An ode to Fjallraven Kanken Laptop 17"

23 Oct, 2023

Being a long-term user of Fjallraven Kanken 17", I thought it deserves an ode.

NB: I am currently using Kanken 17" in deep forest colour (the old model with one bottle pocket), which has been serving me for 4 years daily - EDC, grocery bag, weekend trips.
Before that, I had Fjallraven Kanken Big (discontinued, 17" is a successor model) for another 4 years, which makes it overall 8 years of experience with this line.

Pros:

1. It is big. Funny enough it is larger than said on the official site. For the 17" model, the dimensions are: 42x30x18, giving us 22.5 liters, compared to 20 declared by the manufacturer.For Kanken no.2 Laptop 15", for comparison, that would be: 40x28x16, resulting in 17.9 liters, compared to 18 declared by the manufacturer.
2. It is spacious. Due to the monospace layout of the backpack and its clamshell opening, it easily fits, e.g., a shoe box from Adidas in size 11 US. You need to see the eyes of the salesperson in the store when you say you don't need a bag and put the box into your backpack.
3. It is robust. It serves well as my daily EDC, fitting a laptop, chargers, thermos with hot drink, puff jacket, leaving some space for after-work groceries shopping. It serves great as a travel backpack - packing cubes from Muji easily find their place in it. An advanced tip: when I needed to pack plenty of things in it, I put my 13" laptop into the main compartment, near the foam 'pad,' and use the extra spacious dedicated laptop compartment for larger stuff that could be packed flat, for example, my self-inflating sleeping mat.
4. It does not look bulky on me (yet I am 184cm/6ft tall).
5. It is lightweight for its volume/durability - 0.5kg.
6. They have changed something in Vinylon fabric between Kanken Big and Kanken 17" because it now lasts longer. After 4 years of usage, my backpack still holds its shape and does not have any major traces of tear.
7. In the newer Kanken 17" model, they have also fixed an issue with the main compartment zipper - they have made the opening more rounded, which should help the zipper to last longer (the only reason for me to look for a replacement).

Now, to the desired improvements/dreams:

1. Despite Vinylon being to some extent water-resistant, I really wish one of the two things would have happened:

• Fjallraven's rain covers would be updated to include one fitting 17" model. Yes, those ones, tailored for the boxy shape of Kankens, with buttons to clip it on.
• Would be curious to see Fjallraven Kanken 17" made of G-1000 (similar to no.2 model) or Bergshell fabric; however, I am not sure if it can keep the shape of the backpack.

2. I would not mind having slightly better padding on the back. I would probably prefer something like they had on no.21 (unfortunately discontinued) - two vertical padded stripes, leaving some space for the air to circulate between those. I don't think that would increase weight drastically or change the way the backpack looks compared to e.g. using Raven's meshy back panel. It probably would add some extra rigidity to the backpack.
3. Another thing that could be slightly reinforced is the way straps are attached to the back of the backpack. I needed to get it fixed after 3.5 years; however, it was a very cheap (5 EUR) stitching fix almost every shoe/bag repair store can do for you.
4. I would not mind a detachable sternum strap. Most of the time (90%) I am quite happy without it, but for the remaining 10%, it would be great to have it. However, this is something that could be stitched to existing straps in the same shoe/bag repair stores.

The rest is, honestly, fine. I don't need tons of organisation, a separate pocket for sunglasses or whatsoever, nothing that I could not add by using organisers.

_{P.S. This was originally written and published in r/Fjallraven - link to the post.}