Booq Boa Nerve L Review

[thebrain74]

Having not seen very many reviews of this bag online I thought I would post one since I would've really liked to have read a few before I bought it.

To start of with, the Nerve L is not a small bag. I mean it should be pretty obvious since this bag is made to fit a 17'' MBP that it isn't going to be tiny.
The first picture shows the Nerve L(left), the Fossil Blaze Messenger (what I used to carry my old 15'' around in, its a prety snug fit for a 15'' in a sleeve, middle), and the Timbuk2 canvas messenger (right). The canvas bag has an almost obscene amount of volume since it is not partitioned in any way. The booq is much more structured. With the Booq nerve L I can fit the laptop (in sleeve), a Medium intuos4 tablet (in waterfield sleeve), a 1.25'' thick accordion file, and a tablet and still have a little wiggle room. This is with some small items in the interior pockets as well. I was actually surprised at the volume of the Booq since its depth is much less than the Timbuk2

The second pic shows the sleeve relative to the size of the bag.

That being said the bag is not specifically/only designed for the 17MBP. The laptop sleeve is a good fit for the 17'', but it has just a little bit of wiggle room. If I move the laptop to one side there is enough room to stick my thumb in next to the MBP. However the combo of the size and the soft lining makes it a cinch to get the laptop out of the sleeve while leaving the sleeve in the bag.

The third pic shows the mid-'09 17'' MBP in the sleeve.

The fourth shot shows the interior of the bag with the laptop sleeve removed. There are 3 velcro-closure pockets on the interior of the front wall, in addition to a wide zippered pocket. The zipper pocket can easily accommodate 2 CD jewel cases side by side, I have the black recovery disks and manuals in their holder than came with my MBP in there right now. In the shot you can also see on the interior of the rear wall, the sleeve holder pocket/holster. The laptop sleeve slides into this and also holds it about 1'' from the bottom of the bag, suspended if you will. The pocket goes about half way up the sleeve and is decently secure at holding it. Secure enough that it never moves when I try to pull my laptop out of it.

fifth picture show the interior pockets open.

 

[AboveTheChaos]

Thanks

I was wondering about them myself. I think they look very cool and I like that it has a lot of room.

 

[snowboarder]

Which waterfield sleeve do you use for your Medium Intuos 4?
And yes, Nerve L is a sweet bag. It's extremely well made
and feels really great.

 

[thebrain74]

(part deux)
the first picture shows a close up/detail of the fabrics used for the construction of this bag. The interior is made with a honeycomb fabric in both slightly muted lime green and green-tinged beige. I think I like the lime color more than the lighter one. The outside is tough black ballistic nylon, and the bottom is impregnated with plastic/rubber to make it essentially waterproof

The next photo shows the pocket on the very front of the bag. The pocket has room for pens/pencils and two other larger pockets. The black fabric is neoprene, and the larger black pocket is perfectly size for an iphone/ipod touch,etc. The lap of the this pocket also has a zipper pocket on BOTH the outside and inside of it. (I know I'm saying pocket a lot). The outside pocket is wedged between two strips of velcro.


The next picture shows the interior with the laptop sleeve in its pocket. The laptop sleeve has a nice round padded and stiffened handle

The next picture I hope clears up something that was not clear to me on Booq's website. The two-tone color of the main flap is not two flaps as I thought, but one. The Main flap closes with the buckles and velcro, as per usual for messenger bags. The green area on the main flap zips closed against the pocket, for added security and protection against the elements (important for me because part of the year I live in Oregon. (hint: it rains here), and the other part in New Jersey where the showers are usually downpours).

The next shot is of the rear of the bag where the slim document/magazine pocket is. It zippers open on the bottom to allow the handle of your luggage to pass through. Also the top of the pocket velcro's together in the center, which pins it together between the two handles of most luggage.

 

[thebrain74]

parte final

The last photo shows the handle of the bag, which I was surprised at how competent it is. The handle is part of a stiffener that runs the length of the bag so it gives it a nice secure, solid feeling.

A couple of other notes. Booq says the bag has metal hardware. Partly true. The D-rings (their not D shaped, but I didn't know what else to call them) that hold the strap are metal. But the buckles on the flap are not. I do believe that the zippers are YKK ones though.

Also this bag is more in line with 'true' messenger bags in that it is made to fit close/high on your bag. I think this is a good thing, because I think it is easier on your shoulder. I noticed this when I cinched up the strap all the way on my Fossil leather bag and is still hung way lower than this bag. The bag also comes with an optional secondary strap that connects from the middle of the main strap to a corner of the bag. I don't like these and appreciated that the buckets for it tuck neatly away if you don't want to use them. The strap is removable on one side (velcro again) to attach/remove this optional strap. I am a little wary to trust my whole bag to a patch of velcro, but thus far it has given me no reason to worry about it. If it does I will just sew it together.

I am a 6'5'' 270lbs (I am a former college football lineman) American male and I don't make this bag look small. It doesn't look oversized on me, but it takes up a good portion of my back.

I think the construction of the bag is quite good, however it is too soon to make any real durability judgements. All in all I feel it was worth the cost I paid for it (even if I hadn't got the 20% discount with the code bsc9).

If anyone has any questions, wants to see different angles/pictures, or if this or that will fit in the bag, feel free to ask.

 

[thebrain74]

I use the 28-21 for the Intous4 medium as per the recommendation of Gary at SFbags. It is about a half inch+ too tall, but otherwise fits very well. It has a slim pocket on the back that I use to stash my USB cable (although it would fit in the main pocket). I got the version with just the velcro strap and not the flap because I wanted it to be as thin as possible. It would be Ideal if it had a pen loop from the wacom pen, I have toyed with adding one to the inside of the velcro strap, but right now I just toss it in with the tablet. It is MILES better than the Wacom branded sleeve for my Intuos3, that thing was a POS.

 

[Cyrus Smith]

Buying the bag?

thebrain74, may I ask where you used your discount code? I'm interested in this bag, but the retail price is out of my range. -Cyrus

 

[awadbigmo]

Awesome review but still undecided

Great Review!

I am really considering this bag but can't really decide between it and the following:

TomBihn SuperEgo
Timbuk2 Custom Messenger
Booq Boa Nerve L

I really need something that will protect my MBP 15.4" (2007 model) and will also have room for several college books, a binder, and few more small things. Any input would be appreciated.
Thanks

 

[JTD131]

Nerve s works with the 15'' Macbook..

Hey, just wanted to let you guys know that the Nerve S (small) DOES work with the 15'' MBP. I just got one and it fits with an incase neoprene sleeve. Its a perfect fit (tight, but not too tight). Its great for me cause I didn't want a huge bag, but I really like the functionality of this messenger bag. The only thing that doesn't fit is the sleeve that comes with the bag, but you can just sell it or give it to someone with a 13'' computer.

 

[Jon-Luke]

Great review. I just bought the Booq Boa M for my 15" Unibody and I'm loving it. Great build quality, light for its size and everything organized well - Big UPs to Booq for making some really super products

 

[davids701124]

I'm curious that Boa nerve "S" can contain 15" macbook pro or not? don't like my bag too big?

 

[JTD131]

look two posts up and you should get your answer.

 

[thegoldenmackid]

Great Review!

I am really considering this bag but can't really decide between it and the following:

TomBihn SuperEgo
Timbuk2 Custom Messenger
Booq Boa Nerve L

I really need something that will protect my MBP 15.4" (2007 model) and will also have room for several college books, a binder, and few more small things. Any input would be appreciated.
Thanks

After owning different Tom Bihn and Booq bags, I cannot stress how easy this choice is. Get the Tom Bihn and you will be satisfied, get the Booq and you will be in for (bad) surprises.

 

[looopy]

Quick question

Hi, thanks so much for your review+photos, it was really informative.

Just a quick question, on the Booq website, it states the bag weighs 4.9 lb (2.2kgs). Does the bag really weigh that much by itself?

Also, do you think a Dell Studio 1555 (with the 9cell battery) would fit in the provided sleeve?? (the thickness is about 2.36 inches with the battery)

 

[thebrain74]

Is the dell a 15'' and are you talking about the nerve S or L. If L, then I would say yes. The provided sleeve has a little wiggle room for the 17, so I think the dell would fit.

P.S. the bag is holding up great so far.

 

[thebrain74]

I just googled for booq discount codes and used the one I found during checkout. Worked like a champ

 

[looopy]

Is the dell a 15'' and are you talking about the nerve S or L. If L, then I would say yes. The provided sleeve has a little wiggle room for the 17, so I think the dell would fit.

Ahh, sorry about that. Should of mentioned those details.

Yes, the Dell is a 15", and I'm referring to the Nerve L.

Sorry for repeating, but does the bag (when empty) really weigh 4.9 lb? Its just that i'm of a small build and the dell already weighs 5.8 lb.

Thanks for responding.

 

[djmakk]

love this bag, I just came across it in a local store. Any chance of some pics of this thing fully loaded? also curious if it can hold a camera (slr) in any capacity.

 

[Rondue]

Man... that thing is ugly

 

[Artful Dodger]

Good Choice

Bought this right away since I had bought another Booq bag for my girl a year ago and it still looks brand new. This one does what I need and for me, I don't need to keep books for school in it with my 17" as it's just for travel and handles that very well. I had looked at some others but in the end I'm happy with my purchase but it would have been nice to have something other than the green color to choose from for the inside color.
Guess time will tell but if it's like the other Booq it should hold up to my demands and traveling.