Mindshift Gear rotation180° Horizon backpack
Internal design
At 34 liters, the Horizon is among the largest that a daypack can be and still be called that. How is the space used and, perhaps more important, does the rotation180° system really make a difference in accessing the camera gear? This section will try to answer that question, with numerous images and examples.
Contrary to a recent trend in hiking backpacks, the top compartment is closed by a zipper instead of a drawstring and a flap and buckles. A drawstring means the bag can expand and retract as needed, but a zipper is often quicker and ensures a fully secure closure. The horizon’s top still opens like a flap and offers a wide opening, almost all of the bag’s width.
This main compartment is large, wide and deep, thanks to the bag’s 34 liters capacity. It will more or less hold its shape even when empty.
It contains a mesh inner pocket near the wearer’s back, but few other features. There is a patch of Velcro on the back, closing a thin sleeve containing a rigid plastic sheet. This is becoming a trend in hiking backpacks, as a means to preserve rigidity without reverting to a metal frame. It has the advantage of keeping the weight low. This sleeve cannot realistically be used as a storage compartment, as it is much too thin.
The shape and size of the main compartment should satisfy hikers and backpackers alike. With a volume of 27 liters, it offers, by itself, almost as much room as some entire daypacks. A 13 inches laptop can also fit in this compartment. Its shape is boxy rather than elongated, which means less fumbling to search for items at the bottom.
Photographers interested in carrying more photographic equipment than what the camera compartment can contain have the option to purchase Mindshift Gear’s Photo Insert, made to fit in the top compartment.
The top is completely separate from the bottom; the two compartments cannot be joined.
The camera compartment is the most unique and interesting feature of the Horizon. It is Mindshift Gear’s answer to the problem of carrying and accessing photo gear while on a trail.
The camera compartment is, in fact, a separate item from the backpack itself. It can be completely detached and even used as a fanny bag. When stored in the bag, it fits inside a cavity framed by the front, back and bottom of the bag.
On one side (where the hydration pocket is located) is a small hole letting the hip strap slip in and out.
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On the other is a panel held in place by a magnetic latch. Simply pull down and release this latch and the panel will lift up partially, pulled by an internal wire. This in turns gives access to the camera compartment via the rotation system.
By rotating the hip strap to the left, the whole apparatus swivels and brings the camera compartment to the front. The rest of the backpack remains securely in place: there is no need to remove the shoulder straps or unclasp any buckle.
The camera compartment features a handle on the top and a stronger one to the side.
There is a detachable lanyard securing it to the main backpack.
The camera compartment is closed by a zipper which opens away from the photographer, revealing a mesh pocket on the lid. It is thin and well suited to hold small items such as memory cards.
The compartment appears more or less rectangular at first sight, but its shape is in fact more complex. As seen from the top, it is an irregular trapezoid, wider on one side than the other. The bottom is also not flat, instead being shallower towards the user.
Like all products from Mindshift Gear/Think Tank, the camera compartment is generously supplied with dividers or many shapes and sizes. This is to be commended: many manufacturers offer the bare minimum regarding dividers. Think Tank always provides more than enough. In this case, there are two large dividers with flexible top segment, one medium and two small dividers. The large and small dividers are tapered to follow the slope of the bottom of the compartment, more or less forcing the user to orient them in one particular direction.
The compartment also sports a thin sleeve able to hold a tablet up to 10 inches, close to the wearer’s chest.
There are many ways to configure the compartment. It can accept a 60-250mm placed vertically, although it is a tight fit. It is also the right size for a K-1 full frame camera / K-3 APS-C camera with a zoom lens attached (such as a 16-85mm like on our picture). While an APS-C camera can easily be placed sideways in the compartment, the fit is a bit tight for a K-1 in the same orientation. Just one more centimeter would have been useful for this.
The following images show several possible configurations for the camera compartment.
| K-3 and DA16-85mm DA21mm FA50mm Empty left section |  |
| K-3 and DA16-85mm DA21mm (hidden) FA50mm (hidden) DFA100mm macro DA*60-250mm |  |
| K-3 and DA16-85mm DA21mm (hidden) FA50mm (hidden) Metz 52 AF-1 DA*60-250mm |  |
As can be seen from the pictures above, it is easy to get creative and hold a good amount of gear, especially with thin pancake lenses. One can realistically expect to carry a camera with zoom lens attached, a flash, an extra zoom lens and one or two primes (a tight fit, but possible).
There is one drawback to the choice of materials however: the dividers cannot be attached to one another or to the short sides of the compartment, because the long sides are the only ones which can accept Velcro. Creating smaller divisions in the compartment is thus more difficult than it should be. One can always attach extra Velcro patches to the dividers to remedy this problem partially, or use the supplied dividers to create horizontal shelves (this is quite certainly the intended use). Such shelves do work but it takes more time for the user to access the bottom shelves this way.
The compartment is not deep enough to hold a camera with tele zoom lens attached. If placed horizontally, the K-1 and 60-250mm can fit, but tightly. It also hits a wall with 70-200mm F2.8 lenses: it is long enough to carry such a lens when placed on its side (for instance the Pentax 70-200mm is 203mm long while the compartment is 255mm at its longest) but doing this would leave almost no room for the camera body. Placing the camera, without any lens attached, to the side of the lens only works with thinner APS-C bodies; the K-1 and 70-200mm combo are simply too large to fit. The dividers are also not meant to do this. Mindshift Gear likely decided that hikers would prefer to travel light and refrain from carrying their largest lenses. Using the optional top insert is the best solution if carrying a 70-200mm lens is necessary. Placing the lens diagonally in the camera compartment could also work in a pinch.
Given the large size of the main compartment, it might have been better to make it marginally smaller in order to make the camera compartment taller. Especially given the slope of the bottom, one or two extra centimeters would have been useful in some cases.
Verdict
The Horizon is able to carry a fair amount of photo gear in the lower compartment, especially when using an APS-C camera. There are multiple configurations possible, thanks to the large number of dividers. The overall dimensions of the camera compartment are well adapted to the type of equipment carried when hiking. The padding is excellent and the material offers some level of protection against water (a rain cover can be purchased separately).
The top compartment will be able to carry many hiking essentials. It offers close to the largest volume possible for a daypack. This is a good thing and the volume ratio between the top and bottom is ideally balanced. The Horizon keeps its shape, more or less, whether it is full or empty.
There is very little to criticize regarding the inner workings of the Horizon. It might have been better to enlarge the width of the camera compartment by about 1 cm in order to let larger camera be inserted sideways, opening even more possibilities and configurations. Also, the dividers cannot be attached sideways, or to one another, without adding extra Velcro patches. Apart from this, we have nothing but good words for the Horizon.
