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Advise: best backpack for MBP?

blakespot

blakespot

Administrator
Original poster
Jun 4, 2000
1,375
171
Alexandria, VA
I have a 15" MBP and want to carry it along with a few magazines and other gadgets - PSP, DS, iPhone, etc. So I need big and small pockets. And I want it sexy.

It is a backpack that I want.

What do I get? Thanks.



blakespot
 
I've got a Wenger (the Swiss Army knife folks) backpack that's lasted me through a 14" iBook, 15" PowerBook and now my 15" MBP. Works great, has held up very well, and is still in great shape after 4 years.

It was expensive up front, but I feel like I got more than my money's worth from it, and it's still in daily use.

MacDann
 
I saw the wenger synergy at best buy, looked pretty strong and durable so i went home and bought it online for like 50 bucks compared to the 90bucks at best buy.
 
I have a Victorinox backpack; don't know the model number, but it fits my computer like glove and it's comfortable; fits my books, have space for pencils/pens, power adapter, etc.
 
dakine has great packs but not one that had a great laptop compartment and all the other pockets that i wanted and the surge was able to do that. the pack before the surge i got was the dakine ridge. great pack. super sturdy. just not enough pockets. i almost tried to turn the water pouch part into the laptop sleeve with some modding. haha. there was a couple dakine that had a laptop compartment but i was looking more into the hiking style pack instead of the skateboarder pack. the surge has clips where i can pull on and flatten the pack a little more and not have bulky pack with the extra space hanging out. there wasnt any with the dakines packs that had a laptop compartment i saw.
 
Crumpler Rules

Crumpler make the best backpacks and bags for any laptops and cameras. Compared to the SwissArmy line it's like using a swiss army knife against a battleship. Checkout www.crumplerbags.com. The "salary sacrifice is $135, ouch but it is as we say here in the UK "it is the dogs bollocks!" I personally have there "sticky date" messenger bag which gets constant abuse everyday( I am a bycyle courier in London), it's waterproof! (very important in UK). They are very expensive but they are worth it, pick one up and check the materials and construction...awesome!
 
Crumpler KING SINGLE trumps all!

kaldezar said:
Crumpler make the best backpacks and bags for any laptops and cameras. Compared to the SwissArmy line it's like using a swiss army knife against a battleship. Checkout www.crumplerbags.com. The "salary sacrifice is $135, ouch but it is as we say here in the UK "it is the dogs bollocks!" I personally have there "sticky date" messenger bag which gets constant abuse everyday( I am a bycyle courier in London), it's waterproof! (very important in UK). They are very expensive but they are worth it, pick one up and check the materials and construction...awesome!
Click to expand...

LOOK NO FURTHER than the CRUMPLER KING SINGLE . its damn sexy and i get compliments from alot of people about how cool it looks. I have a psp and Iphone and external harddrive, usb wireless internet modem, charger etc and it all fits in the bag with 4 big pockets and 2 small pockets and most important of all a padded compartment for the laptop! it has enough room to fit books etc. bloody amazing backpack! test it out!
 
What about the Incase Nylon Slim Backpack?

black1.jpg
nyln_slmbkpck_blk2.jpg



If that one is too small, there is also a bigger version, too.
 
MacDann said:
I've got a Wenger (the Swiss Army knife folks) backpack that's lasted me through a 14" iBook, 15" PowerBook and now my 15" MBP. Works great, has held up very well, and is still in great shape after 4 years.

It was expensive up front, but I feel like I got more than my money's worth from it, and it's still in daily use.

MacDann
Click to expand...

I second the Swiss Gear by Wenger backpack, I've had mine for 2 years and its held up really well, it's like new. Can't fault it whatsoever.

Was only £25.
 
I want to just say that for those of you who use the Recon by NorthFace, I'm glad you're happy with your bag, don't get my wrong, but I'd never buy this bag. I currently work for a retailer for 4-5 years who sells NorthFace backpacks, both regular (like the recon) and hiking packs, and for the price there are much better options out there with much better build quality, laptop protection, and customer service.

Booq makes a great backpack and you can sometimes find a coupon code online, they are overall a very expensive company. We got one for my dad for his birthday, I believe it was called the Mamba, really interesting design. I can't speak for it's durability, because I'm not the one using it, but he seems to like it very much.

I have 2 bags for my Powerbook that is almost 4 years old...The following two solutions have kept my powerbook dent and ding free and looking almost as new as the day I bought it, sans a few scratches on the bottom.

First is the Terminal Backpack by DaKine, really slick bag w/ a side entry for the laptop slot so your laptop is completely separated from everything else. Have had it for 4 years, built like a rock, looks almost new and I travel with it almost every day. It's got 2 inches of padding on the bottom that sits directly below the laptop itself, plus a very padded back and a harder foam padding on the front of the laptop compartment. it doesn't look that large, but it's cavernous. http://www.dakine.com/street-series/guys/packs/terminal/

I also have a Timbuk2 large messenger bag with a Waterfield Designs (www.sfbags.com) powerbook sleeve. Timbuk2 also makes a backpack style bag that's great too. I use this one too, but not as much as the DaKine bag.

Waterfield designs is a WONDERFUL company.

My fiancee has a crumpler vertical style messenger bag, but i don't know what it's called.

Also, buy yourself some iKlear to clean your laptop and keep it looking great.

Good luck.
 
agentphish said:
I want to just say that for those of you who use the Recon by NorthFace, I'm glad you're happy with your bag, don't get my wrong, but I'd never buy this bag. I currently work for a retailer for 4-5 years who sells NorthFace backpacks, both regular (like the recon) and hiking packs, and for the price there are much better options out there with much better build quality, laptop protection, and customer service.

Booq makes a great backpack and you can sometimes find a coupon code online, they are overall a very expensive company. We got one for my dad for his birthday, I believe it was called the Mamba, really interesting design. I can't speak for it's durability, because I'm not the one using it, but he seems to like it very much.

I have 2 bags for my Powerbook that is almost 4 years old...The following two solutions have kept my powerbook dent and ding free and looking almost as new as the day I bought it, sans a few scratches on the bottom.

First is the Terminal Backpack by DaKine, really slick bag w/ a side entry for the laptop slot so your laptop is completely separated from everything else. Have had it for 4 years, built like a rock, looks almost new and I travel with it almost every day. It's got 2 inches of padding on the bottom that sits directly below the laptop itself, plus a very padded back and a harder foam padding on the front of the laptop compartment. it doesn't look that large, but it's cavernous. http://www.dakine.com/street-series/guys/packs/terminal/

I also have a Timbuk2 large messenger bag with a Waterfield Designs (www.sfbags.com) powerbook sleeve. Timbuk2 also makes a backpack style bag that's great too. I use this one too, but not as much as the DaKine bag.

Waterfield designs is a WONDERFUL company.

My fiancee has a crumpler vertical style messenger bag, but i don't know what it's called.

Also, buy yourself some iKlear to clean your laptop and keep it looking great.

Good luck.
Click to expand...

this was the backpack i would have gotten since i loved the side pocket for the laptop. it looks like it has a lot of pockets and many other things. i just happen to want one to look more like a hiking pack like my dakine ridge and less skateboarder/school pack. that is why its i picked up the northface surge. same as the terminal but looks more like a hiking pack. dakines are built like a beast. i've had mine for 2 years and it still looks the same as the day i got it. there seems to be a lot of good suggestions here and now its up to how OP likes his pack to look like and what his needs are.
 
I can highly recommend booq - their backpacks are superb, extremely well-made and they have great service too. Really exceptional stuff - whether it's cool enough, only you can decide, but they're the best tech backpacks I've ever used.
 
sdsviet said:
this was the backpack i would have gotten since i loved the side pocket for the laptop. it looks like it has a lot of pockets and many other things. i just happen to want one to look more like a hiking pack like my dakine ridge and less skateboarder/school pack. that is why its i picked up the northface surge. same as the terminal but looks more like a hiking pack. dakines are built like a beast. i've had mine for 2 years and it still looks the same as the day i got it. there seems to be a lot of good suggestions here and now its up to how OP likes his pack to look like and what his needs are.
Click to expand...


Yeah the terminal is awesome. I ordered it direct from DaKine because i could get a deal through where I work part time. The first one they sent me had a defect, it was clear they mis-stitched one of the shoulder straps to the pack and it tore out of place in 2 weeks. I called them, they overnighted me for 10am delivery a new bag and return shipping label. Like Waterfield Designs, GREAT customer service. I could not be happier with the pack.

When i get a new laptop sometime in the next year hopefully I will get a new terminal as they seem to have made some nice improvements to it since i bought mine, and pass the one I have on to someone else.
 
agentphish said:
Yeah the terminal is awesome. I ordered it direct from DaKine because i could get a deal through where I work part time. The first one they sent me had a defect, it was clear they mis-stitched one of the shoulder straps to the pack and it tore out of place in 2 weeks. I called them, they overnighted me for 10am delivery a new bag and return shipping label. Like Waterfield Designs, GREAT customer service. I could not be happier with the pack.

When i get a new laptop sometime in the next year hopefully I will get a new terminal as they seem to have made some nice improvements to it since i bought mine, and pass the one I have on to someone else.
Click to expand...


i have to say dakine's customer is awesome. when i picked up the ridge from ebags the smaller compartment was just plain but on the tag it showed a pouch with smaller pockets. i just emailed them eventhough i didnt buy it from them and they were prepared to send me one with the extras. since the model i got had the newer tags that they havnt even sent out into production yet but the guy there told he has the new one in red with him and will gladly send me that but i really wanted to keep it black so i didnt trade it in. now that's what u call customer service. just because of a small mistake with a wrong tag they were ready to give me a brand new pack even if it wasnt even bought directly from them with no questions ask.
 
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