularly.
In my opinion in bags if you do not compromise I have to carry a large weight , as a woman I carry a lot, my only leather wallet is pretty heavy, but thank you for few points you highlighted, very useful. Shame as these are well known brands and products should be well thought through, but often they are not, yet we pay a lot of money for a their imperfect products.
Nalgene can be clipped on the back using the straps, flip it upside down and it works a treat.
lovely colour but we do not get in the UK, but not many colours, I like colourful bags with good taste ;); we are waiting for Patagonia to supply more colours to Europe before buying it
Buena Review, muy sincero.
Great bag for a day out or for commuting to work to have some bits n bobs in and a spare jacket. If you wanna carry round 3 games consoles and litres of water i agree this isn’t the bag for you but i feel like most people with common sense would get a larger bag for that…
I'm not implying that you would try to carry three gaming systems. A standard nalgene is about one liter, which this bag did not accommodate well. Patagonia is a well known brand that may not be available at retail for everyone. Some people are likely to be purchasing this bag online without seeing it in person. It's a given that this would hold a jacket, wallet, and keys, as any sling bag (or even a fanny pack) might. The goal is really to show a few larger standard items that someone might try to put into a sling of this size and show you how it performs. The primary issue I take with this bag is that it's large and bulky, yet the strange pocket design and short zippers prevent the space from being utilized effectively. There are other sling bags that are of a similar size that can accommodate these larger items, as there are physically smaller bags that can hold as much as the Atom does.
My mom got me one as a gift and I wish she hadn't spent the money. I appreciate that the phone pocket is stretchy but the zipper is absolutely too small for me to get in my phone (Galaxy S22 Ultra, which is fractions of an inch longer than the other current Galaxy S-series phones....)
I agree. I don't really understand that decision myself. IMO, all of the zippers are too short on the bag.
I would probably cinch the nalegene down with those straps on the front.
We did give that a try. It sort of works but puts a lot of pressure on the stuff inside the bag. Probably fine as long as there's only soft stuff inside.
@@RideorDieGaM ok. Which sling bag did you go with? I’ve been looking at the north face base camp voyager.
@@wille324 I eventually went with the Tomtoc bag I have a review for. I actually have two slings from them now and I prefer both to the Patagonia.
Couldn’t agree more!
Patagonia Atom Sling 8L just sucks due to a lot of reasons!
Put it straight in more details, just take a look on my regular mandatory EDC:
1. Wallet with bank cards, some cash, office pass and ID = no place to securely keep it inside Patagonia Atom Sling away from thieves and it’s the major flaw!!!
2. Thermo flask with some drink, hot or cold according to the season = no external pocket so you risk every time you put such flask inside right next to any gadget, cause even the best flasks in the world sometimes leak and could literally kill your iPad or Kindle!
3. Smartphone, keys, iPad and/or Kindle = no problem to find a right place for them inside Atom Sling, wow, great done!
4. Power bank with cables and in-ear Bluetooth headset = no organisation small pockets in Patagonia Atom Sling, once again a huge problem!!!
…cause I don’t like small items are flying across the whole space inside the sling and no way to keep them and find them exactly where you put them!!!
Keep them within pocket with key holder - it’s still way too big for it, not to mention the keys are going to hit and scratch such stuff like power bank or headset case, while stretch pocket on the strap of the sling already occupied with your smartphone!
5. Sunglasses in the hard case = once again, the second external is a must not to waste the space inside and to keep
them at hand to use right away if need it!
As a matter of fact to conclude with:
1. If sometimes I don’t need water bottle with me for short urban trips cause I have easily find where to buy any small drink anytime I want and drink it all at once not keeping it with me plus gadget wise I don’t bring iPad with me as well (only smartphone, power bank and in-ear headset)…
Well, nice small waist bag is my preferable choice in this case!!!
…something like Deuter Organizer Belt 1.8L or Osprey Daylite Waist 2L solve the task much better than Atom Sling 8L!
2. If I need to carry with me bigger gadgets like iPad and/or on-ear headsets, and still
no flask though…
Well, it’s anyway the waist bag like Fjallraven Ulvo Large 4L / Thule Tact waist bag 5L or even something like small messenger bag aka Mammut Shoulder Bag Round 4L / Thule Crossover 2 Crossbody 8L bag!
3. If I need water bottle anyway - I will have some small and light backpack with appropriate external stretch pocket, Thule Crossover Sling 17L or Deuter Stepout backpack 16L…
4. Finally, if I have big gadgets with me = laptop as a must and/or some extra cloth layer like hoodie or rain jacket or even change of cloth for gym = welcome to the big urban backpacks area, The North Face Kaban 2.0 27L or Gregory Border 25L or Deuter Giga 28L or Kelty Redwing 22L and so on!!!
Where, in which category from above to put this nonsense aka Patagonia Atom Sling 8L - I just don’t know, it doesn’t fit any!!!
sounds like you need a wagon for your EDC
“We have a front pocket of indeterminate use” - No no, it’s very determinate. That’s where your keys and other quick access items like a wallet can go. Hence the internal key clip and general wallet-size of the pocket.
“The back pocket has a divider in the middle for an unknown reason” - No no, it’s actually there for an exceptionally known reason. It’s a tablet sleeve. Like Patagonia states on the website description for this product.
This type of sassy faux-uneducated review style is so cringey. We get it, you personally don’t happen to like this bag. Don’t pretend like there aren’t good reasons for why certain features exist. Lame.
You can feel any way you want to about the video. That is fine. However, may I ask why you are looking up review videos on a bag you clearly already own and like? If you know and feel these things, why don't you make your own video?
@@RideorDieGaM I don’t own the bag, I’m doing research on it and unfortunately stumbled upon your “review” in the process.
Another hilarious thing about your assessment of this bag: in your replies to various commenters pointing out similar flaws that I have, you claim to know and understand that this bag is primarily aimed at light hikers, but you focus so much on what mobile gaming platforms will fit or not fit in what pocket as if that’s something that anyone other than you is concerned about for this product.
I’m glad you found the tomtoc, a *tech sling* for the very hyper specific use case you personally happen to think a sling should satisfy. Why you ever felt that this Atom sling would be something you’d get use out it is beyond me, let alone why you took the time to craft this annoying and intentionally off-putting review of what is essentially at this point a classic of the bag world that only you apparently happen to have a problem with.
@@michaels9574 The review includes an attempt to fit some daily use tech items someone might want to carry because I didn't see that in any other videos and seemed to be a common question. If you look at Amazon reviews there are tech fit questions on almost every bag. It's not indicative of my use. I rarely, if ever, take these items out of the house. As I explained, we have used it for hiking and daily use multiple times and it wasn't comfortable and didn't fit basic hiking items, like a water bottle, camera, light jacket, etc. without bulging.
Unfortunately for me, I thought I could rely on peoples media literacy to bridge the gap between the fit test and the bag assessment. I was wrong. I still own this bag and I still consider it for daily and hiking use and unfortunately every time it has come up short. The tomtoc is a better sling because it's more comfortable and daily use items fit in it better, tech or not.
I didn't get paid to make this review. You didn't pay to watch it. You're complaining about something that you didn't have to watch with with the few precious minutes you have on this earth. My opinion is not the only one on TH-cam. I'm failing to generate sympathy here. If you would like to heap fawning praise on a very popular product produced by a large corporation in your own video, best of luck. Maybe this is the push you need to bridge the gap from upset commenter to upset video creator.
It's the price for me.... what a joke.