What is the functional difference between top loading and panel loading packs?
Panel loading packs… a) Generally have a large opening making it easy to load and access the contents. b) Have zippers that could potentially fail. JanSport technical packs use beefy #9 or #10 size zippers in main panel loading compartments so the risk of failure is very small. And JanSport almost always backs up the panel zipper with a compression strap as a fail-safe. c) The compression straps can interfere with zipper access. Top loading packs: d) Are great for the truly paranoid since they don’t reply on zippers. e) Can be difficult to access, particularly when the gear you want is at the bottom. f) In some top loaders the lid can be extended upward allowing over packing, or stashing of gear under the lid.
