Osprey Daylite Powerhouse Review

Brands sometimes come up with the quirkiest naming schemes for their products. Take, for example, the Osprey Daylite Powerhouse. We don’t particularly object to the “Daylite” part of the name, seeing as it merely indicates which product line this belongs to. But given the small size of this tech pouch, “powerhouse” might seem comically mismatched.

But, as with many things in life, context is the key. In the Daylite Powerhouse’s case, its sheer usefulness for the traveler hauling lots of tech accessories really might make it a powerhouse—let’s check it out!

External Components

Osprey keeps things simple, sticking to relatively light materials on the outside. The exterior shell is a 600-denier recycled polyester fabric with a PFAS-free DWR coating for weather protection. It’s nothing too dense or heavy; just the right kind of fabric for a pouch meant to stay mostly inside bags or the controlled climates of cafes and offices. On that note, if any part of the pouch might scuff over time, it’s the printed logo at the front.

At the top is a fairly low-profile handle. It’s rounded and proportionally sized to the pouch, so using it to carry the thing around is comfortable. Then again, a pouch of this size isn’t really too much of a hassle to simply clutch. If anything, it serves as an anchoring point for a carabiner or a clip in case you need to hang the pouch off the side of a table.

Apart from that, there are no other external features to speak of. The zippers are from YKK, which is a really solid brand we don’t usually have issues with, but nothing apart from that. Strangely, Osprey’s website says there’s a passport-sized pocket on the outside, but we checked every square inch of this pouch and are pretty sure there is none. Perhaps it’s just stray verbiage that somehow ended up on the Daylite Powerhouse’s page or a leaked future product revision. Whatever the case, there is no external pocket.

Inside The Pouch

The pouch opens fully clamshell-style. Pretty much all of its one-liter capacity is allocated to this singular main compartment, which is presented with a rather visually friendly light gray liner. As for the layout, it’s fairly diverse. Two stretchy mesh pockets are on the left side, while the right side has a row of elastic loops, a zippered pocket, and a pen slot.

The mesh pockets are twin designs of similar sizes. They’re deep enough for rectangular wall chargers used by many smartphones. We’re using a 65-watt GaN charger from Anker, which fits nicely with some extra room to spare. Meanwhile, the other mesh pocket has a USB-C cable rolled up inside. We’re traveling with a heavily braided Anker Prime USB-C cable that’s very stiff and requires a fair bit of room to store. Fortunately, the mesh pocket is big and stretchy enough to accommodate.

Over on the other side are the elastic loops. There are three similar-sized ones, but the fourth one on the very left is a bit bigger than the rest. It’s a bit nitpicky, but size does matter, as utilizing these loops requires that whatever gear you’re trying to fit must be big enough to stretch them out. Otherwise, they’ll simply slide out. These are best used for very short cable adapters, compact multi-tools, and pens, though the lattermost has a dedicated slot, as we already mentioned.

Lastly, small loose accessories, like memory cards and SIM ejector tools, can go inside the zippered pocket. On the other hand, it’s also a good spot to stow beefy items if you have more than could be accommodated by the large mesh pockets. We were able to fit a 5000 mAh power bank and a set of AirPods, for context.

Overall, the layout and design are pretty conventional. At around $25, this is a decent choice for digital nomads who just need something straightforward to organize a modestly sized set of tools.