For the record, I do not own the featured image on this page. It is property of SwissGear and/or Group III International.

I have been owning and using Wenger then SwissGear backapcks since 2006, mostly for attending trade school.

I have been using them for EDC since 2008.

I have owned five Wenger backpacks purchased from 2006 to 2011 and carried between 2006 and 2015.

I also owned two Victorinox backpacks which I purchased from 2015 to 2016 and carried between 2015 and 2017.

I will say that while Wenger and SwissGear were more affordable and more durable than their Victorinox counterparts.

They are also more available at brick and mortar retailers.

In November of 2017, I purchased a SwissGear backpack, which is the successor to Wenger.

Then on October 10, 2019, I purchased a SwissGear City Backpack Model Number 3598, which this review will be about.

This will be a review of my initial reactions, because I haven’t even owned it for twenty-four hours at the time of writing this.

However, I want to do a backpack review since they are instrumental in the world of EDC and I have been EDCing since the age of seven.

As a child and up to age twenty, I had carried my posessions in an Out Door products duffel bag. I did so until the zipper broke.

When I began trade school at age nineteen, I carried my books and laptop in my first Wenger backpack.

I had other backpacks to get me through trade school which I graduated in 2009.

At some point in trade school, I had realized that a backpack is better than a duffel bag for EDC.

So I used mostly Swiss branded backpack since then, except for a few brief times.

On October 10, 2019, I had some cash on me and was in the market for a new Swiss backpack.

I went to Target where most of them are sold and had a team member check the prices on each one I was interested in.

All were out of my price range of the cash I had on me when taxes factored in and I didn’t want to use my credit cards.

But then I saw the most basic model had a display tag of $39.99 even though it was scanning for $44.99.

I was able to get it sold to me for $39.99 of which I had enough to cover the sales tax without using my credit cards.

God was definitely with me on this.

I left the store and went home to set it up.

My initial reaction to it was that it was more narrow and lighter than what I had previously been using.

It also seemed more rugged.

The engineering on this bag is genius as far as space management goes.

I am able to fit just about everything I was previously carrying, including my computer repair tools, yet it is considerably more compact.

The only device I have yet to find a spot for is my graphing calculator, but I don’t really need to EDC that anyway.

According to SwissGear’s website, the 3598 is, “…an everyday backpack that entails modern functionality for commuters and travelers.”

Also according to SwissGear’s website;

Some of the features this backpack provides are:
-Padded, Airflow back panel with mesh fabric for superior back ventilation and support.
(excellent for everyday carrying outdoors in the Louisiana heat.)

-Padded shoulder straps with breathable mesh fabric and thumb ring adjuster pulls.
(perfect for carriers of different sizes and statures.)

-Front Panel pocket with side zipper for extra storage space.
(ideal medication/medical supplies storage for everyday carriers with special needs.)

-Front organizer panel with divider pockets and compartments for IDs, credit cards, smartphone, travel documents, and other essentials.
(handy when traveling in foreign countries.)

-Spacious main compartment features a padded tablet pocket.
(useful for holding reading/writing materials research or studying while on the go.)

-Mesh water bottle pocket.
(esential to keep the user hydrated whilst on foot.)

-Side accessory pocket.
(this is where I personally store my computer repair tools.)

-Side compression straps to tighten down load.
(genius design secures load better.)

The SwissGear 3598 has the following specifications:

It is made of durable enough Polyester.

The physical dimensions are 18 inches (45.72 cm) tall, 9 inches (22.86 cm) wide and 7 inches (17.78 cm) deep, which make it small enough to take just about anywhere.

The tare weight is 1.5 pounds (0.6804 kg), though depending on the contents it should not weigh the user down too much.

The total storage volume is 15.9 Liters (4.2 US Gallons.), so it should allow the user to take at least the essentials and maybe a little extra.

I know I have only had this for less than a day, but so far I am impressed and pleased!

By the way, if I am not pleased or if it fails, then there is ten year extended warranty.

Right now I give it a five out of five stars, especially because of the space management!

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