Customer Reviews The North Face Recon

I purchased this product because the last Recon Backpack I purchased was such a great bag, however once I received this item I soon realized the new Recon wasn't built has good as the one from 2011. The newer design seems smaller and the fabric they're now using felt less durable and more prone to tearing; it seems to have lost its stretchiness. The front pocket isn't as deep as the older generation and the main pouch is much smaller than before. It seems the new design has removed valuable space for organizing and easily getting to your items. It also appears they're using cheaper fabric that doesn't feel as soft or as durable. Unfortunately, until this bag is re-designed with deeper pockets and extra room inside, I won't be purchasing another Northface Recon Bookbag.

Details and reviews state this backpack is "water repellent" and it is just the opposite. This backpack draws in moisture and I do not recommend. Contents inside were ruined after walking in the rain under an umbrella.

I purchased a recon backpack on Feb. 2 to use as a daily commuter as well as some occasional hiking and biking. After 4 months of very light use, I realized the sternum strap had ripped (picture attached). TNF used to have great customer service so I reached out to get a replacement sternum strap. Customer service insisted that I send the whole backpack in for an "evaluation" to get it covered under warranty, instead of sending in the defective part only. This is my daily use backpack so it's not worth the hassle to empty everything out and get it shipped off for weeks for TNF to "evaluate". I'm not trying to start a fraudulent sternum strap side hustle here, I just want my gear to function properly. I'm very disappointed in TNF quality and customer service, and don't intend to buy their equipment in the future.

I hate this bag so much. Not worth the money. The company should seriously reconsider their design. Here's why: 1) this bag DOES NOT STAND ON ITS OWN. i tried empty, i tried with only laptop, I tried with laptop and books, i tried with laptops, books, and lunch, filled every compartment and yet will not stand by itself and will face-slam the ground. 2) the compartment of these bags are useless and don't utilize space well. The laptop compartment is so thin it just fits the laptop because god forbid you want to carry the charger too in the same compartment. The main compartment is deceivingly large; if you put anything in the other outer small compartments it takes away space from the main one and make it weirdly wide from the bottom but very narrow at the top because of their bad design. 3) because most space is occupied by the main part, i guess now you have to combine books, lunch, snacks, chargers and anything you have in that mixed bag since all other compartments would not fit. I really regret buying such an expensive bag. I should have replaced my High Sierra with another one.

Hello! To begin I got a north face backpack a couple of years ago and loved it! It lasted for years! However I bought one with my own money last year and the quality is just awful! The pockets tear so much so that I can't put my water bottle in on either side! I will NOT be buying one again!

I am a student and I need to carry my laptop every day. It has a large pocket in the middle where everything becomes a mess due to improper design

Hoped to replace a Recon that I've had forever, but this version was extremely heavy, and had half as much functional space. May just keep my worn out bag.

terrible for school couldn't even fit 4 one inch binders in it without the bag looking weird. only recommend for hiking or something.

Bought this for my daughter last year for school and the side pockets didn't even last 4months ! North face says it's not covered .

I had one of these backpacks for years, and I recently purchased a replacement because I spilled juice in my old one that I was never able to really get out. The new version SUCKS. The top front pocket is so large that it prevents anything from being stored in the main pouch underneath it. So much wasted space!!! Why can't they just go back to the previous version; it worked so well I loved it! Now I can barely fit two binders inside and it tips over every time. So annoying and frustrating I get angry every time I look at it. PLEASE FIX THIS, NORTH FACE!!!

I had this exact same boo bag 6 years ago, and about a year ago I decided to replace it with this new one. It was probably the worst decision I have ever made. This bag has like a back plastic like panel that is so sharp and painful on your legs when you try to sit the bag on your lap. It is now completely ripped at that bottom part. In addition to this, within the first 3 ish months of having this bag, the right side of the strap started to rip at the stitching of where the mesh started, extremely disappointed. I really did expect something of higher quality from TNF, considering I have bought this same book bag in the past. I am a college student, so it is not like I really over use my bag. All I ever carry in it are 2 notebook, a planner. and my computer with a charger and maybe some snacks.

The design of this backpack seems like it would work great but once you use it you realize it doesn't work well at all. The laptop compartment in the back works fine, although the compartment is really rigid and doesn't seem like it would be comfortable to have against your back. The real issue is the main compartment. The zippers only go halfway down the bag which makes it difficult to get things in and out. The bag does have quite a bit of space in the compartment but it's nearly impossible to get things in the compartment. This bag was a gift for my 7th grade son who is using it for school - he normally carries his chromebook as well as a 1" binder, 1 or 2 notebooks and a lunch box in it. Doesn't sound like a lot to but it's a struggle every morning to get the backpack loaded up for the day due to the issue with the zippers. I'm sorry I bought this one - it is a complete waste of money.

If i could return this bag I happily would. Such a terrible design and not useful at all.

I thought this was going to be my 3rd Recon backpack in a 12 year period but the new changes made me return my new Recon and order the Carhartt Legacy Deluxe Work Backpack. I don't see this new obsession with companies boasting they've made great laptop backpacks and then proceed to think they've done that by turning a once versatile, functional backpack into a rigid, stiff, inflexible, one dimensional new product. Newsflash, my Recon backpack from 6 years ago had a laptop slit in it's large back pocket and it worked just find and dandy. Relax, we've gone overboard with the idea of being secure. Backpacks are pushed, stuffed, and shoved around quite often throughout their lifetime. I'm an everyday user of mine. Whatever piece of hard foam, plastic, or whatever kind of stiff material you have now running top to bottom of the new Recon has ruined it for me. Besides making it extremely, one dimensional and inflexible... it somehow also makes the ability to open the back wide gone too. Buying a new backpack to find you can't get one of the major pockets to barely open wide at all is an awkward and not very useful design choice. I was happy I was getting a new Northface Recon backpack until I saw a new hire, or bored employee tried to outsmart the room and took for granted some basic things an owner expects from a backpack. I can't believe I'm writing this but I also can't believe I bought a simple classic Recon backpack and thought... I can't use this. I never thought that was even possible until I took this out of the box.

I'd give this bag zero stars if I could. I'm a law student, and bought this bag exclusively for classes. It is one of the worst purchases I've ever made. The bag doesn't stand up, it flips forward no matter how much or how little you put in it. You can't even lean it against anything. The only way to prevent it from falling forward is to lay it on its back. It's totally impractical. Don't make the mistake I made and buy this backpack!

I bought this for my family's trip to Europe and cursed myself the entire time for choosing this one. The back is hard as if there was a wooden board making it super uncomfortable. It tips forward (will not stand for nothing in this world) so its annoying, but the worst is the zippers don't open all the way, making it almost impossible to reach things at the bottom of the bag without removing everything else. Try changing clothes of a screaming toddler in the middle of a trip holding the child with one hand and with the other trying to grab stuff from the bag that keeps tipping forward and because the zippers are so narrow, you cant reach things from the bottom! We tried it again in our trip to Disney, and omg what a nightmare again... my husband had a better time with his $30 UA bag.... I HATE THIS BAG and wish it wasnt too late to return it

I had this backpack years ago and I just bought a new one and the quality has decreased tremendously. The straps are stiff and hurt my shoulders and the pockets are set up so wrong that my stuff gets lost in the bag. I will never buy another North Face backpack

The backpack was very small. Uncomfortable too. Cannot fit 90 bagels, only like 30. I would rate it .5/5 if i could. Disappointed and such a waste of money. You should buy Jansports backpacks instead smh

I love North Face bags but this was a disappointment. I have used many North Face bags and feel like the bagpacks are getting smaller. I got this bag for college and I could barely fit 2 1-inch binders, 3 notebooks, and my laptop. I did use it for air travel, however the only reason it worked for travel for me was because I only had my laptop and my clothes were rolled up. Overall, great bag but horrible for a college student.

The description clearly says that this bag comes with a fleece-lined laptop sleeve. Mine came without one, so my 13" Macbook pro has a lot of room to move in there. Are there two models that are being represented on the same page or something? Not sure if returning for a new one will fix this.

No fleece lining in the laptop compartment, bag will not sit properly due to the flexvent hitting the floor first, not roomy enough for all the college books, notebooks, supplies I need to care for college, and not reflective at all. Laptop compartment feels too tight to put a laptop plus charger in it. Book compartment can probably hold maybe 2 books and 2 notebooks. Pocket that holds pencils, pens, and other necessities is to small.

I ordered this bag after seeing a milllion videos of students buying this bag on YouTube and was SO excited to receive it today. Sadly, I'm not sure how they qualified this as a 30-Liter since I could fit hardly anything in it. It's beautiful and it will kill me to return. But for nursing school I know I'll have tons of binders and books and I've been searching for the perfect bag for the job. This bag could barely hold 2 empty binders in the main compartment, the laptop compartment is extremely rigid due to the back support and could only hold maybe a couple notebooks if you wanted to squish them in there instead of a computer. I didn't wear it around much since I knew just taking it out the back that it wouldn't work, but the back support it very hard and slightly curved which makes filling the backpack slightly difficult and it doesn't stay up on its own. The organizational pocket doesn't go all the way down to bottom, so while it offers some room for additional things like a planner, they would have to be somewhat short to fit. i seriously don't know how they market this for outdoors or school it seems like it would be useless for both.

I ordered this bag after seeing a milllion videos of students buying this bag on YouTube and was SO excited to receive it today. Sadly, I'm not sure how they qualified this as a 30-Liter since I could fit hardly anything in it. It's beautiful and it will kill me to return. But for nursing school I know I'll have tons of binders and books and I've been searching for the perfect bag for the job. This bag could barely hold 2 empty binders in the main compartment, the laptop compartment is extremely rigid due to the back support and could only hold maybe a couple notebooks if you wanted to squish them in there instead of a computer. I didn't wear it around much since I knew just taking it out the back that it wouldn't work, but the back support it very hard and slightly curved which makes filling the backpack slightly difficult and it doesn't stay up on its own. The organizational pocket doesn't go all the way down to bottom, so while it offers some room for additional things like a planner, they would have to be somewhat short to fit. i seriously don't know how they market this for outdoors or school - it seems like it would be useless for both.

The straps are cheap looking and stiff

Redesign added a separate computer compartment which is nice but mostly unnecessary since the previous design had an incorporated pocket in the main pouch. Also this new pocket causes your laptop to hit the ground anytime you put the bag down; the old one (slightly elevated in the main compartment) did not have this problem. They then made the front storage compartment half the size as the old one with half the pockets. Not only can you not store as many items (e.g. calculators, power banks, cords, etc) in built in pockets but also the main portion of the compartment is shallow and small. Not much can be stored in it and any thing you do store will simply fallout if your not careful any time the pocket is unzipped. NF needs to return to the previous design or at least the old style of front pocket coupled with the new computer pocket redesigned to keep your laptop from contacting the ground. Find a store that has the old version and buy that; stay away from this version.