I'm going to quote myself, and revise and extend my remarks (as they say in Congress.)

4 pounds 9 ounces may be a perfectly reasonable weight for that pack for airline travel (note that it has a top handle for easy lifting into the overhead compartment, according to the EC web page.) For that, durability is crucial -- more important than weight, anyway. So asking if this pack "is any good" is hard to answer without knowing, "For what?"

The people who hang out in this forum are devotees of light or ultralight backcountry hiking. In the eyes of the traditional hiking community, we are total whack jobs. Crazy. Going out with tiny packs and no safety gear and always calling for rescue and mooching food and gear from "real" hikers. (Just so you know where you are....) (None of that is true, but that is often how we are perceived.)

When I got out of the Army and first started civilian backpacking, I thought a 5 pound pack was absurd. A "real" backpack had to weigh at least 8 pounds to provide the support to carry the 65 pounds of gear and food that I needed for a simple summer weekend hike. Now I think a five pound pack is still absurd -- though I owned one as I made my way down the winding path to ultralight hiking, then back up a little to light hiking using a 2-pound pack and a 12-18 pound base load depending on the season.

Several points come out of this musing, I suppose:

1. That E.C. pack may be fine for many purposes, but I don't think any of them are light or ultralight backpacking.

2. As you gain hiking experience you will know more about what you need in a pack (and other gear.) Much better to rent the expensive stuff first, if possible. Many local and national outfitters do this.

3. As you gain more experience, you'll know more about what you *don't* need, and start on the path toward Lightness of Hiking. And you can stroll down that path as far as you like.

Good luck and happy trails.