Osprey Eja 58 Review

The Osprey Eja 58 stood out when it came to suspension and overall design. The pack combines ultralight qualities with the suspension of a traditional backpack. Overall, it's simple, yet it has a few extra, straps, and loops that ended up getting caught on branches more than actually helping our organization on the trail. With only a few downsides, this pack is overall an excellent choice.

Performance Comparison

Comfort and Suspension

The main aspects of a pack that is under scrutiny in this metric are the shoulder straps, hip belt, and back panel. It is in these spots where chafing, hotspots, and general discomfort typically pops up. In the case of the Eja 58, we were surprised to find that the shoulder straps were our main source of discomfort during our testing period. The straps are skinny, only about an inch thick, which caused hot spots when carrying a heavy load. Packs like the Thule Versant and Osprey Aura have wider straps, which disperses the load a bit more. The back panel was very comfortable, though, as was the hip belt on the Eja, making it overall a decently comfortable pack.

Osprey's new AirSpeed suspension system is very similar to the manufacturer's ever-popular and revolutionary Anti-Gravity system (think of the Osprey Aura AG or the Gregory Octal 55, which was inspired by this design). The Eja rocks the AirSpeed suspension by keeping the pack off your back and allowing for airflow between your skin and the pack itself. This detail is key to a capable suspension system, especially in hot weather. If the pack had wider shoulder straps, the overall comfort would be significantly improved, as the Eja has a sound suspension system as a foundation. The Osprey Lumina has a similar design but was more comfortable. The Osprey Kyte offers the same suspension system without the other comfort issues of the Eja.

Weight

The Eja is the fourth lightest pack in this review, following the ultralight Lumina and the lighter REI Co-Op Flash 45. The difference between the Octal and the Eja is negligible, as it ends up being only .02 pounds, or .32 ounces, difference. The Octal has a particularly light feel, though, because of its simple frame and lightweight materials. The stretchy mesh pockets provide lots of storage with little extra weight, and no extra bells or whistles are weighing this pack down. This difference was noticeable between the Eja and the Octal, as the Eja had some extra loops and straps that add weight.

Organizational Systems

The Eja was a fairly straightforward pack to use. Very similar in overall design to the Gregory Octal 55, the Eja has more pockets without zippers than zip-closure pockets. We liked this style of pack, and it seems to be popular right now since the Osprey Lumina 45 has been designed in a similar style. We felt like this makes the pack easy to use; most of your kit goes into the main body, while extra equipment is quick to stuff into the large outer pockets. These features made the Eja easy to organize overall.

When it comes to features, we were a bit confused on how to rate the Osprey Eja 58. On the one hand, the pack has many great bells and whistles, like the oversized mesh pockets we mentioned above. On the other hand, we found that this pack had some extra, seemingly unnecessary clip loops, storage straps, and attachment points on the shoulder straps, the bottom of the pack, and hip belt. For us, these were not useful, and we preferred the overall simplicity of the Osprey Lumina and the Gregory Octal more.

Adjustability

Again, this pack sacrifices some adjustability in the name of weight. First, you can't adjust the torso height. The waist belt is also fully integrated and pretty trimmed down. Similar to the Osprey Lumina this pack uses thin, stretchy compression straps. We aren't too sure how these would hold up over time.

However, there are quite a few attachment points for you to custom fit your gear to the pack. We didn't always find them necessary, but if you like playing with different exterior configurations, you'll appreciate the Eja's many attachment points.

Best Applications

The Osprey Eja 58 is designed for women who want to move fast. The Exos, which is the men's version of this pack, has been Osprey's thru-hiker go-to for the past few years and the Eja is just as light and fast as this model. The lid, as well as many of the extra straps, are removable to lose those extra ounces. A comparable, but even lighter model designed as a women's specific, ultralight pack is the Osprey Lumina 45, which of course has a smaller carrying capacity.

Value

This brand-new pack hit the shelves with a price tag of $220. For such a specialized, high tech pack, this is a fairly good price. Less than the Gregory Octal 55 and only slightly more than the Deuter ACT Lite lands the Osprey Eja at the lower end of the price scale. If you have been backpacking for a while and are in search of a new, lightweight pack, the Eja 58 was a high scoring pack overall.

Conclusion

Though there were a few flaws that we found during our testing period with the Eja, the pack still received relatively high scores in our metric ratings. The suspension system is a highlight because it combines comfort and breathability with a light, sleek design. The shoulder straps were problematic to us, but the hip belt provided enough support without chafe or discomfort. The primary features of the pack were useful and well-designed, but there was an excess of bells and whistles that we could do without for a more streamlined design.