Osprey Farpoint 40

The Farpoint 40 has been the default answer to 'one bag for everything' travel for a decade, and the current version is the best it has ever been. The clamshell opening packs like a suitcase, the padded harness and hipbelt stow behind a zip panel when you check the bag or hand it to a sizer, and the LightWire frame actually transfers weight to your hips — a real suspension in a category full of padded straps pretending. At 21 x 14 x 9 inches it meets most major-airline carry-on limits, the recycled nylon shell wears like iron, and the All Mighty Guarantee means Osprey repairs or replaces it for life, which quietly makes it the cheapest pack per year of use in the budget class. The honest criticisms: at 3 lb 3 oz it is heavier than most budget rivals, the $165-185 price is a genuine stretch for a budget shopper, and the laptop sleeve sits against the outer face rather than your back. The Fairview 40 is the identical design in a women's fit at the same price. In a budget-travel-backpack context this is the pack to stretch for; only its price keeps the score short of perfect.