This website is made possible by readers. I may earn a small commission when you buy through the links in this article at no extra cost to you. Learn more.
Details
- Price $350 at tombihn.com
- Material 630d ballistic nylon
- Capacity 32 L / 1953 cubic inches
- Weight 47 oz / 1325 g
- Dimensions 14.2" (w) x 17.0" (h) x 9.8" (d) / 361 (w) x 432 (h) x 249 (d) mm
- Made in USA
Overview
You must be serious about your backpacks to land here, so you must have already heard of TOM BIHN. The legendary bag maker needs no introduction.
With an in-house manufacturing team, they are certainly taking full advantage of it by designing and producing every variation for all kinds of usage. Each of these variations gets the full decades-long expertise that has propelled their classics like the TOM BIHN Synapse into fame.
I've reviewed just about every TOM BIHN bag ever produced, and I know their formula by heart. Expert craftsmanship coupled with the best materials are what sets them apart. That and their unique aesthetics.
They've got backpacks for digital nomads on an indefinite trip, like the TOM BIHN Techonaut, as well as bags for shorter-term travel, like the TOM BIHN Synik. The Bixi has been designed for a pretty specific travel time frame; three to five days.
While I've been a one-bag enthusiast for many years, my interest has expanded to roller luggage, like the Rimowa Original Cabin S, given that my recent short trips have been within the country, traveling by car. Something like the Bixi will serve as a perfect companion for those cases.
Style
Through all these bag reviews, my opinion on the styling of TOM BIHN bags remains unchanged. While models led by younger designers, like the TOM BIHN Shadow Guide, exhibit a sleek aesthetic, overall, TOM BIHN bags tend to exude a dorky, almost old-school '80s cool vibe.
The Bixi is the same. If anything, it is dorkier than ever, prime dadbag if I might say. The oblong, turtle-shell-shaped bag is at least simpler than other feature-rich TOM BIHN backpacks. I don't think this is the bag for you if you are trying to impress.
While designed for 3-5 days of travel, the size isn't too big for a daily carry. At 6 ft, I've used larger bags like the GORUCK GR2 as a daily carry, so this is nothing. But I can imagine it being a little bulky for smaller frames, but not to the point that you get stares.
While the front has minimal details with just a single logo tag, the zippers and seams around the edges lack restraint, looking rather unintentional. It's function over form.
At the time of this review, the Bixi was available for pre-order in eight color variations
This used to be an ad.
But no one likes ads, so I got rid of them. If my articles helped you, I ask for your support so I can continue to provide unbiased reviews and recommendations. Every cent donated through Patreon will go into improving the quality of this site.
- Aubergine Ballistic/Acai 200 Halcyon
- Black Ballistic/Island 200 Halcyon
- Black Ballistic/Zest 200 Halcyon
- Black Ballistic/Northwest Sky 200 Halcyon
- Nebulous Grey Ballistic/Island 200 Halcyon
- Nebulous Grey Ballistic/Acai 200 Halcyon
- Deep Blue Ballistic/Zest 200 Halcyon
- Wilderness Ballistic/Moss 210 Cerylon
As someone who has decided to only own black products, I went for the Black Ballistic/Northwest Sky 200 Halcyon, which comes with a monotoned logo tag. While it's not as sleek as the blacked-out logo you see on some design lab versions, I much prefer it over the red tags.
While the functionality and quality of TOM BIHN backpacks are without question, the aesthetics and attention to design details leave much to be desired if you are a design purist. This unassuming aesthetic is the DNA of TOM BIHN and appeals to many, although it is not quite my cup of tea.
Material
The 630d HT Ballistic nylon used, woven, and finished in South Korea with Invista Cordura® yarns from Canada, is a lighter version of TOM BIHN's 1050 HT Ballistic nylon, but with a twist — literally! It's woven using two yarns in a basket pattern, with each yarn twisted as it's laid down. This design helps reduce abrasion effects by weaving any broken filaments back into the fabric.
With a look and feel akin to our robust 1050 HT Ballistic nylon, this fabric matches in durability— clocking over 10,000 cycles in a Taber machine. Its luxuriant sheen puts the 1050 Ballistic to shame, boasting an even richer appearance.
Weighing in at 10.5 ounces per square yard, it's as sturdy as 1000 denier Cordura found on packs like the GORUCK GR1, but without the fuzziness. It's practically anti-pet-hair, anti-lint, and anti-snow, making it a top pick for any job that demands durability without the fluff.
The fabric has been treated with an extra-heavy urethane coating (1.80 ounces per square yard / 60 grams per square meter) on the inside; the exterior features an environmentally-friendly C6 Durable Water Repellant (DWR).
Usage
The beauty of the Bixi is in its simplicity. It's small enough to be an everyday carry, yet sizable enough to pack for a short trip. I don't think this is unique, since many carry-sized backpacks do this pretty well, like TOM BIHN's own Synik.
I was able to travel indefinitely with the TOM BIHN Synik 26, but the Bixi is slightly more spacious and will make the trip more comfortable.
I designed a thing.
I found a 100 year old company that would create these heirloom quality canisters for me. They are handmade and will keep your tea leaves, coffee beans or anything that you need dry for years to come.
or read review
Admin pocket
Unlike the main compartment, this pocket doesn't open clamshell-style. And you probably wouldn't want it to. It's designed so you can have all sorts of looser items in it, without organizing them into slots.
Right at the top, there's a zippered pocket that's not only full width but full height, which I haven't seen before. It fits my entire AirPods Max. Below that are four slots, one takes up half with width, followed by a narrower one and two pen slots.
The admin pocket goes pretty deep but doesn't have more organization than needed. I've never liked bags that over-organize since it's impossible to work for everyone and you'll end up with unused slots. The organization in the admin pocket was just the right balance.
There are four D-rings in this pocket and comes attached with one TOM BIHN Key Strap that you can relocate to any of the rings.
Laptop compartment
There's a dedicated laptop compartment that fits up to 16-inch laptops.
There's a suspended mesh slot that fits my 12-9 inch iPad Pro. My iPad is protected by a cover that houses the Apple Pencil and Magic Keyboard. I'd say this slot will house any fully accessorized tablet.
The slot is suspended not only from the bottom but from both sides. It's an open slot, but I can't quite imagine a situation where your tablet would slide out unless you turn it upside down and start shaking like a bartender trying to impress with bold actions to cover up for the bad mixes.
Main compartment
The main compartment doesn't have any internal organization since you don't need it for short trips. I find that it will fit 2-3 nights of clothes comfortably, but up to a week if you try hard.
There are two zippered pockets on the flap side where I usually put EDC items that might not need to be accessed as frequently, like a packet of wet tissues. It's just easier to access this than to try to dig around the main compartment for something small.
The pockets are mesh but remind me of the power mesh that lines the pockets of Outlier shorts, but sturdier. They are opaque and rigid, unlike any mesh you'll come across
I much prefer open compartments like this compared to the ones on the Black Ember Forge that force you to pack a certain way. My packing requirements are different for each trip so I utilize packing cubes (the ones from Aer are my current favorites) to customize each time—it's part of the fun!
There are two detachable straps attached to the back of the compartment which you use to strap stuff to prevent them from being thrown around inside the compartment. Even as someone who obsesses over every packing detail, I can't be bothered to strap stuff down and take it out again each time, especially not for a pack at this capacity. These, unfortunately, get in the way if you don't use them.
Harnesses and extras
I'm pretty familiar with the edgeless EV50 1/2” / 12mm shoulder straps which can also be found on most other backpacks, like the TOM BIHN Synik. This strap can be relatively narrow if you consider the size of the pack. With a full pack, I felt that it didn't give as much support as I liked although the edgeless design helped make it comfortable.
There's also a breathable skeleton back panel, previously featured in the TOM BIHN Techonaut and TOM BIHN Addax. You can slot an optional frame sheet that can give more structure, but I didn't think it was necessary even for heavy loads.
This back panel is also a luggage pass-through. As someone who started warming up to roller luggage, like the Rimowa Original, I found that this implementation efficiently used the frame sheet slot as a luggage pass-through. Depending on the type of traveler, luggage pass-throughs can end up not being used so it can be wasted if it is single-purpose.
The bag comes with a sternum strap with overly long straps, which can be adjusted but might be left dangling with poor management. Basic hip straps, also with excessively long straps, are provided but I always remove these the moment I get TOM BIHN bags because I don't find they help with support that much. There is an elastic band on the hip straps to wrangle the strap, but not on the sternum strap.
On the wearer's right, there's an external water bottle pouch. It fits my Stanley Travel Mug perfectly. It won't fit larger bottles like Nalgenes, but I think the size is appropriate.
Conclusion
This bag has everything you can expect from TOM BIHN; solid craftsmanship, top-of-the-line materials, and unique styling. I don't think durability should be your concern. I can be quite a difficult customer but their support is the best I've experienced.
However, I feel like the Bixi is trying to fill too narrow a need. Unless you frequently travel for periods of three to five days, it seems like having a solid daily carry and travel backpack might be more practical, assuming you aren't made of money.
If you don't travel with a backpack, then getting the Bixi might cover quite a range of situations and might be the perfect size for a go bag.
Like this review? See all of my in-depth reviews.
Also, consider supporting me by being a Patreon. Every cent given will go back into improving the content of this website.
Tagged backpack bag ballistic nylon review tom bihn