Boundary Supply Errant: Review

Brand Introduction

Boundary Supply is a small team based out of Utah that has been around since 2015. With their lead designer Brad Mayer hailing from Bellroyand Gregory Mountain Products, and Cavin Nicholson the CEO of Boundary launching several successful Kickstarter campaigns with Coalatree. Boundary takes pride in making sure that all products and factories they use are Bluesign certified, meaning the factories they use produce little to no emissions and workers are treated fairly and humanly.

They made their mark in the industry with the fairly well received Prima System that released in 2017. The Prima ran into issues after the Kickstarter campaign closed with fulfillment issues that pushed back the delivery of the Prima for months.  In 2018 Boundary’s next endeavor was to take the same high quality materials and modular organization that the Prima system was known for and make a more compact commuter style backpack. In June 2018 they launched the Errant everyday backpack which quickly grab the attention and excitement of bag enthusiasts.

Tech Specs

	Imperial	Metric
Height	19″	48cm
Length	12″	31cm
Depth	7″	18cm
Weight	2.94lbs (Kodra) / 3.3lbs (XPac)	1.33kg (Kodra) / 1.5 (XPac)
Capacity	1464 cu. in	24L

Quality and Comfort

At first glance the Errant’s high quality materials are impressive.  The 500D Cordura X-Pac, hypalon, and nywool materials are all a pleasure to use and touch.  After a month of everyday use the Errant still looks as good as when it came out of the box. Stormguard YKK zippers have always been a favorite of mine and the Errant has them on every external pocket. All around this makes the Errant very durable and weather resistant. Although one issue would be that the main zipper at the top of the Errant can make a canal shape that in a light rain did retain a little water.  After inspecting the bag it didn’t appear that any water made its way through the Storm guard zipper, but in heavy extended rain it could seep through.

After the first week or so of using the Errant I really wasn’t a fan of the straps.  They’re fairly thick and stiff in the beginning, and with a heavier load they would make my shoulders sore by the end of the day.  Now that I’m over a month in everything feels a lot more friendly. The straps hug around the shoulders more noticeably, working well with the EVA foam back panel. A nice adjustable magnetic sternum strap helps with heavier loads. However the strap is prone to falling out of the attachment webbing if the strap isn’t being used. In all I wouldn’t say it’s the most comfortable bag I’ve used, but for the size it does a good job.

Organization

The Errant is trying to be a sleek everyday carry backpack while throwing in elements to make it your go to travel bag. The back panel of the Errant has a great small flat zippered pocket the size of a passport, and a stowable strap that can be used to hold the shoulder straps down during travel. The stowable strap doesn’t hold the straps down as tightly as I would like, but it would be used occasionally and can be hidden out of sight if not needed.

On the left shoulder side is the Errant’s Commuter pocket.  A good sized flat organizational pocket with a few pen sized slots and some bigger slots for other items.  When the main compartment of the Errant is full this can be a tight but usable pocket. There is a female end of a Fidlock attachment in the top designed to work with Boundary’s HT Key Clip, which is only useful if you buy it separately for $19.99.  

The right shoulder side has a very deep bottle pocket that is retained by an elastic band.  It holds my insulated 32 oz. bottle perfectly and has a stowable strap that can be used to hold taller items like a tripod.  Right above the bottle pocket is a non-removable/non-stowable magnetic clasp meant to keep the bag from accidentally opening all of the way. It’s a fairly weak magnet (mine fails just with a flick of a finger), and has to be unattached whenever fully opening the main compartment.  With the other extra straps being able to be hidden away Boundary could’ve done the same here, or just removed it as it seems unnecessary.

Under the top flap of the Errant you find the nywool-front quick access pocket.  It’s surprisingly deep and since it’s already protected under the main flap I’ve always just left it open to make it even easier to use. The Errant’s top flap is held down by two fidlock “nipple clips”.  Some users have had issues with these clips being attached off-center or with general functional operation. My bag came working as intended, and I’m able to fold down the top flap and the fidlocks connect on their own without much fuss.  The fidlock “nipple clips” work great and as intended. They’re a joy to use and make it simple to open and close.

However, underneath the top flap you’ll find a beefy YKK zipper for top access to the main compartment. I added Boundary’s Port Kitt ($79.99) because the commuter pocket was too tight for most of my quick access items. So, I found myself having to use this zipper more than I planned.  The zippers often get twisted up together under the top flap and I would then end up having to dig to find the zippers first. The half-moon shape of the zipper doesn’t help much either, making it usually requiring two hands to open.

On the backside of the interior Boundary has added a very nice feeling lifted laptop/tablet area with two stretch material pockets for extra organization.  Unfortunately, the laptop sleeve only has the ability to accommodate slim 15″ or less laptops. There was some miscommunication when the Kickstarter launched and Boundary advertised the Errant being able to accommodate up to a 17″ laptop.  They have since restated that it will only fit up to a 15″ laptop. However, my fairly thick 15″ Is basically unusable in that area. The corners pressing so tightly against the zipper that I have to strain them harder than I’d like to against my laptop. It does hold my 13″ Chromebook with no issues. Laptops are secured by a strong magnetic clip that keeps items in these compartments from sliding out.

On either side of the main compartment are two stretch mesh pockets for internal organization.  They hold a good amount, being able to accommodate an extra water bottle if needed. A half circle stretch pocket on top is the perfect size and shape for foldable headphones.  Against the front of the Errant in the main compartment are two loop strips to attach Boundary’s MK-2 camera case ($64.99). I did not test out the MK-2 but it will take up the entire area of the bottom of the main compartment.  

At the very base of the Errant is a big half moon Storm Guard zipper that holds an odor/water resistant pocket designed for extra clothes or shoes.  It’s about the size of a six pack, which is too small for any of my size 12 shoes. Your use case may be different but I found it unusable for that intention.  It does do a good job with something less bulky such as a my gym shorts and an extra shirt.

All in all the Errant offers a lot of internal organization.  Though one big issues is while most of the pockets/compartments work okay on their own they don’t work well together.  A utilized laptop compartment takes up two to three inches of the main compartment. The odor resistant pocket on the bottom can take up to one third of the main cavity of the bag.  The side mesh nylon pockets can take up about three inches each into the main compartment.

It makes the entire main compartment of the bag feel small. Everything loses space to something else.  I found what works for me is just not using many of the options for organizing inside the pack. Instead, I utilize the Port Kitt and a few DMadeBags Dopp Kits to organize the main compartment.

What’s Perfect

• Materials are all supreme quality.
• A lot of internal organization.
• Weather protection all around.
• Love the sleek commuter look.
• Price is great for the type of materials and construction.

What’s Not

• Some unnecessary hardwear that is just in the way.
• Subpar laptop compartment design.
• Top main compartment zipper can be a hassle to use.
• Commuter pocket too tight and hard to get deep into.
• Listed as 24L capacity,  but feels closer to 20L due to the design of the main compartment.

Wrap up

Boundary Supply’s Errant is a solid offering for an everyday commuter bag. It checks a lot of boxes for what most people look for in a bag. It’s sleek look, quality materials, and innovative design can be great for some. Its biggest issue may be being too overdesigned. Trying to cram so many offerings into the bag that it hurts other features. Considering the many accessory options that are specifically designed for the Errant, you might be able to turn Boundary Supply’s Errant into your Perfect Pack. The Errant is available directly from Boundary Supply at an MSRP of $199 or $150 depending on the material.

Author’s Note: I backed the Errant in July 2018 and received it the end of January 2019.  Boundary has had and is still having a rocky release of the Errant. Originally scheduled for an October 2018 release the projecting for 100% is now March 2019.  There have been public reports of quality control, fulfillment, and customer service issues. Aside from delayed fulfilment I didn’t have any other issues so chose not to point them out in the review.

Disclaimer: the Boundary Supply Errant was purchased privately and used subsequently for this review. The content of the review was not shared with Boundary Supply prior to publishing and our reviews are never edited to keep brands happy.