Packing your suitcase or carry on luggage is great whenever you are taking a weekend trip to the city but what happens when you are heading to the outdoors and venturing off on a camping break? I am sure that you have all experienced trying to cram all of your belongings in the bottom of a backpack and then finding it near impossible to find anything. This week’s featured Travel Tech 101 product is the wonderfully named Hoboroll by Gobi Gear! This will undoubtedly solve all of your packing headaches before heading on your next camping trip.
We recently took two trips to Mount Magazine State Park and Petit Jean State Park here in Arkansas and found the Hoboroll to be the perfect travel companion to carry all of our necessities. Although we only ventured on a weekend getaway, we were delighted by how this product was lightweight, surprisingly held a lot of clothes and easy to use!
Gobi Gear History
Chez Brungraber, the Co-Founder of Gobi Gear has been an avid traveler for many years and while trecking her way through the African desert and hiking the Great American West, she realized the hardship of either sharing a duffel bag with her husband or trawling through a suitcase trying to find a clean pair of socks!
Brungraber designed the Hoboroll not only to satisfy her own personal needs but also to focus on a market niche that was clearly there to be occupied.
While writing this review on the original Hoboroll, I am delighted to announce that after reading this review if you consider purchasing one of these, Brungraber has released a Kickstarter campaign for the updated version 2.0 which is likely to be even bigger and better than the model we have.
What is the Hoboroll?
So what exactly is the Hoboroll? Well, in a nutshell it is the answer to all your prayers! In all seriousness, this is a life-changing design that both Heather and I can attest to being a great option when traveling. I love the description of this product on Gobi Gear’s website:
The HOBOROLL is an essential stuff sack for every adventure, keeping items internally separated while on the go.
Hoboroll Features
The Hoboroll has 5 internal compartments that facilitates the division of your travel gear and is also open at either end to allow for ease of access. The two drawstrings at either end and the two cinch-down straps are the key to making this product as effective as it is.
Imagine when you pack a sleeping bag or tent back into the original bag? Well, this is a similar technology but even more sophisticated because it allows for compression of everything within the Hoboroll yet maintaining the separation of your belongings.
Pros
As I mentioned, the Hoboroll really is a great option for anyone who likes the outdoors and loves to travel. Whether you are taking a weekend getaway as we frequently do or are taking a longer round the world hike, this is likely to fit your needs in one way or another! Here are some of the key advantages of the Hoboroll:
- Packing Efficiency
- Compartment division allows you to easily keep clean and dirty clothes separated
- Facilitates finding smaller items that frequently get lost in the corners of suitcases e.g. socks
- You can clip your keys to the tool loop adding extra functionality
Cons
- Main disadvantage is this is primarily only for clothes and small items. Perhaps more beneficial for the female traveler also because trying to fit a guys size 12 shoes in here is not easy!
Summary
Overall, I would definitely recommend purchasing the Hoboroll by Gobi Gear. There isn’t much else out there in the market that is directly comparable with this and I love the unique design and the compression approach used here.
I am really excited to check out version 2.0 especially with the adding features that Brungraber has added such as a secret compartment for keys, valuable items etc. Go on folks, take a look at Gobi Gear’s product range and try a Hoboroll for yourself!
*Disclosure of Material Connection: A Brit & A Southerner was not financially compensated for this post. We received a free sample from Gobi Gear for consideration of review purposes only. This is solely our personal opinion/experience*
Nice review! It seems similar to a packing cube, but more versatile and compartmentalized. Would this be a fair assessment?
Interesting concept and I really like the new version that’s coming out. We use our packing cubes in our backpacks which really helps with saving space but this would be fun to try.
Hmm … the hoboroll eh. Sounds like it could be useful for sure! I think it would be especially useful for backpacking (keeping organized while backpacking is pretty difficult!) I’ve used ziploc bags before in order to divide my things in a backpack so something like this would be a) less ghetto and b) more beneficial!
That is exactly something I look for, I need it for my backpack! As I hate that backpacks has only one big space in the middle, how I supposed to find things there! Great!
I so badly need one of these, I’ve wanted one for ages.
I’ve been hearing about the Hoboroll the past year, it’s been floating around. It’d be nice to have something to separate out items, the backpack I have right now is just one giant sack, not exactly very conducive to finding something easily!
I normally use good old plastic ziploc bags to separate stuff in my backpack. It works fine… but these look interesting. 🙂
I’m not too excited to read this … about the product I mean. We love trekking and the outdoors and if this becomes available in The Netherlands, I’d love to try one out 🙂
As an keen hiker, this looks like an essential purchase. Or perhaps an ideal birthday gift? Or even Christmas present? Hint hint, friends and family.
Interesting concept. I usually use packing cubes, but these seem like they would work out well for female travelers. I agree they might not be as useful for men. Men’s clothes and shoes take up so much more room!
You had me at the name!!! I first thought it was a device for hobos to roll their joints lol
Looks like a neat (and fun) concept! I’ll keep an eye out for them as right now there’s not much to my organization except for zip-loc & netted bags mainly because they’re so cheap!
I like this! It would be perfect for when I am packing the kids up for a trip. One per kid – everything stays organized!
Seems like a cooler version of a packing cube, which I need! Thanks for the lead.
this is a very informative and knowledgeable you have shared.