After years of carrying a Peak Design Messenger Bag on production days, my shoulders finally had enough. Moving from one location to another with a loaded messenger bag was starting to hurt, so I decided it was time to try a real backpack again.
I ended up moving into the Fyro Tenax 22L backpack, and after about a month of using it, I was honestly surprised by how much tech, tools, cables, and everyday production gear I could fit inside.
Quick Answer
The Fyro 22L can hold a serious everyday carry setup if you use small organizer cubes instead of letting everything float loose. In my daily setup, I carry a 14-inch MacBook Pro, power bank, Rocketbook, pens, chargers, cable kits, small tools, adapters, a JetKVM, DJI mics, SSD storage, SD reader, flashlight, and more.
The big caveat is access. The bag fits more than I expected, but when it is packed tightly, you sometimes have to pull one pouch out to get to another. That is the main adjustment coming from a messenger bag, where I could flip open one flap and treat the bag like an admin panel.
Why I Switched Bags
The main reason was comfort. My Peak Design Messenger Bag worked well for years, especially because I liked setting it down, opening the flap, and having quick access to my gear. But on set, moving around with that much weight on one shoulder started catching up with me.
I wanted a backpack with better organization, not just a big empty compartment. The Fyro caught my attention because of the layout, the front-zip design, and the way the company seems to be listening to customer feedback.
The Bag Layout
The Fyro Tenax 22L has a front panel with a zipper down the center. The idea is that you can access the same front area from either side, depending on which shoulder you are carrying the bag on.
There are two main internal zip areas: one toward the back for the laptop and one larger front area for the main loadout. It also has side pockets, padded shoulder straps, a magnetic chest clip, and zipper loops that can snap together for a bit more security in crowded places.
The back padding and shoulder straps feel good overall. I am a taller guy with bigger shoulders, and I would not mind a little more strap length, but the fit has still been comfortable.
Water Bottle Tradeoff
I use the side-mounted water bottle holder with a Ninja bottle. It works, but it is tight with that bottle, and it changes how useful that side pocket is.
The bottle holder clips onto the side and can roll up into the pocket when not in use. But when it is attached and holding a bottle, that side pocket cannot fully zip closed. So in practice, using the water bottle mount means giving up that pocket for other storage.
Front Pocket Setup
The front center pocket is useful, but it is not as large as I expected. Right now I keep lighter quick-access items there, including breath mints, the case for my Meta display glasses, and a Qi2.2 MagSafe-style charger.
There is also a key leash, though I do not use the bag for my wallet. I know some people like keeping a wallet in a backpack, but I prefer keeping mine in my pocket. If the bag gets set down or someone grabs it, I do not want my wallet going with it.
Laptop Compartment
The laptop compartment is very padded and fits my 14-inch MacBook Pro M3 nicely. From what I understand, it should handle a larger laptop too, possibly up around 16 inches, but my setup is based around the 14-inch MacBook Pro.
In the same back area, I also carry a 20,000 mAh power bank and a longer USB-C cable. That lets me top off the laptop while it is still in the bag if I need to. In my use, that setup has not produced much heat.
Main Compartment
The main compartment is where most of the gear lives. I use small organizer pouches instead of loose storage. Right now that includes two Civic 2L pouches and an Aer pouch.
The bag can fit all three pouches well for my everyday setup. I also keep a Rocketbook, Pilot FriXion pens for the Rocketbook, black Sharpies, a silver Sharpie, a white paint marker, and dry erase markers for labeling things like camera cards.
One thing to know is that the bag does not fully clamshell open in the way some people might expect. The zipper goes far down, but the internal side material limits how far the front folds open. For my pouch-based setup, that is workable, but it matters if you expect full flat access.
Plane Loadout
When I travel by plane, I swap the loadout around so I can carry my Apple Vision Pro in a camera cube. The Vision Pro cube fits in the Fyro, but it only fits in a specific orientation.
With the Vision Pro cube inside, I cannot carry both Civic pouches the same way. I have to choose between pouches and arrange things more carefully. My likely plane setup is putting another pouch at the bottom and keeping the Vision Pro cube closer to the top so it is easier to pull out.
This is one area where the messenger bag still has an advantage. On a plane, I like being able to open one flap and quickly grab the Vision Pro. With the backpack, it fits, but access may be more annoying in a tight seat.
Extra Cable Pouch
The Aer pouch is my extra pouch. It changes depending on the job, but after my last production loadout it had a lot of Ethernet-related gear.
That pouch included Ethernet cables, short slim Ethernet cables, a USB-A to micro cable, an Anker multi-dock, a small power tester, an Ethernet cable tester, a flashlight charger, and a USB-C to USB 3 adapter.
This is the pouch I can adjust most depending on the job. If I need extra cables, test gear, or one-off adapters, this is where they go.
Tool Pouch
One Civic pouch is my tool bag. I like these pouches because they open like a small admin panel that can sit next to my laptop when I am working.
Inside that tool pouch I carry a mix of production and troubleshooting gear: USB-C, USB-A, BNC, HDMI, video adapters, audio monitoring pieces, couplers, USB-C to USB-A adapters, an AirTag, small wrenches, bit sets, a MetMo ratcheting pocket driver, a Leatherman OHT multitool, Atwood pry bars, and my Strider knife.
The small wrenches are not for heavy work. They are for cable ends, small nuts, and little things that come up on production jobs. The MetMo driver is useful because it gives me a real ratcheting screwdriver instead of relying on a multitool as the first option.
Daily Tech Pouch
The other Civic pouch is more of my daily tech pouch. It has Thunderbolt cables, Ethernet, USB-C cables, the cable kit for my JetKVM, the JetKVM itself, an Anker power brick, DJI mics, HDMI and BNC couplers, USB-C to USB-A adapters, and another AirTag.
The JetKVM is one of those small tools I really like having with me. It gives me KVM over IP, locally or over the internet, and it is tiny enough to live in the pouch with the cables it needs.
I also carry a headless HDMI dongle for remote machine work. Some Macs do not behave well over remote desktop when there is no display attached, so that little adapter can make the machine think a monitor is connected.
Testing And Storage Gear
A few tools in the daily pouch are there because cables and power are always the mystery on a job. I carry a Treedix cable tester that can help identify what a cable supports, whether it is power-only, whether it carries data, and what kind of connection it can handle.
I also carry a Power-Z meter so I can see voltage, amps, and watts between a charger and a device. If I want to know what kind of charge I am actually getting, that tells me.
For storage and media, I keep a USB-C to Ethernet adapter, an M.2 SSD enclosure with a 2 TB drive, and a small SD and microSD card reader. Because MacBooks still mean dongles, those stay close to my laptop power setup.
What Works And What Does Not
What works is the amount of gear the Fyro 22L can hold. Looking at everything laid out, it is kind of ridiculous how much fits in a 22L backpack. The pouch system makes the bag more flexible, and it lets me move between daily carry and travel carry without completely rebuilding everything.
What does not work as well is quick access when I am not at a desk. With the messenger bag, I could open the front and see more of my tools immediately. With the backpack, if the item I need is in a pouch behind another pouch, I may have to pull things out first.
So for me, the Fyro is a strong first backpack setup, but I am still tuning the layout. The comfort improvement matters, and the organization is promising, but the best packing method depends heavily on how often you need to grab gear while standing, sitting on a plane, or working without a table.
Key Takeaways
- The Fyro Tenax 22L fits much more tech and production gear than I expected when packed with small organizer pouches.
- The backpack is more comfortable than carrying a heavily loaded messenger bag on one shoulder.
- The side water bottle holder works, but using it means that side pocket is no longer useful for secure storage.
- A 14-inch MacBook Pro, 20,000 mAh power bank, cables, tools, adapters, JetKVM, SSD, SD reader, and small production accessories all fit in the daily setup.
- The Apple Vision Pro can fit in a camera cube for travel, but it forces a tighter packing layout and may be harder to access on a plane.
- The biggest tradeoff is access: pouches keep things organized, but they can make quick grabs harder when the bag is fully packed.
Watch the Video
The video above for the full unpacking walkthrough, including how the pouches fit inside the Fyro 22L and what the whole everyday carry setup looks like when it is laid out on the table.
