Aer City Sling V2 - practical and compact urban-use EDC sling with great organization. 

Hi Pure! Thank you so much for the kind words! Yeah - one of the reasons why I started this channel was precisely because, as you noted, many review sites basically just go over the same things you can already see on the website whereas I wanted to know more about how bags work in actual practical use. It does mean that my videos are longer and less frequent but I'm glad you found this format useful! Regarding the small eco bag, this is actually the smallest one I've found too! It's called "Nanobag" and there are a few different sizes. I got mine from the Japanese site: nanobag.info but when googling just now I noticed there is another English-focused site www.nanobag.net/ - clicking around on the latter site I can't tell if it's the same official manufacturer or a cloned drop-shipment site (they mention they ship from China) but hopefully one of these will work for you!

Btw... take a look at the other reviews... you might find yourself liking the other ones as well

Or they add faux epicness with no substance, which might be even more annoying.

Hi Ankush! My pleasure and so glad you found it useful!!!

Hi Setsunai - awesome! Glad my video could be useful - the x-pac materialway looks so cool!

Thank you Bill! (I love your user name by the way hahaha). I'm glad this was helpful for you!

Thank you so much Anthony!

Aww thank you so much my friend - any bags in particular you'd like me to review?

@@TheMountainborn actually I’d love a review of these bags: - Bookbag - VX21 by 1733 - Mini Utility Ruck by DSPTCH - 14L Day Pack V2 by LBT - S.H.A.D.O. Pack 24L by PDW - The Zip Backpack by Away - Bannoch Backpack by Trakke - Light Pack by Topo Designs - Jay Kodra by Koala Gear - Rennen X-Pac by Boundary Supply - Smith the Roll Pack 15L (w/pockets) by Millican - Haul Backpack Dry by Topologie - Multipitch Backpack by Topologie - Menace Backpack by DEFY - Vegabond Trail by Gossamer Gear - The Rex R2 VX42 by X Block Design Thanks!

You're welcome! I'm so glad you found this review useful!!

Thanks Christopher! Glad you enjoyed it!

Great idea - I'm not much of a hip pack person myself but I know there's a recent trend for sling-style bags that can also be worn as a hip pack. Thanks for sharing!

For sure - there's actually been a huge resurgence in hip packs (I guess that's what folks call Fanny Packs these days :) ) recently (along with other types of smaller carry like slings and such - I guess an unexpected side effect of the pandemic and people reducing their commute and what they carry - or perhaps alternatively, increasing what people need to carry as part of basic EDC so that when you start including hand sanitizer and masks and such you start to pass beyond what you can keep just in your pockets...) Anyway, my point is - if you loved hip packs back in the day you should check out some of the newest entrants on the markets these days! Maybe you'll find something you love :)

Hi J - awesome! Glad to hear you're loving yours - the X-pac material way is so cool - I wish I'd gotten that one!

Awesome! Yes the strap is so much better on the v2!!!

I know - it's quite handy isn't it? I do love the venture sling (the original 9L version - the camera version not quite so much) quite a bit though, even without it.

@@TheMountainborn great to hear. I am slinging my 6L with joy!

Hi William! Thank you for the kind words! I'm so glad this was useful to you - I definitely try to go deeper into real-life use cases with my bag reviews. I also of course enjoy the quick feature overview style of many other reviewers (great way to get a sense of the essentials of a bag) but always found myself wanting a deeper take on what the bags were actually like in use, over time, with different load outs, etc., so that's what I try to get into in my reviews (though they tend to run a little long). Thank you for your sub as well! Let me know if there's any bags you'd like me to review!

@@TheMountainborn curious on your thoughts on Aer City Sling V2 vs the Day Sling V2? They seem to be quite comparable

Sorry for the late reply William! (RU-vid doesn't make it easy to find peoples's replies to my reply to their original comment for some reason) So tl;dr - I think the three biggest things to consider are 1. Do you prefer an inline-strap carriage arrangement (City Sling) or an asymmetrical arrangement (Day sling) - the former is more like a hip bag that turned into a sling and the latter is more like a "quiver-style" carry. I am very squarely in the former camp, although I have a few bags in the latter style (including the day sling). It's mainly personal preference and I feel that the former is also more secure on my back, but that may just be my imagination. One note is the latter (day sling style) is not ambidextrous so it probably won't work for left-handers) 2. Do you prefer a squarer, deeper style (City Sling) or a broader, flatter style (Day sling) - very much up to what you are planning on carrying. In my case these days I personally prefer the deeper squarer shape of the city sling (and I like how it slightly compresses the load towards my body under wear) but that's just what my current load out is better suited for - others will be opposite. Also this will impact what you can fit in each one - notably the city sling is "deeper" so easier to fit things like a water bottle etc. while the City Sling is "taller" so easier to fit things like a kindle etc. 3. How do you feel about the buckle sizes? The Day Sling v2 still has the older, gigantic buckles that I feel are too big for the bag (same as the old City Sling v2). The new City Sling v3 has much smaller, size-appropriate buckles for the bag (IMO). But it depends on ones preference since this is mainly a visual thing (though the smaller buckles are easier to wear/manipulate in EDC situations in my subjective experience) For me, the City Sling v3 is an easy winner over the Day Sling v2, but the Day Sling v2 is actually a very solid sling with good materials and strong internal organisation (no surprise, that's Aer's forte). I don't think there's anything objectively "worse" or "better" about one versus the other (perhaps with the exception of the buckle size) but more about what one is planning to carry and one's personal carry preferences. I hope this helps!!

@@TheMountainborn thanks a lot! Much appreciated

Hi Mr. Kam! The keyboard in the video is the iclever IC-BK03 (iClever is the brand, IC-BK03 is the model number). It's an... okay keyboard. Part of the problem with folding bluetooth keyboards is that many of them are re-branded versions of only a few basic white-labeled generic Chinese-manufactured models, sometimes with minor tweaks. This makes it entirely possible to buy two different keyboards from two different "brands" but still end up with the same basic keyboard - but then also sometimes with very important functional differences that don't become apparent until you start using the keyboard. This keyboard overall hits all the major requirements that I had - it is large enough to type semi-comfortably for a decent amount of time while still being able to fold up small enough to fit into a sling. It supports iOS (this is one of the biggest hit and miss areas since most of these keyboards are quite generic and so designed to fit android and windows and iOS which often means you need to experiment to figure out which keys will map to the "command" key for example, or find some arcane combination of key presses to trigger the right compatibility mode, etc.) and has working conversion keys to support Japanese input (necessary for me and surprisingly also hit and miss on some of these). Beyond that, the battery lasts forever, it's super cheap, connects reliably and nearly instantaneously and has all the keys you would expect (though some require a couple of extra key presses to access). My main grip with it is that the reduced space layout leads to (for me at least) a consistently error-prone experience in the upper right hand corner of the key layout (9,0,-,+, |, P,{,} and backspace all often lean to misstrikes, and typing parends () even more so) - the tight squeeze in that area also is exacerbated by a bit of annoying flex in the keyboard itself in the upper right half when striking (I don't really have this issue on the left side for whatever reason) - due to the lack of any kind of "support" on the every edges of the keyboard when folded out - since they're raised off the table surface slightly by the joints, the keyboard plane can "flex" a bit when you strike keys on the outside edges. TBH, I think this can be solved simply by glueing a small piece of rubber or something to the outside edge to support it under pressure which I am planning to do at some point. But overall, it does fit the bill the best out of the 4 different generic folding bluetooth keyboards I have used and I definitely am able to use it to type out fairly long documents, reply to lengthy emails and do actual, real work for hours at a time with just my phone. It's not perfect, but for short ultra-minimalist travel, this, combined with my phone and a phone stand has even replaced my ipad and computer to lighten up my one bag travel load even more (again, within limits - your phone can't replace a computer for certain uses cases, but if you're just typing and reading the internet etc. - you can get surprisingly far with this) It's fairly cheap so I think you probably won't regret buying it and trying it out. Hope this helps!

Thank you so much Alvin! And yes, I will add that to the queue! (although I'm way behind on videos these days haha)

Hi Chris! Sorry for the late reply - I'm really glad you found this review helpful! I agree about the benefits of the harder-to-open front zipper pocket - a couple of other commenters mentioned the security aspect, which is a good point - there's a continuum between ease of access ⇄ security and as you said, it depends on where people's individual use cases fall along that axis. By the way did your City Sling arrive yet? How have you been finding it?

My pleasure! It depends on the size of the second lens but I think that you could probably fit two small lenses (think a small prime/pancake lens and a small zoom) and a (very small - i.e. Leica CL or something similarly sized) APS-C camera in here if you removed most of the other things in the sling.

I wondered the same thing! It looks like a Nanobag (reusable nylon shopping bag)

Hi Seth - yes you can clip a carabiner on the "compression straps" on the sides that are used to cinch the bag down. The carabiner might rattle a bit (the buckle of the compression strap is metal) but you can probably solve that with some heat shrink tubing or elastic nylon strap (or even some tape) over the part of the carabiner that makes contact with the metal cinch strap buckle. That said, your sunglasses will probably dangle quite a bit if you clip it in this way depending on how the carabiner is oriented. There is some space on the inside for the sunglasses so you might be able to fit in there if the sling isn't too full! I hope this helps!

Hi Veritas! The v2 doesn't compress as "flat" as the v1 however the compression straps do definitely help compress and tighten the load up when the bag is full. I found their functionality perhaps closer to shoulder-mounted load lifter straps than outright compression straps - maybe thinking of them in that way may help? i.e. this sling can become a very dense square rectangular solid when fully loaded up which would flop and swing around a lot on the back but tightening the "compression straps" really tightens up the load and brings it closer to the back, then when you wear the sling it helps pull the load around the curve of your back along with the strap which greatly reduces the amount of flop in everyday carry in my experience. Of course, that doesn't help if what you're looking for is a sling that becomes totally flat when empty or when only carrying a few things. I think I may have mentioned this in my "Not for" section - I don't think this is the best bag for people with that kind of carry use cases. If that sounds like something you need have you checked out the Aer "Sling Pouch"? I really like this one for when I'm only carrying the bare essentials (i.e. phone, wallet, keys and maybe a mask and small notebook). It's super flat and slim but does a great job of carrying all those things unobtrusively off to the side of the body

It absolutely is - the strap on this new one is much, MUCH improved. I don't think it's too likely you'll have any issues with it cutting into your neck.

Hi Kobke! Both the materialways are more or less identical in terms of performance (possibly more water resistance in X-PAC but not that much more in practice due to seams), so I would say go with the one that you like the look of better! The cameras/lens I showed: * Point and Shoot: Sony ZV-1 (but also any similar sized point and shoots like the Sony RX-100 series) * Mirrorless ILC: Leica CL (APS-C interchangeable lens camera. But a Sony a6600 or similar small APS-C body will also work) * Lens: Leica Vario-elmar-TL 18-56mm f/3.5-5.6 ASPH (Leica APS-C format general purpose zoom. But any similar small APS-C size lens will work) * Phone Holder: Elevation Lab Go Stand * Keyboard: iClever IC-BK03 (but any similarly-sized generic folding Bluetooth keyboard should work - just search amazon, there's tons of them from different sellers) Hope this helps!

Thank you so much!!

Thank you for the kind words Ivan! In this video the powerbank that I showed was the "Anker PowerCore III Slim 5000 with Built-in Lightning Cable" - there is also a USB-C version available for Android devices.

@@TheMountainborn thank you very much!

Got one brand new if you want

Thanks Erry! It's the Anker PowerCore Magnetic 5K. It's compatible with Apple MagSafe phones (iPhone 12/pro/max/mini series) and charges them either magnetically or via a wired connection. If you're considering this, a few things to mention: 1. Overall I found it superior to the recently released, similar-concept Apple battery in my opinion especially in terms of overall charging capacity and because it has the option to charge wired or wirelessly (apple is wireless only). 2. However, the Apple one does let you see how charged the battery is directly in the OS software however (Anker uses external LEDs) and you can reverse charge the battery pack wirelessly from your phone. 3. Honestly wireless MagSafe charging is fairly slow/ inefficient power-wise and I usually find myself just using the battery in wired mode (I like the overall form factor even if just wired charging). Just some points to consider!

@@TheMountainborn Thanks for the detailed information! Much appreciated.

My pleasure - good luck!

Thank you so much! And yes, I have a review of the city backpack on the way. It should be possible, depending on the size of your water bottle. Which one do you have?

@@TheMountainborn thanks! I have a hydroflask 18oz. A pretty standard size bottle. Just don't really like putting my bottle outside in the bottle compartment

Hello again! Okay I just tried slipping a Purist "Mover" 18oz water bottle in there (roughly similar in size to the Hydroflask) and it fit fairly easily as long as the pack wasn't supremely packed out. The main compartment has a tablet pocket and two stretch pockets towards the bottom of the bag that if you super duper packed them full might intrude on slipping a water bottle down there but in most average use (i.e. both pockets used but not packed to the max) it should be fine - there's a fair amount of space to either side of the internal main compartment. Hope this helps!

@@TheMountainborn nice, this helps. Thank you!

So, right now this is what the next few items in the review queue look like: Somewhat unusual rolling duffle bag → Aer City Pack → MHP 3.5 → Rofmia Shift Backpack v2 No promises but that's what I've got queued up at the moment!

@@TheMountainborn appreciate the reply! Love the channel. Do you have a Patreon or anything where we can support?

Thanks 123 ABC! Favourite sling - hmm that is a tough question! I generally tend to subscribe to the "right tool for the right job" philosophy so there are several types of slings that I like depending on the use case. In no particular order: Bellroy Venture Sling (9L but also the 6L) Aer City Sling v2 (I do really like this one) Green room 136 Metromonger Prime Peak Design Everyday Sling 6L/10L (I don't particularly like these and they have flaws but they're probably the best camera-carry sling I've found to date) Aer Day Sling 3 Max (For iPad Pro + keyboard cover EDC carry)

@@TheMountainborn Very solid choices! Would you ever try TBB ConcealSling or WaistPack?

Hi Rico! So glad to hear you found this video useful! So sorry you can't find this in stock anywhere in the EU. For what it's worth, I believe that the official Aer US site (aersf.com) will ship to the Netherlands (www.aersf.com/shipping) although obviously this means you'll need to pay for import duties/etc. :( Good luck!!

Hi Doug! Thanks for noticing! :). It's the Casio G-Shock GWF-A1000XC-1AJF (International/US model number is GWF-A1000XC-1A) - the new carbon fiber Frogman. I'm usually more of a Rangeman/Mudmaster kind of guy but I had to make an exception for the rather beautiful carbon fiber bracelet on this one. (To be fully transparent though, this model is ridiculously, crazily overpriced for what it is... definitely don't buy it at full MSRP)

Great suggestion!

Thank you as always my friend!

In theory kind of yes, but in practice not quite and it depends a bit on your body size. Each "half" of the the strap has its own independent slider buckle adjustment. So in theory you can shorten one of the straps all the way and then extend the other strap all the way and you get the centre fidlock buckle to lie much closer to one side (though not all the way to the edge) than the other. However this might make it quite hard to get the sling across your body unless you're extremely thin (I uhhh , am not, because I do enjoy a good piece of cake every now and again haha). So in practice I'd say not really.

To answer my own question, yes it can. I liked what they did, so I ordered one for my self. Loks like strapp can be shortened to about same length as on v1. So if v1 was working for you as fanny pack, v2 will work to.

Hi Igor - I'm so sorry I missed your question above 😅💦. I'm glad you got it figured out and thank you for sharing so others can know too. How do you find the experience of wearing this as a hip pack versus a sling? Does anything in particular stand out as easier/harder?

@@TheMountainborn No worries, I already bought sling before I saw your video. I sometimes used my v1 as fanny pack so was curious to find out about it beforehand. Your videos are very informative for people that really want to here details so thanks for sharing your experience with us. As hip/fanny pack it looks to be easier to unzip quick access pocket with one hand (If you are able to set it tight in order to not move around). Also what I really love comparing to v1 is that handle on the top. It allows for secure grab with one hand and it leaves second hand free for opening and grabbing things from the sling.

Yes, as long as the rest of the bag isn't super duper packed out and bulging (and obviously don't bend the bag or sit on it)

If you liked the v1 try to check out the v2 if you get a chance - I bet you'll like it even more!

Yes i believe so though it may not be the most comfortable !

I think it depends on what you mean by "lower profile" - I think in general X-Pac is going to be "thinner" than the Cordura overall which could make a difference given how many "layers" there are from front to back, but on the other hand I think it's a bit more of a visually stand-out material (shiny, distinct x-pattern) and slightly noisier. So physically probably lower profile, visually/auditorily, possibly slightly higher profile?

As usual, great review! Been on hunt for sling. Haven’t been able to decide to go small or big. Love when you offer options. Would love to hear your thoughts on Trakke Largo (which is bigggg). Cheers.

I don't wear the sling in the car but rather have it on the passenger seat and trying to access things in the front quick stash pocket as shown in the video. I found this quite difficult to open and close with one hand when the bag was moderately full. This is true both in the v2 and the v1 (which I've had for years and is well broken in) Are you saying you're able to operate the big coated YKK front access pocket (open, take out item, put it back in and close it) with one hand while the sling is on the passenger seat of a car? That's amazing if possible, you're a much more dexterous person than I!

Pros: Impeccable construction, materials and some interesting features (first bag to introduce EG's new back panel material, asymmetrical buckle construction, etc.). For some specific use cases (holding a few items as a waist pouch whilst biking, maybe some light hiking etc.) it works well. Comfortable when cinched tight. Cons: I found the internal organization pockets weirdly tight, and both the EDC organizer section and the main compartment to hold less than I expected. The jacket pass through pocket on the front was fairly useless except for very light jackets. The ergonomic curved design I found made it hard to hold flatter object in it at times. Overall, it just didn't really click that much for me and my particular load outs and use cases which is one reason why I haven't gotten around to reviewing it yet. I felt it seemed to work much better as a waist pouch for outdoor cases than as an urban-use EDC sling. Depending on the use case but for most common EDC type load outs etc I believe people will be better served by one of several other competitor slings on the market. Anyway those are just my thoughts at a high level.

​@@TheMountainborn Appreciate the detailed reply! Did you get a chance to see EverGood's new CAS2? Seems like a better sling except for the strap management IMO.

Unfortunately not, they're part of the design. There are a couple of special edition collab versions with Carryology (the "Tokai" sling series) that use a different kind of buckle, but it's still a fidlock. While the buckle on the city sling is not intended to be user-serviceable (IIRC (I don't have it in front of me at the moment) the loop straps have captive ends (meaning they're sewn onto themselves in a way that it's not possible to slide the buckle off anymore), but it is actually possible to replace it if you are willing destroy the current fidlock buckle. You need to snap it off the fidlock buckles, and then you can go to somewhere like REI and get replacement plastic buckles (get the right width for the strap) that have screw in side pins (something like the "Sea to Summit 2-Pin Side-Release Field Repair Buckle" - this will let you easily mount it on the strap without needing to unsew it. Note that you may lose some functionality since the pin-style replacement buckles will slide around a bit since you're not weaving the strap through it (one side of the original strap has a weave-through style which helps keep its place).

Yes, depending on the size (it has to be quite a small one)

You got it my friend - testing that now!

@@TheMountainborn I love your comprehensive reviews. When can we expect the Bellroy Venture review? Would love to hear your opinion on it

Hi Jack! The v1 or the v2? I actually really like the v2 so will be hanging on to it, but the v1 (mine is the Aer x Oshmans edition) I'm open to letting go!

@@TheMountainborn what do you want for it?

Hi Sherwin! That is the Elevation Lab GoStand pictured in the video. A little bit bigger than some of the competitors, and comes in any colour you like as long as that colour is black, but I like that it folds quite flat and the functionality is top notch. Hope this helps!

@@TheMountainborn thank you so much!

I only own a Kindle Oasis and Kindle Paperwhite and it doesn't fit either of those. Not sure if there are smaller kindles out there

Thank you Seebore! It's the Anker PowerCore III Slim 5000 (with Built-in Lightning Cable) (There's also a USB-C version for Android phones)

Hi Arturo. Thank you for sharing! Unfortunately that wasn't the experience for me most of the time. I think it's a lot more difficult when the bag is fairly loaded up and/or if you are carrying bulky car keys with the big remotes that most modern cars have in the front pocket (as shown in the video) because then it creates a bit of a "hump" in the front zipper track (exacerbated if you use the side compression straps to bring the load closer to the body when worn) that increases the friction. I did notice it was somewhat easier to open (though still very frictionful in my opinion) when the bag was emptier or if I didn't have much in the front pocket (or better yet, had my phone in the front pocket) but since there was a key leash in the front pocket.... I guess I should keep my keys in there :) But I am glad to hear that this is a somewhat less frictionful experience for you and your loadouts! Hopefully my experience is not as common. Thank you for sharing!

Great question man. I'm waiting for my Phoenix to arrive and then my plan was to do a big review of the entire Evergoods CPL24 line - the v1 CPL24, the v2 CPL24, the CPL28 and also the Phoenix. I'm still waiting for my Phoenix though so .... LOL

Ahahaha ah my poor lost soul - has the youtube algorithm inadvertently steered you into the fabulously bizarre world of carry enthusiast bag reviews, where people such as myself will spend 30 minutes talking about a simple sling bag? 😂 Well, welcome to our little corner of the internet!

Haha great question Jackson-Ross! I think the answer to "best" is dependent on the intended use case you're trying to solve for with the bag. (I.e. what situations you're looking to use it for, what you're carrying inside of it, etc.) I personally think the Aer City Sling v2 is one of the best all around small EDC slings out there, however I'm happy to try to refine the answer even further if you let me know some more details of what you're looking to carry in the bag, what situations you're planning to use it in, etc.

Hi Skydaze - you know it! Review should be up in the next week or two (I will probably review something a little out of left field for my next review, and then after that)

@@TheMountainborn Can't wait! Keep up the great vids.

Hi Jackson-ross. Unfortunately, I have never checked out any Mark Ryden bags. Regarding doggie bits, assuming you mean dog snacks, then I am sure you can fit most reasonably-sized dog snacks into this bag :)

In practice, no difference other than the material and aesthetic appearance (and price) In theory, the X-Pac would be slightly more weather resistant (X-pac itself is waterproof but since the seams aren't sealed/taped you still will have water egress in driving rains), will have significantly less "stretch" in the material (could be a pro or a con depending on your preference), slightly different wear patterns and abrasion resistance and a minor difference in weight. In reality though, this is a 2.5L sling bag so none of those things are really going to matter in your daily use - I would recommend you choose the one you like the look of more (and can afford, if the price difference matters).

I like the inside of the xpac but I like the other for the outside

Hi Costanick - yes I've heard that from quite a few people based in the EU - that it's exorbitantly expensive to import AER into Europe. I hope that AER can find a local EU distributor sometime soon - it sounds like there's a ton of pent up demand in there!

For sure - this V2 fixed a lot of issues with the V1 - probably one of the best improved second rounds of bags ever.

Haha I feel your pain my friend! I think this is one of the most-improved v2 versions of a bag or sling to come along in a long time - very much recommend it if you liked the v1, there's just nothing but good stuff here in the v2

Hello! I just left a reply on your other comment. I have looked at the minaal and there are definitely some other slings that you may want to consider, depending on your intended use case. (Although as I mentioned in my other comment, I personally feel the Aer City Sling v2 is quite a strong offering in the domain of small EDC slings). If you give some more details in terms of what you're looking for in the other comment, i can try to provide some other alternatives you might want to consider.

Just phone keys masks hand sanitizer just bits that’s not in pocket really

Hi newFaction65! This is a fairly compact and dense sling although I personally wouldn't call it heavy (but of course, that is all relative). If you are interested in small slings with a similar form factor without breaking the bank, I would recommend to check out the Bellroy Sling Mini which is a relatively similar form factor, but comes in 25% lighter (Sling Mini: ≈300g, Aer City Sling 2: ≈400 grams) If you want to go even lighter and don't mind having some extra capacity, the just-released Bellroy Sling Lite is 7L (as opposed to the 2.5L of the Aer City Sling 2) yet comes in at 50% of the weight (Sling Lite: ≈200g, City Sling 2: ≈400g) albeit in a somewhat different form factor. If you just want the very lightest sling bag regardless of form factor, you could check out something like the Matador On-Grid Packable hip pack (very much a fanny pack style bag though you can carry it as a sling) which is only ≈100g (or a mere 25% the weight of the City Sling 2) whilst still remaining surprisingly usable. If you want something that looks good/fashionable in an urban environment yet is much lighter than the Aer City Sling and money is no object, then you can start exploring the fascinatingly niche world of Dyneema slings bags - things like the DSPTCH RND Unit Sling Pouch etc. Of all of the options above, I would suggest starting with the Bellroy Sling Mini as it is fairly affordable, very functional and is 25% lighter than the Aer City Sling whilst still maintaining a similar-ish form factor. Good luck!