Nature Nerd from United States, CO Public Profile

I own a 3-ish year old XS/S Tempest 30, which fit me and carried well, but is wearing out from use. I purchased the new redesigned model in July, 2019, and had to return it. It fit me poorly - the shoulder harness geometry has changed - the padded portion of the shoulder strap is shorter and differently curved than the old model. When properly adjusted for my torso length, the padded part of the straps ended right where it chafed my upper arms near the armpit. The bottom part of the shoulder straps are attached higher on the pack body than on the old model, which put stress on my lower back, no matter how I adjusted the length of the torso. This pack might work for someone who is differently shaped, not so close to the border between sizes, or has different preferences than me. I would buy another pack of the previous design, but this one did not work for me.

On the positive side, I like the large zipped lid compartment on top, and the zipped under-lid pocket (though I preferred the old design of solid fabric under-lid pocket rather than the new mesh, the former being more waterproof and not having holes for things to stick in). I like the outer stretch front pocket for storing my rain shell for quick access. The size is good for a long day hike in the mountains, where you need to carry extra clothing, etc. The new design of the belt pockets uses solid fabric, which should reduce snags/holes that appeared in the old mesh-pocket style.