I have never used any Granite Gear equipment before purchasing this pack. I will say that the pack is very well designed and quite well made. It is also very comfortable on my long torso. I wanted a pack of about this size for trail maintenance projects as well as general use as a day pack, but now that I know how nice it is I'll probably use it for some ultralight over night trips this summer as well.
I recently purchased a multi-day pack from another manufacturer, which is a good pack, but I'm seriously considering selling it and getting another, larger Granite Gear pack.
This review was written in the old system and had content requirements that are different than reviews written today.