HUB tests three notebook backpacks with sizzlin’ style
Business folk like to haul their portable PCs in expensive attaché cases, and stylish technorati typically obsess over messenger bags and shoulder totes, but the most practical and ergonomic means of transporting a notebook—preferred by students, cyclists and urban hikers—is the backpack. These double-strapped shoulder bags are better for your back and can typically store a lot more than just a notebook and a few papers. And, if you choose carefully, they can be surprisingly easy on the peepers. We checked out three laptop packs that give backs a break and provide their wearers little need to fear the fashion police.
Targus Revolution www.targus.com/ca ($100)
If you can’t decide whether you’d like a messenger bag or a backpack, the Revolution might be worth a look-see. The spacious laptop compartment (fits screens up to 15.4 inches) detaches from the rest of the pack and has its own padded shoulder strap, allowing users to travel light when necessary. It’s a great solution for people who need a backpack for the bike ride to work or school and a lighter, sleeker tote as they port their notebooks to meetings or classes throughout the day. The extra material makes the Revolution a bit bulkier than competing laptop backpacks, but it’s a fair trade given the pack’s unusual utility. The only real bummer is a lack of additional pockets in the tote—it’s a pretty basic bag meant to stow little more than a notebook. (Oh—and the backpack’s beige and brown motif, while pretty, requires a wardrobe composed mostly of earth tones, assuming you don’t want to clash with your bag.)
Samsonite Pro DLX http://www.samsonite.ca/ ($165 medium, $210 large)
If durability is a factor and price isn’t a concern, renowned luggage designer Samsonite’s Pro DLX is the notebook backpack to beat. Constructed with heavy duty nylon fibres, the Pro DLX can take a serious beating without tearing or even showing signs of wear. The interior laptop compartment, which can fit notebooks up to 15-inches, provides plenty of padding as well as a strap designed to keep computers from shifting in transit. Available in black or brown with attractive orange accents and leather finishes, the Pro DLX is at home in business environments. Adding to the professional vibe is a practical design that sports far fewer outer zippers and compartments than the norm for the backpack genus, lending it an efficient, minimal appearance.
lululemon Terrain http://www.lululemon.com/ ($89)
Backpacks designed by lululemon, a rapidly expanding Vancouver-based athletic clothing company, focus on comfort, practicality, style and providing an easy way to lug your...yoga mat...around town. That’s right: in addition to dedicated pockets for notebooks, iPods and PDAs, the Terrain is also designed to make transporting your yoga gear on bike or foot a piece of cake. Hipsters will appreciate the pack’s funky little details, including pictures of items meant to be stored in each compartment found on their corresponding zipper tags, while owners of pricey notebooks will welcome the smartly designed laptop sheath, which opens from the side to allow notebooks to be inserted lengthwise. Once stowed, laptops sit comfortably flat against the wearer’s back and on an elastic band that keeps them slightly elevated and protected against the impact of short drops.
Business folk like to haul their portable PCs in expensive attaché cases, and stylish technorati typically obsess over messenger bags and shoulder totes, but the most practical and ergonomic means of transporting a notebook—preferred by students, cyclists and urban hikers—is the backpack. These double-strapped shoulder bags are better for your back and can typically store a lot more than just a notebook and a few papers. And, if you choose carefully, they can be surprisingly easy on the peepers. We checked out three laptop packs that give backs a break and provide their wearers little need to fear the fashion police.
Targus Revolution www.targus.com/ca ($100)
If you can’t decide whether you’d like a messenger bag or a backpack, the Revolution might be worth a look-see. The spacious laptop compartment (fits screens up to 15.4 inches) detaches from the rest of the pack and has its own padded shoulder strap, allowing users to travel light when necessary. It’s a great solution for people who need a backpack for the bike ride to work or school and a lighter, sleeker tote as they port their notebooks to meetings or classes throughout the day. The extra material makes the Revolution a bit bulkier than competing laptop backpacks, but it’s a fair trade given the pack’s unusual utility. The only real bummer is a lack of additional pockets in the tote—it’s a pretty basic bag meant to stow little more than a notebook. (Oh—and the backpack’s beige and brown motif, while pretty, requires a wardrobe composed mostly of earth tones, assuming you don’t want to clash with your bag.)
Samsonite Pro DLX http://www.samsonite.ca/ ($165 medium, $210 large)
If durability is a factor and price isn’t a concern, renowned luggage designer Samsonite’s Pro DLX is the notebook backpack to beat. Constructed with heavy duty nylon fibres, the Pro DLX can take a serious beating without tearing or even showing signs of wear. The interior laptop compartment, which can fit notebooks up to 15-inches, provides plenty of padding as well as a strap designed to keep computers from shifting in transit. Available in black or brown with attractive orange accents and leather finishes, the Pro DLX is at home in business environments. Adding to the professional vibe is a practical design that sports far fewer outer zippers and compartments than the norm for the backpack genus, lending it an efficient, minimal appearance.
lululemon Terrain http://www.lululemon.com/ ($89)
Backpacks designed by lululemon, a rapidly expanding Vancouver-based athletic clothing company, focus on comfort, practicality, style and providing an easy way to lug your...yoga mat...around town. That’s right: in addition to dedicated pockets for notebooks, iPods and PDAs, the Terrain is also designed to make transporting your yoga gear on bike or foot a piece of cake. Hipsters will appreciate the pack’s funky little details, including pictures of items meant to be stored in each compartment found on their corresponding zipper tags, while owners of pricey notebooks will welcome the smartly designed laptop sheath, which opens from the side to allow notebooks to be inserted lengthwise. Once stowed, laptops sit comfortably flat against the wearer’s back and on an elastic band that keeps them slightly elevated and protected against the impact of short drops.
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