Peak Design Slide Lite Review
Summary Verdict
A camera strap may seem like a simple accessory, but it’s also an essential one that contributes to your comfort during a shoot. The Peak Design Slide Lite is well-made and easy to attach, detach, and adjust. It’s an excellent choice for photographers looking for a reliable, stylish, and practical camera strap. It balances the need for support and security with the desire for mobility and simplicity, and although other straps have come and gone, it remains my favourite camera strap.
Score: 5/5
For
Easy to attach and detach from a camera
Easy to adjust
High-quality, durable materials
Against
Without the strap attached, the Anchor Loops flap in a breeze
The Anchor Loops are a little fiddly to remove from a camera
The Peak Design Slide Lite strap in the new ‘Coyote’ colour.
What is the Peak Design Slide Lite?
The Peak Design Slide Lite has been around for several years and is widely regarded as a high-quality camera strap. It’s one of four camera straps in Peak Design’s range. It’s slimmer than the Peak Design Slide, but broader than the Peak Design Leash, and it was introduced with mirrorless cameras in mind.
Peak Design makes the Slide Lite in five colours: Black, Ash, Midnight, Sage, and Coyote (sand). Coyote is the most recent colour to be added to the range, announced on 17 April 2024. Peak Design also makes the Cuff, Leash, and Slide in the same range of colours.
Peak Design Slide Lite Price
$59.95 / £49.99
From left to right, the Peak Design Slide Lite is available in Black, Ash, Midnight, Sage and Coyote.
Peak Design Slide Lite Specifications
Strap material: seatbelt-style nylon webbing, anodized aluminium and glass-reinforced nylon adjuster hardware, Hypalon and leather accents on some colours
Connector material: glass-reinforced nylon Links with stainless steel springs, 2-layer anti-abrasion woven thermoplastic Anchor cord, thermoplastic Anchor over-moulding
Colour options: Black, Ash, Midnight, Sage and Coyote
Length: 99-145 cm / 39-57 inches
Weight: 104 g / 3.7 oz
In the box: Slide Lite camera strap, 1x 4 mm hex wrench, 4x Anchor connectors, 1x Anchor Mount, 1x microfibre pouch, 2x split rings, 1x split ring tool
There are two length adjusters on the strap.
Key Features
Manufactured from robust seatbelt-style nylon webbing, the Peak Design Slide Lite incorporates leather (on the Ash, Sage and Mighnight straps) and Hypalon accents for a touch of elegance and durability. The strap’s length can be adjusted between 99cm and 145cm using either of the two anodised aluminium adjusters.
Like Peak Design’s other straps, the Slide Lite attaches to a camera via the Anchor Loops. These consist of thermoplastic disks and a woven thermoplastic cord.
To attach the strap, the anchor cord is threaded through the camera’s strap lugs and looped over the disk. Then you can slip the disk into the strap’s fastenings at either end.
While simple to use, the Peak Design Anchor Loops are tough and clip securely into the strap connectors.
The Slide Lite is removed from a camera by pressing the anchor disk until it can be pushed out from the fastening.
Peak Design also supplies an Anchor Mount with the Slide Lite. This can be attached to the base of a camera via the tripod mount rather than via the strap lugs. It’s worth noting that the Anchor Mount is incompatible with Peak Design’s Travel Tripod or Capture system, it’s merely a means of attaching a strap.
Thanks to its Anchor System, the Peak Design Slide Lite is easy to attach and remove from a camera.
Build and Handling
On one side, the Slide Lite has two rows of silicone ridges to give it grip on your shoulder, while the other side is smooth so it can slide over clothing when worn across the body. Because the Anchor Loops are thin, but strong and abrasion-resistant to over 90Kg, you can switch the Slide Lite quickly and easily from one side to the other.
Although the adjustment mechanisms and connection points are sometimes facing the wrong way for use, it’s a minor inconvenience in an otherwise well-thought-out design.
One side of the Peak Design Slide Lite has two rows of silicone ridges to give it grip on your shoulder if you need it.
Performance
The Peak Design Anchor Loops can be attached very quickly to a camera. They make attaching or detaching the strap very quick. That’s especially helpful when you’re using a tripod because you don’t want a strap hanging from a tripod-mounted camera. It can cause blur-inducing vibrations. The anchors remain on the camera while the strap is off, so you can reattach the Slide Lite very quickly.
One problem with this approach, however, is that in windy conditions, the Anchor Loops can flap in the breeze, causing a clicking sound that can be a problem for video if the audio is being recorded on or close to the camera. The loops themselves can also be removed, but it's a little fiddly and can take a toll on your fingernails as you try to pull the thin cord loose.
There’s no problem slipping the Anchor Loops through the large D-shaped strap lugs many cameras, but they won’t fit through the smaller holes seen on some Sony and Fujifilm cameras that use split rings. The solution is to use the split rings. Peak Design thoughtfully includes a couple of split rings along with a split ring tool in case you’ve lost the ones that came with your camera.
As it has a length range of 99-145 cm, the Slide Lite can be worn around your neck, over your shoulder or across your body. I favour wearing it across my body.
It’s easy to adjust the length of the strap, you just pull the adjuster handle out and pull it up or down to to shorten or extend the strap. Once you’re done, snap the handle back against the strap.
I find the strap generally stays at the set length and isn’t prone to extending too readily.
As Paula mentions below, in the summer, when just a t-shirt is enough to keep you warm during a day out, I sometimes find that the Slide Lite rubs my neck a bit. I generally deal with this by wearing a sun-protection type Buff (snood), but I’d love to see a more curved strap or a harness from Peak Design.
To adjust the length of teh Slide Lite, you simply pull the handle out and then up or down.
Verdict
I love the simplicity and ease of use of the Peak Design Slide, Slide Lite and Leash. However, I like the Slide Lite best of the three. It strikes the best balance between distributing the weight of a camera and having a fairly narrow strap. It’s also very comfortable to use, easy to adjust and can be removed quickly.
Peak Design may have designed the Slide Lite with smaller and mid-sized mirrorless cameras in mind, but I’ve used it with large SLRs and a few medium-format cameras as well. Yes, the Slide might be a better choice, but I had no problems using the Slide Lite with these larger cameras.
Over the years, other straps have come along that have challenged the Peak Design Slide Lite’s favoured position, but I have always returned to using the Slide Lite. I’m in the lucky position of having more than one Slide Lite, and although they have taken some abuse, they look as good now as they did on the first day I received them.
SheReviews
Name: Caroline Webb
Camera: Canon EOS R5 and Fujifilm X-T5
Favourite type of photography: Wildlife and landscape
Instagram: @caswebb68
Which colour Peak Design Slide Lite strap did you pick?
Sage
Do you have any other straps? If so, which?
Peak Design Leash
What was it that attracted you to buy the Peak Design Slide Lite?
I needed an easily adjustable wider strap (wider than the Leash) for a large lens and the Slide Lite fit the bill as I already used the PD anchors on my cameras.
When do you use it?
I use it for my Canon RF 200-800mm lens most weekends.
What do you like about the strap?
It’s very easy to adjust the length of the strap, quick to take it on and off the lens, and it’s comfortable around my neck
Has it lived up to your expectations?
Yes.
Do you find it comfortable to use
Yes, it's very comfortable to use
Is there anything you would like to change about the strap?
It would be better if the Peak Design Anchor Loops were just a little bit longer for attaching it to a lens rather than a camera.
Were there any other straps that you considered buying instead?
I considered the Peak Design Slide, but I preferred the width of the Slide Lite.
Is there anything else you would like to add about the strap?
No.
Name: Anita Turner
Camera: Fujifilm X-T5 and X-H2S
Favourite type of photography: Wildlife and travel
Which colour Peak Design Slide Lite strap did you pick?
Black
Do you have any other straps? If so, which?
Just the Fujifilm strap that came with my camera.
What was it that attracted you to buy the Peak Design Slide Lite?
Its adjustability to sling use (across my body) and ease of strap length adjustment.
When do you use it?
It’s for general use on my two mirrorless cameras.
What do you like about the strap?
Its sleek appearance and comfort. Plus it holds my camera securely when I’m moving around whilst making it easy to get the camera into a ‘ready-to-use’ position. It’s also easy to unclip and change the mounting position of the strap or move it to another camera.
Has it lived up to your expectations?
Yes.
Do you find it comfortable to use
Very.
Is there anything you would like to change about the strap?
No. When I bought it, I wondered if it lacked padding, but I found it very comfortable when I used it.
Were there any other straps that you considered buying instead?
No.
Is there anything else you would like to add about the strap?
The strap is a much loved gift. There were tears of relief when I was handed it back after leaving it on a tour bus.
Name: Paula Wilks
Camera: Sony A7R V
Favourite type of photography: Landscape and wildlife
Website: paulawilks.com
Instagram: @saxtraction
Which colour Peak Design Slide Lite strap did you pick?
Black
Do you have any other straps? If so, which?
Only the one that came with my camera.
What was it that attracted you to buy the Peak Design Slide Lite?
Comfort and practicality - I like the cross-body design more than round your neck.
When do you use it?
It’s for general use on my Sony camera.
What do you like about the strap?
I like the whole Peak Design anchor system - I have the Anchor Loops attached to my camera, to my L-bracket and to my big lens. I can easily reposition the strap if I want to, or take the strap off and put the Peak Design Cuff on instead.
Has it lived up to your expectations?
Yes - I am on the v2. There was problem with the silicone on v1 and Peak Design replaced it free of charge under their lifetime guarantee.
Do you find it comfortable to use
Yes.
Is there anything you would like to change about the strap?
I would like a way to fix it to my shoulder so that it doesn't end up cutting across my neck when I'm not wearing a coat or hoodie.
Were there any other straps that you considered buying instead?
Something from BlackRapid
Is there anything else you would like to add about the strap?
It just works, especially if you have other Peak Design gear, using the anchor buttons is great.
