Ease of Use

Made to move with the mountain, the Talon 44 includes an injection-molded AirScape™ backpanel and a continuous-wrap harness and hipbelt, meaning navigating technical terrain is a breeze. Furthermore, Osprey makes sure the Talon 44 is easy to use with a lightweight feel and streamlined design.

Osprey’s design of hiking and camping backpacks all too often allows for extensive organizational features. Packing and reaching all your essential items for weekend getaways and day trips is easy with a top-loading main compartment.

With the top loader lit, it can be difficult to reach items that have slipped to the bottom without removing everything. To solve this, Osprey has included a zip at the bottom so you can find items fallen to the bottom without taking all your gear out. This is essential for cold, Alpine adventures when no one wants to stop for too long.

In addition, keeping hydrated is easy with a hydration reservoir sleeve. I also love that Osprey so often includes dual-zippered hip pockets for easy access to your quick reach items, like phone, compass, snacks, sunglasses.

There are lots of other great pockets and attachment points to carry all you need for a multitude of different activities. For example, there’s a Stow-On-The-Go Trekking Pole attachment, removable sleeping pad straps, stretch mesh side pocket, stretch front pocket, stretch pocket on the harness and internal key attachment clip.

As mentioned above, the features of this pack make it super versatile. The light design, top loader main compartment and lumbar packs ensure hikers, campers, travelers, and bikers will have all their needs covered.

Comfort

The AirScape™ Suspension also creates a balanced and comfortable load. In addition, your back can breathe easier and sweating is minimal with the injection-molded, die-cut foam AirScape™ backpanel, also providing a body-hugging fit for extra comfort.

A design based on dynamic movability creates ample comfort, while the flexible BioStretch harness and hipbelt, coming with a continuous lumbar-to-hipbelt wrap. As you move, the pack will move with you.

Additionally, a pack can never be comfortable unless it fits properly, and thankfully an easy fit is possible with the Talon 44’s adjustable back length. Ensuring superior comfort is also easy with the compressions straps, which also help in stabilizing a heavy load.

Unfortunately, the buckles and the mail clips are slightly small, which can be awkward to use when wearing gloves. But the bag is extremely light and therefore will need to make sacrifices somewhere.

However, a point to note is the body-hugging fit does not allow as much comfort as I would prefer, because there is less gap for airflow than other rucksacks. However, this close fit does provide extra stability and security, perfect for arduous descents and technical terrains. Osprey cleverly mitigates this with a large amount of mesh, allowing for air to pass through.

Materials

I’ll admit, Osprey packs don’t come cheap, but neither do the materials they use. The Talon 44 is made with top-notch materials, including a high-quality bluesign®-approved and recycled high-tenacity nylon, which features a PFC-free DWR coating. Naturally long-lasting, sturdy, but light, nylon is a good choice of fabric.

I’ll always go for an ethical and sustainable brand, and Osprey certainly does their bit for the environment by using recycled materials. However, the superior quality of the bluesign®-approved recycled high-tenacity nylon is also essential in making this pack super sturdy.

Durability

As a brand that never skimps on materials or quality, you know when you buy from the Osprey brand alone that your pack will go the distance. The clever design and choice of material mean that the Talon 44 comprises excellent and sturdy material, just like the Robic nylon for durability.

After doing my research, I was thrilled to see that many reviewers have found the pack to be long-lasting, with hardly any minor wear and tear despite some heavy use, including multi-day backpacking trip.

Aimed at men, the Talon 44 is well suited to a male frame. If you wanted to stick with a woman’s frame, you could try the Tempest 40, which has all the same features but is 0.1 kg lighter and is better suited to a woman’s frame.

Including a waterproof cover might have been a better idea, but this isn’t a significant issue when you consider the superb value for money that you’re getting with this pack. However, you can buy a rain cover from Osprey if you’re needing one.

The 44 liters capacity gears you up nicely for all types of trips, including light camping trips and all-day hikes, especially in the winter when you’ll need more gear. This size is perfect for a lightweight overnight trip, which is completely manageable with the correct number of straps for lashing a tent or roll mat. The adjustable lid also lets you carry more kits between this and the main pack.

This should cover a wide range of trips, but if you need something for more technical or longer camping trips, I would highly recommend the Osprey Aether Pro 70 backpack. This pack is no different from the Talon 44, with a comfortable fit, balanced load, anti-gravity suspension, and versatile design, but with an extra 26 liters of space. Its huge 4000+ cubic inches of storage space will also allow you to stock well for any activity.

Whenever I spend over $100 on something, I want to make sure I’m getting great value for money. Hands down, Osprey deliver this with the Talon 44. One of their cheaper packs, it covers all the basis for a variety of different activities.

With an abundance of features, top quality design and a comfortable, stable fit, you’ll be well kitted out to tackle several adventures in many conditions. So, there you have it; there is some severe functionality and comfort to be had with the Talon 44.