Customer Reviews The North Face Borealis

Never again will I but anything from North Face. Returned this backpack 10 days ago and it remains somewhere in transit. NF says it can take up to 30 days to receive and process a return, maybe even longer. Meanwhile NF gets the float on my money as the charge reminds on my credit card

only reason i'm giving it 1 star is because it doesn't let me give 0. it came fine, after one year both pockets ripped, and the zipper in the computer pocket come unattached to the fabric. didn't return immediately, but everything got worse, and just did so. DO NOT BUY THIS, BUY THE ONE WITH CLOTH ON THE POCKETS!!!

I received this as a gift for Christmas from my family (I did choose it based on reviews online) and it looks lovely and I have just used it for the first time on a trip and within 5 minutes my shoulders were sore and walking through the Airport I ended up having to take it off and carry the backpack it was so uncomfortable. The actual inside sizing/pockets etc was the perfect fit for a carry on bag with kids for snacks, iPad etc but I won't be using it again. It is also extremely annoying that is doesn't stand up right even when I leant it against a wall it seems to slide down flat unless perfectly placed and propped up. I have tried to reach out to the chat to speak to someone but haven't been able to get through just chat to the robot

Strap tore after less than a month of use. Never had more than a laptop, charger, 2 notebooks, and some pens in it, walking around a college campus. Terrible quality, especially for a product so expensive. Don't waste your money on North Face if you care about longevity.

this sucked. there's is hole now and I am sad :(

I bought this for my high school daughter in August. I paid almost $100. The strap detached from the backpack in January 5 months later) making it unusable. I called customer service, was transferred to the warranty department and was told if I didn't live near a Northface store, I would need to mail the backpack in and they would look at it to see if they could do anything. Very disappointing for the amount of money I paid. Expected it to at least last the school year.

This backpack is extremely uncomfortable and way too narrow to fit binders. The shape of it makes using it such a hassle. The pockets are all too small and my computer all hardly fit in the laptop sleeve. Puts me in a bad mood every time I have to use it. I don't know if it's the women shape that makes it so narrow, but I do not recommend buying this especially considering the price.

I wanted to love this backpack but as soon as I put it on I knew I would return it. The straps are extremely rigid and they are too narrow so it feels like the backpack is trying to kill my back when I wear it. I bought this for traveling but can't imagine standing around with heavy contents in this for more than 5 minutes. I love the look and all the compartments, especially the laptop section, but comfort is important in a backpack so this did not work for me.

I got this backpack to replace a North Face backpack that I loved. This one will not stand up straight because the front pocket only goes down halfway. There is barely any room in the front pocket which makes the backpack top-heavy. The second month I had the backpack, one of the buckle straps tore completely off from just trying to tighten it. Also, the stitching is coming loose and hangs.

I used it to travel, the front strap broke the first time I used the backpack. Cheaply made and kind of upset that I paid this kind of money for something that broke so easily!! Now I'm reading that I have to pay for shipping and for it to be insured to get it fixed! North face should have to pay for shipping on its own defective product, not the customer. Will never buy a north face backpack again if this is my end result with customer service.

I bought this to replace my old black north face backpack, which I absolutely loved for school. This one is designed horribly. The middle pocket doesn't go to the bottom of the bag, so not only is there not enough room to store items there, but there is an excess of room in the main pouch. However, since the top pocket only goes halfway down, books, pencil cases, etcetera get stuck at the bottom. Switching back to my old north face backpack and taking this back to the store.

11 days into school and water bottle pouch has holes in it. This is not from abuse. I have noticed other students with brand new packs like mine doing the same. I had a jester for more that four years and it never has holes in water bottle pouch. I needed a new pack because my water bottle is bigger now and the new pack is made for larger water bottles. The material was a poor choice.

Ordered the exclusive color. Picture showed the back was baby blue however it did not come like that it was gray. They sent another one and said the picture is pre production photo. 2 Nd one was also gray website still lists it as baby blue. False advertising of color very disappointed

Ordered this back pack for my daughter. When it arrived, we noticed the back side and handle are GRAY NOT BLUE. We called customer service and they said we could exchange for a new color or they could give us 10% off the bag and keep it. They stated the picture online is a prototype.

i just got my backpack and it seemed great! and the. i watched a few videos about it to get a better feel for the backpack and it's supposed to have a laptop sleeve. which my backpack does not have. very confused why not???

I purchased this backpack for my daughter for school--I've purchased other North Face products before, and thought the quality would justify the high price. Unfortunately, as others have mentioned, the mesh pockets/drink holders ripped almost immediately, despite light use. I called North Face, and was told that this was not covered under warranty, and we are stuck with a torn and expensive backpack. The backpack looked old right away. Very disappointed--I would not buy another North Face backpack.

My daughter received this backpack for school and within three months, both of the mesh side pockets ripped. The same thing happened to the Northface backpacks of three of her friends. I contacted Northface and was told this repair would not be covered under the warranty. So we are stuck with a very expensive backpack with ripped pockets that can not be used. Terrible customer service experience. Will not buy Northface backpacks again.

I had an old North Face Backpack in this model that I got back in 2011 that has lasted me through 8th grade to college. I still have it. After the padding wore down I got a new one. It sucks. Six months after I got it the strap ripped so I sent it in and got it fixed. Now a year and a half later the stitching on this backpack is separating and there are gigantic holes in the water bottle pockets. Compared to my previous backpack this one looks more beat up than the one I've had for 8 years and I've only had the new one for 2.5 years.

This backpack is so horrible. It ends up hurting my back more than helping it. It barely stretches out and can't hold that much stuff. Whenever I prop it against something, the wall, a shelf, etc., it ALWAYS slides down and never holds itself up. So annoying. I was skeptical of the bad reviews I read before buying it but now I understand how truly bad this is. I would get a different bag but I wasted all my money on this piece of trash.

This backpack was purchased as a gift. The bungee cord material had a small tear. After 6 weeks, the tear stretched. I contacted Northface for a replacement bungee cord, and I was told that they only have gray and black material and that there was no way to get the pink color that came on the backpack. Poor quality and warranty for such an expensive backpack.

This is the most uncomfortable backpack I've ever owned in my life! It is so unnecessarily heavy. There seems to be some sort of metal backing that's supposed to "support" you but it does quite the opposite; it adds even more weight to my already heavy load for school each day. The straps are SO STIFF too! They are not in any way flexible as the description says and they dig into my shoulders with every step. By the time I get home, my back and shoulders feel like they are going to fall off, as they are in so much pain from carrying this burden of a bag around school all day. I DO NOT recommend this backpack to anyone, especially if you know you'd be doing a lot of walking around with it. You're better off buying a soft, comfy Jansport bag.

This bag is poorly designed compared to 2015 Borealis that I still have. The front pocket has a flap over the zipper and makes it difficult to unzip and play around with the zipper. Bag is unable to sit upright and keeps tipping over (see pictures). I use this bag a laptop and some folders. I used this bag for a month now and still hated it. I had similar bags from Land's End and LLBean and all of them stay up.

2 reviews in 1 for Reckon and Borealis I assumed TNF backpacks were unisex until I recently bought this "women's" backpack on sale at 60% off. The color I wanted was a "men's" style but the store location was out. Viewing store color choices/styles, I asked an employee what is the difference between men and women backpacks and was told the straps and fit are slightly different. I did not think too much of it and my color choice was a "women's" style. I immediately see and feel the difference with the curved straps (I now notice "women's" style straps tend to curve maybe because of breast IDK) but time and usage (for books/computer) will determine if the straps are a pro or a con. It fits higher up on the body making it harder for 5 feet me to reach over and into the side pockets. I've never had difficulty trying to access side pockets on any of my backpacks. My high arm lift and removing a strap to fully get to the side pocket/s is a -. A couple of days and full backpack later (my usual load) I start experiencing shoulders and back discomfort back but source of uncomfortable pain is unknown (for now). Not satisfy with my purchase I gave the Reckon backpack to my daughter. I figured maybe it was the style I chose and not the gender of the backpack so I went back the same week to replace my backpack (60% sale had ended ) and bought "Women's Borealis". Big mistake and same complaints +1. The Borrealis does not sit upright when you put it down on the floor (I read a review complaint about it AFTER purchasing). I learned an important feature to look for in a backpack because it is annoying how it tilts over when you set it down. I'm stuck carrying an uncomfortable backpack for now.

The picture of the backpacks on the website do NOT match the actual product AT ALL. I was expected a brown and blue backpack and instead got a light blue backpack with the ugliest gray I've ever seen. It looks horribly plain and doesn't even look similar to what I ordered. I will definitely not be buying products from North Face again.

Very disappointed with Northface. I ordered this backpack for my daughter for Christmas. What we received did not come close to matching the one pictured on the website. When I called Northface, I was told, "Often receive complaints about the coloring of the backpacks. The website picture is taken prior to the mass production of the pack and often times the packs are changed." REALLY??? It would have been nice to receive the one my daughter had asked for!! Disappointed mother and heartbroken daughter!