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Mem said:
I've narrowed down my possible laptop cases to the Crumpler School Hymm 15" or the Booq Powersleeve14. I've been lucky enough to see pictures of both, with powerbooks in them, but I just can't seem to make a final decision. Ultimately, I would like to be able to throw it in a simple backpack like this Jansport Super Break But which ever I pick would have to have plenty of padding. ANy good or bad expereinces with either bag?

sorry mem, but still haven't received the school hymn so can't do that comparison for you (supply issues with crumpler i think - eta early august :( )

but the booq is a very good sleeve, very well padded and offers a lot of protection. also has the two zipper compartments on the flap and at the back, good for cleaning cloths, a magazine or two, couple of cds.

one observation about the booq - it does not completely enclose the powerbook they same way the school hymn does. there is a tiny gap/space at the top of the sleeve where the flap folds over the main compartment. howeer i get the vague feeling that the booq is better padded than the crumpler, but can't yet confirm..!
 
More bags

It's a different aesthetic, not funky or wacked, but I've always been a big fan of Tumi bags. Their site, tumi.com has a ton of bags that cater to a more conservative yet classic style.

I've seen the booq bags and they look really well designed. My friend owns one and has no complaints with them.

Lastly, I also have an Oakley backpack which gets lots of rave reviews. I have one of the original Icon bags and for some reason the newer ones seem less well made but what's nice is there's plenty of room for everything I need and they fit under airplane seats or in the compartment above. http://oakley.com/catalog/gear/gearbags/

My wife thinks I'm addicted to bags. She's probably right...
 
Does anyone have thoughts on the use of velvet at a protector for the PB? I have a friend that sews, and I was thinking about having them make a pouch with velvet on the inside and out as a protective sleeve for my leather organizer.
 
Im buying a new bag this weekend for my 12" PB....Im not sure if I should go for the Booq Mamba XS or the Crumpler WeeBee,I like the Crumpler allot since it looks tough and I hear nothing but good things about Crumpler bags....Has anyone used both? I want the smallest bag with enough room for my power brick,mouse and iPod. Thanks
 
tekno_geek911 said:
Im buying a new bag this weekend for my 12" PB....Im not sure if I should go for the Booq Mamba XS or the Crumpler WeeBee,I like the Crumpler allot since it looks tough and I hear nothing but good things about Crumpler bags....Has anyone used both? I want the smallest bag with enough room for my power brick,mouse and iPod. Thanks

I haven't used either, but I have a Booq PowerSleeve12 and it is VERY well made. Worth every penny I spent on it. Booq makes nice stuff, I don't think you will be disappointed.
 
Celeron said:

Haven't you tried to pm any of the mods to make this a sticky? This might be a better alternative than bumping it twice a week.

Anyway I just found these interesting sleeves on a german site. So be warned it's all german.
Oh did I mention.... it's all german... :D

They do look interesting although I don't know if I would buy one. I know a lot of girls that would instantly though. :D

http://www.burninglove.de/shop/product_info.php?cPath=40&products_id=105
 
For anyone who has a Tucano Second Skin -- which is the correct size for a 12" iBook G4? There are two -- iBook 12" and PBook 12"...which seems strange, since the G4 versions of the two are almost exactly the same size, aren't they? Wondering if the iBook one was for the G3 white iBook?
 
mkrishnan said:
For anyone who has a Tucano Second Skin -- which is the correct size for a 12" iBook G4? There are two -- iBook 12" and PBook 12"...which seems strange, since the G4 versions of the two are almost exactly the same size, aren't they? Wondering if the iBook one was for the G3 white iBook?

The slightly bigger one is for the ibook. I had one for mine and although my pb fits in it too it is kind of loose in it.
 
Diatribe said:
The slightly bigger one is for the ibook. I had one for mine and although my pb fits in it too it is kind of loose in it.

Thanks -- looks like the larger one is about 1cm x 1cm bigger. I went to Apple's page and looked at the sizes more carefully -- I never noticed there was such a difference in the sizes between the two -- I always thought the PB was just thinner....
 
OK, I've read all the threads (here and at Macnn.com) and I'm down to 5 sleeves for my 12" iBook. I need help from people who own these. I know there are plenty of others out there but these 5 fit my needs (very tight fit, very slim profile, no handles/pockets/etc, some light impact protection).

1. Crumpler School Hymn: this is my favorite but at $50 + shipping it is very expensive for just a sleeve. I guess the question would be, is it worth it? Most sleeves are around $30 and I can get the Turcano Second Skin for under $20 so how can I justify the Crumpler?

2. Marware SportFolio: they list the BarracudaSkin for the iBook and the SharkSkin for the 12" PB. I don't like the look of the Barracuda at all. Can my iBook squeeze into the SharkSkin? Do either of these look cheesy? How much protection do they offer? They seem a bit thick, are they?

3. Tucano Second Skin: Great price. How much protection does it offer? Is it only for scratch protection or can in handle light impact also?

4. Shinza ZeroShock: I like its protection, but I'm not sure about the materials and its "squishyness". Price is ok.

5. Radtech Glove: Does this come in horizontal? How much protection? Is it just for scratches?

If I could hold these in my hand my decision would be easy. It is hard to judge these by pics on the web.

any help you can provide is appriecated.
 
I recently picked myself up a Kensington Saddlebag Sport laptop backpack.

http://www.kensington.com/html/3208.html

I really like it, lots of padding, waterproof, and the sleeve for the powerbook is suspended off the bottom of the pack. That way if you drop it the powerbook can't hit the ground. It also has a little waterproof compartment at the top of the bag for your ipod or mp3 player, with a little opening for where the headphones come out. Still waiting for my ipod so I haven't had a chance to check that out yet.

I was able to bring my Canon Powershot G3 camera, wide angel lens, macro lens's, logitech wheel mouse, the power adapter, powerbook, 2 magazines, and a hardcover, sketchbook, memory card reader, a dvd, and pencils quite comfortably this weekend in the backpack.

It was also affordablee. I was looking at the crumplers locally and they were over 180 canadian, this one I found for 90 canadian. Thus far I would highly recommend this product.
 
Just thought I'd mention that I got my Booq Powersleeve 14 for my 15 in Powerbook and am very pleased with it. It shipped the same day I ordered it and Booq customer service was very helpful. A few things about the Sleeve itself:

Pros:
Padding is thick all around
Sides are much harder than I expected...not hard plastic but much sturdier than I expected
Nice design
Fits perfectly in a very modest size backpack
Very cool Booq logo (looks the same rightside up as upside down! :p )
Comfortable handle and shoulder strap.

Cons:
Top is just a flap that comes down and buckles-leaves a bit of the PB exposed.
I would prefer a sturdier buckle-this one is just plastic and not the one that's pictured on the website. It's not very substantial, but luckily it doesn't support much of the PB's weight.

All in all I'd say about 4/5 stars. I don't think I would use it by itself (in the event of rain) but it is perfect for putting in my backpack!
 

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i just bought the sony bag.. it's made for the 12" vaio and supposedly fits the 12" pb perfectly.. padded separated pocket.. and i got it for $33 shipped

the pic here looks a bit diff from the official pic.. maybe it's crap but for $33 for a laptop backpack made to fit a 12" i'll give it a try

http://store.yahoo.com/saveateaglestore/sonvanotspor.html there's the link for the cheap hookup.. bag retails for 90 - sells for 55 at most places.. here it was 33 shipped ground.
 
kelvinz said:
are any of these bags truely waterproof? I live in Seattle and attend the UW so I need something that can deal with a good ammount of contact with Rain.

Hey I'm at UW too, and rain resistance was up at the top of my list! Go figure... :D

If you want a big bag to carry other stuff, Crumpler's Very Busy Man is nice. I've got that and a Crumpler McBain's Lovechild. I got the Lovechild because I was so happy with the water resistance of the VBM. It looks to be quite protective as well, but I just got it this summer so the real test is still to come!

If you decide to get a Crumpler, good places to buy them include
http://www.ebags.com/ and http://www.bagyou.com/ - I've had good luck with both. Crumpler's USA site is at http://www.crumplerusa.com/.
 
Thussy said:
Anyone try the Radtech PowerSleeve.

Is it as good as it sounds? What sort of drop protection does it offer, cuz all it looks like is two pices of cloth sewn together with Powerbook on it.

i bought one, though i haven't actually used it yet. I like it because, i can stick the Pb in another bag, and the sleave doesn't take up a lot of space (like most out there, the other recom. is acmemade.com, but its pricey) but prevents scratches on the PB, which is what i bought it for. and yes it is two pieces of cloth, so it offers zero drop protection.

Thussy said:
Also, I think the fact that it says Powerbook screams steal me in University.

interestingly enough thats what it says on the other side. :)
 
I've posted my review with photos of the Tucano SecondSkin sleeve and the Tucano Cobra messenger bag here. Hope it is useful to people on the market.

Short version: The bag is great if you want a compact, stylish, inexpensive bag designed for 12" laptops with moderate storage space. The sleeve is quite attractive too. Caveats: (1) Probably not enough storage for students and (2) 12" iBook, once in the sleeve, doesn't fit in the padded laptop section (though it fits quite perfectly otherwise -- I think the bag was simply designed to be used without a sleeve on the laptop). I'm told powerbooks in sleeves do fit the Tucano messenger bags' laptop sections.

Unless you plan to carry your laptop in a number of different bags, I'd advise getting just the sleeve (to use in the bag of your choice) or just the bag if you own a 12" iBook.

Both can be purchased from royalbusiness.com for a combined total of less than $50.
 
Has anyone used a gymspacific.com sleeve?

I just got my wife the 12" powerbook poppy sleeve.

Any reviews?
 
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