What is it?
Is it a messenger bag? Is it a briefcase? How about both? Chrome’s Anton laptop bag is equal parts business and play. It comes in both green and black and has a real military feel to it, at least in army green. It may not have the most pockets, or be the lightest bag I’ve toted around, but I can’t help but love it. You can tell the user was in mind during the design process, as proven by swiveling shoulder strap hooks and the cross pattern of the Velcro. It is, after all, the little things that count.
Made of nylon and military spec wax-coated canvas, the Anton is heavy duty enough for a tornado chaser. I got stuck in a down-pour yesterday and was really worried about my laptop, but it was safe and dry thanks to the Anton. When the bag is full, it takes on a very boxy shape much like a brief case. When packed with a couple knick knacks, it sports a much more casual look. → Read More
I chose this bag because it’s a bit smaller than the other ones I tested this week and it could be good for a younger person or a svelte, slim lady/man about town. It is a fairly standard backpack but is nicely outfitted with a number of useful features including, but not limited to, a bottle opener, a side zipper to access your laptop, a bottle opener, and a bottle opener.
I’m starting to love bags with bottle openers. → Read More
So I promised that Bag Week 2011 would be worth it. There were the naysayers, the no-no-never Nancies, the nattering nabobs of negativism, and the like but you stuck through Bag Week 2011 and now it’s nearly over. But before we go, we want to offer one final parting gift to you all – everyone except Adrian Scott, that is. Mr. Scott wrote, and I quote:
Worst. Techcrunch. Coverage/Idea. Ever… Please put this on another site… What’s next, soda reviews? Or how about articles about rare medical conditions and asbestos (for the adsense revenue).
While I admit we only do this for the millions it brings us in Adsense revenue (bag makers are rich, FYI), we also do this because people who use computers and read this site like to put those computers into bags when they transport them. Rather than pepper the site with bag reviews, we picked some of our favorites and wrote them up. If that’s wrong, then I don’t want to be right, Mr. Scott.
Anyway, here’s what everyone except Adrian Scott (unless he apologizes publicly) can win from Office Depot, the folks generously donating this final prize:
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What is it?
So you’ve already heard about the Incase Alloy Series Compact Backpack, and perhaps you felt that the style was super slick but you tend to prefer messenger bags over backpacks. Well, no worries. Incase has a space pack for every need, including the Alloy Messenger Bag. It’s got the same silvery metallic finish, and fits just as much of your junk, but can be tossed over one shoulder instead of two.
As far as style is concerned, the bag will certainly attract people with very specific tastes. That silver metallic finish certainly isn’t for everyone, so if you prefer a more weathered or classic look, this may not be the bag for you. Then again, its construction is super lightweight, making it easier to pack this thing full of goodies. In fact, since it’s a messenger bag instead of a backpack the material is much less rigid to where you can probably fit a few awkward shapes in there and still have no problem. → Read More
We covered Saddleback Leather’s products last year and we thought it would be fun to bring these guys back on stage one more time for an encore. As you can see from the images, these are, in a sense, your grandpa’s bags. They are made of thick, old-world, heavily-stitched leather and feature heavy duty hardware, delicate pigskin lining, and a lot of polish. While I wouldn’t go as far as to say you’ll hand this down to your children, the leather in this thing is so thick and luxurious there’s a good chance they’ll be able to eat it if they ever run out of food in the wild.
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I consider myself a pretty understated guy when it comes to attire, so when Ogio offered to send me the Squadron RSS in Celebrity White, I surprised myself my taking a chance on it. A white bag? This was strange new territory for me, but hey — what better time to be adventurous than during Bag Week? → Read More
What is it?
Whether your apartment walls are covered in pop art or not, this Shoulder Bag from Incase’s Andy Warhol collection brings an entirely new sense of style to the laptop bag. Granted, it’s not as durable as some of the other bags we’ve seen this week, nor does it protect your gadgetry as well, but it does have one thing that the other bags don’t: a banana.
All jokes aside, this bag actually got the job done rather well and with more than a few pairs of eyes on me. Whether onlookers were making fun of me for carrying an Andy Warhol bag (not likely in this part of Brooklyn) or they were digging my style is yet to be determined. Either way, the bag suited my needs just fine, though it is a tad heavier than some of the other bags I’ve toyed with this week. → Read More
This is my new go-to bag. That’s saying something, too. Despite reviewing dozens of computers bags during my tenure at TechCrunch, I’ve stuck with the Ogio HipHop for years. It’s made four CES trips, three to CEDIA, a few E3s and countless random flights around the country. I love it. But now it’s just hanging in my closest. The Crumpler Pinnacle of Horror now hangs on the hook by my door, always ready to hit the road. → Read More
Sometimes you don’t need space for clothes, lunch, paperwork and your pet hamster. Sometimes all you need is an easy way to get your laptop from point A to point B safely. If that’s the case, then we shouldn’t waste any more time before I introduce you to Incase’s Nylon Sling Sleeve. It’s light, compact, durable, and has a design that’s equal parts fun and sophisticated.
The Sling Sleeve comes in several sizes, mine being the largest and able to fit up to a 15-inch MacBook Pro. There’s a smaller version for the 13-inch MacBook (though it’s seemingly out of stock right now), and a baby sleeve that can only handle an 11-inch MacBook Air. The bags come in several color flavors, with a solid color for the body of the bag and a complimentary color along the inside lining, zippers, and other accents. Speaking of the lining, inside you’ll find a nice faux fur finish to keep your laptop safe and snug (and probably warm and fuzzy too). → Read More
Today’s giveaway is pretty exciting. For your pleasure, we have a Timbuk2 D-Lux Racing Stripe Laptop Messenger bag, a $120 value, yours for the low, low price of free. Like the previous contest (won by a young man named Ryan Mense), this is a comment contest. Your goal this time is to tell us about how this bag will save/improve your life. That’s right: treat this bag like a DJ who did something for you last night.
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Next up during this year’s Bag Week we have the oddly named but delightfully designed Wise-Walker from Nomadic. This Japanese import is a business up front and a party inside. → Read More
Bag Week continues with our review of Mission Workshop’s Sanction backpack. It’s a weather-proof pack made for short trips on your bike or long walks in the rain. It’s their smallest backpack, far smaller than the Vandal I reviewed last year. But at 1000 cubic inches, it’s still big enough day-tripping. Let’s take a closer look at this thing. → Read More
What is it?
Boy am I enjoying bag week. Incase’s Alloy series Compact Backpack was quite the treat, but I have wandering eyes which have now led me to the Chrome Krakow Laptop Bag. The thing about the Krakow is that it can withstand just about anything, which seems to be the trend at Chrome. The company is all about letting you go wild and crazy while keeping your gadgetry safe and snug in your bag. That said, the Krakow falls in line well, and has a design to prove it.
The bag sports industrial metal strap adjusters, along with two metal hooks on the straps themselves. Just from looking at it you can tell the bag is made for some heavy wear and tear, made obvious by the nylon construction with polyurethane coating. But what isn’t so obvious is the weatherproof military-grade truck tarpaulin liner on the inside. To put it plainly, you’d have trouble getting your laptop wet in this bag. → Read More
When I joined TechCrunch (and AOL, by association), I found myself swimming in company-issued bags. The standard-issue MacBook Pro came with a hefty Targus beater of a shoulder bag, and AOL saw fit to send me a Ogio backpack emblazoned with a giant purple AOL logo.
I shoved them both in a closet after a few days.
Instead, I lug around the Targus Spruce EcoSmart on a daily basis. It’s not the most expensive, nor the most fashion-forward bag you’re likely to see during Bag Week, but it’s a robust, comfortable day bag that can carry most of your daily necessaries without making you regret it. → Read More
First, if you find the concept of Bag Week appalling (looking at you, achshar), read no further. We want no truck with you. Second, here’s a free bag.
eBags is offering a free Mother Lode TLS Weekender Convertible backpack to one lucky reader. We haven’t had a hands on with this model, so we expect a full report from you once it arrives. However, that said, it looks pretty fancy and comes in multiple colors. → Read More
What is it?
Happy Bag Week everyone, and please kindly meet the Incase Alloy Series Compact Backpack. I’ve been reviewing this bag for a while now, and I have to say I much prefer it to anything I actually own. I’ll be sad to see it go. However, it happens to look like some sort of space pack you’d see in Battlestar Galactica with its metallic finish, so it’s definitely a love-it-or-hate-it design.
Aside from the silver metallic finish (that you can’t help but notice), the backpack itself is pretty plain with no extra bells or whistles. Size-wise it was everything I could ask for. Compact enough to be comfortable and look like it actually fits my body, but big enough to fit most everything I’d need for a day on the job or at play. It fits up to a 15″ MacBook Pro, and still leaves plenty of extra space for an iPad, camera, change of clothes, or whatever else it is you tote around day to day. → Read More
What is it?
If you’re planning on taking a semester off and fly to Europe just to clear your head and get over “her” (or “him”), you’re going to need a backpack. That’s why Chrome made the Yalta, a backpack that looks like a cross between an Weimar-Era bondage truss and something the Good Soldier Švejk would carry through the trenches of World War I.
This is not to say that the Yalta is only for those who browse army surplus shops. This “duffel” style backpack has a large top opening and a rear pocket designed to allow for a laptop (no bigger than the Macbook Air) and/or a tablet. There is also a front pocket. To close it, you simply roll up the lip at the top and connect the chromed metal hook into one of the loops sewn to the back of the backpack. The hook, it should be noted, can double as a bottle opener. → Read More
We pay a lot of lip service to high-tech gadgetry and gizmos on TechCrunch, focusing on only the latest and greatest for your edification. But what abou the stuff that barely gets any notice? What about the straps, bags, and sacs that carry our devices hither and yon with nary a scratch. That’s why we’re holding our annual Bag Week this week and that’s why we’re going to be reviewing a cavalcade of bags, from photo bags to laptop bags to backpacks. Why, you ask? Because it’s Bag Week, people.
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