Isabella 3.0 Backpack

i bought this to replace an older version. some improvements (zipper on front small outside pouch, beautifyl dark blue green color), but 2 changes that significantly degrade the daily experience: 1) took zipper away from outside side pocket, which was great for grabbing keys without taking the whole backpack off, just one strap, and 2) removing the 2-way zipper on the smaller of two larger compartments. these cutting of corners alone almost made me return the bag. i LOVED my old version - now i'm annoyed with it constantly. still giving it 3 stars because it's one of the better small backpacks out there, but hope north face fixes these problems/downgrades in the next version. also please bring back a solid black/grey version that doesn't highlight the sporty logo so we can use this in more professional settings.

I'm fairly petite and often find backpacks are too big for me...this pack fits great (I ordered a couple different packs and this is the one I kept). I specifically bought it for a trip to Europe to use on the plane and when out and about. It fit everything I needed and I appreciated the multiple pockets for organizing. Only one of the side pockets will hold a water bottle since one is too short (24oz owala fit perfect, 32oz hydro flask was a tighter fit). I liked how the zippers for the largest two compartments could hide behind the water bottle to be less conspicuous while traveling and I was also able to use a small cable lock on them. My 15" hp laptop doesn't fit in the laptop pocket inside the pack, but does fit loose in the main compartment.