Osprey Aether 70 Backpack Review: a light Pack for Your Hikes

The Osprey Aether 70 is a backpack that will make you eager to hit the trails. It is lighter than average without sacrificing too much comfort and still able to handle weight nicely.

Osprey used in this pack a good combination of engineering and materials to make it extremely comfortable to wear. The hip belt and shoulder straps are great. They easily adjust to put all the weight where your body most effectively can carry it, on your hips.

The Aether 70 weights only 4 lbs. 10 oz, a lot less than backpacks of similar quality and capacity (with the possible exception of the ACT Lite.) It can handle heavy loads well despite of its lightweight design. So, it is an ideal pack for multidays trips. Perhaps a little small, if you need to carry technical gear or like to travel in winter for extended periods of time, though.

The only serious complain that I have about the Aether (and a bunch of other backpacks) is the bladder pocket design. You have to empty the backpack of half your gear every time you want to refill it! Besides, a couple of pockets in the hip belt would have been nice, but I suppose that is the trade-off for being so light, so I can’t really complain about it. Apart from that, an excellent hiking backpack.

Pros

• Comfortable
• Rugged
• Highly adjustable
• Able to handle heavy loads

Cons

• Not enough pockets
• Bladder pocket difficult to refill when the pack is loaded

• Approximate volume  70liters (4,200 cubic inches)
• Average weight: 2.1 kilograms (4lbs. 10oz.)
• Fits torso: 46 – 52cm (18 - 20.5 inches)
• Material: Nylon double-ripstop
• Frame material: HDPE/aluminum
• Number of stays: 2
• Number of pockets: 2 + main compartment
• Access / Loading: Top

The Osprey Aether 70 is an ideal backpack for multidays trips: light, comfortable, rugged, and with a reasonable price.