( 19 reviews )
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Posted: Jul 18 2009
This is a great bag. It has been well thought through for traveling. This bag basically has 4 sections for storing things: 1. Furthest back is a compartment for the laptop. This is a well padded section which easily fits my 13" macbook. I also like to carry my MB in a neoprene sleeve for extra protection once I get to wherever i'm going, and this all fits nicely and snugly in the section with about 3-1/2 inches underneath (or on top) to spare, for carrying the charging brick, power cords and other small items. A lot of people have bigger notebooks, so for an added point of reference, I was also able to fit a 15-1/2" Sony Vaio - also in its neoprene sleeve, 1-7/8 thick x 14-7/8 long x 11-1/2 wide. This fit perfectly as well, but if you have anything bigger you will have difficulty closing the zipper and I wouldn't recommend this bag for you. 2. The next compartment is the camera gear section. This is where the bulk of the storage space resides. Dual full zippers, pull the cover completely open. This is nice. I don't like to keep my Nikon D90 on the bottom like in the picture, so I rearranged the very stiff velcro dividers so my D90 faces down on the very top. This makes it easier to get the camera in-out of the bag for me without having to completely open the zippers. The longest lens you'll be able to store using the depth of the bag is about 5". For other longer items including my sb600 Speedlight you'll need to lay them flat. The inside is softly/smoothly lined and fully velcro'd except for about 7" across the top (under the handle). But with the nice two long pads, and the 9 short pads that came with (my bag at least) you'll have lots of flexibility to mixing/matching which arrangement works best for you. There are also three big zippered compartments in this section inside the cover; The top one is actually two separate ones side by side and one big one underneath. Each have soft suede little flaps to cover the zipper pulls. Inside the sections each are lined with a rubbery waterproof material, so if you stored something inside that leaked, it won't drip into the camera section potentially ruining your expensive gear. 3. The next two compartments are on the outside-front of the bag. The top one has a dual zipper pull, which zips about half way down the front of the bag. This section however goes deeper inside, to the bottom and fully to the sides of the bag. Inside here are a couple of sections for your ipod, cell phone, pens, wallet, car keys etc., and the sides will expand ~3" for books, papers etc. ** NOTE here: I have flown on many different airlines, from the small commuters to the bigger Boeing or airbus jets. This bag has fit nicely under the seat in front of you on every one, or in the overhead bin in practically every one of them for me (except some really small 1x1 commuters). Dependent upon how thickly you load this section, you "may" have to remove the laptop to get your bag to fit. Personally I have an ipod, phone, a Kindle, a newspaper and perhaps a couple of magazines, a pen, car keys, and haven't had much trouble at all. Just a note, not a problem really, just a testament to how well the bag has been designed size-wise for air-travel. 4. The next compartment on the front of the bag has a big velcro flap with about a 7-1/2 x 8-1/2 section. Nice and handy/no fuss (non-padded) access for easily reaching for airplane tickets, passport, loose change, etc. in a hurry. 5. Three other noteworthy items; there is also a heavy duty flap on the front which unfolds extending about 8-1/2" with a pocket for hooking the bottom of your tripod (or other long item) into. Coupled with two bungee types of connectors - 1-half way up the front of the bag, 1-on the top of the bag, allows you to lash your tripod to the backpack. Nice idea if you need this, but obviously two things to note due to this geometry, 1- you cant stand the bag upright with the tripod attached, 2-you will need to unhook the top bungee to get into the camera portion of the bag (you can still access the laptop portion). The next noteworthy item is the "AW" portion of the bag. AW means All-Weather. Underneath the bag is a velcro section which contains an attached elasticized waterproof poncho for your backpack. It completely covers the bag except for the back straps, so you can still wear it as a backpack. Finally this is a backpack, so there is also a waist strap (for transferring carry weight from your shoulders to your hips), and a chest strap for keeping the padded shoulder straps and load weight balanced on your back and pulled in from the bony corners of your shoulders. Also there are three buckles to keep the bag cinched tight front-to-back (one on each side) and on the top keeping the camera and laptop sections cinched together as well. There is also a really nice rubberized and easy to grip handle on the top to carry the backpack bag style, and two loops (one on each side) for hooking things onto (like a water bottle holder, or handheld item, flipcam, gps, phone, etc...) Last comments.. I like this bag for what it is. When you open the box, you will first notice the weight. It is a very well engineered and fully padded tech friendly backpack, with high-quality zippers, that will not fall apart anytime soon. It lets me consolidate my computer & camera bags for travel, so it does what it does very well. With airlines cracking down on carry-on items, this bag is perfectly maximized size-wise to fit on-board so I don't have to worry about hand checking one of two bags. This bag is bigger than it looks. It will hold a LOT of gear which is terrific. But it will get HEAVY. Be aware of this. I like to carry everything to where I'm going and unload the laptop and chargers etc. so the bag converts nicely to a day pack as well for out on the trail etc.. If I'm just out sightseeing etc. I usually just carry a camera and maybe one spare lens, so I also bring a less intrusive messenger type bag with me usually (carry-on, or in my checked luggage). There are a lot of competitors in this hybrid compu/camera bag space, this isn't a comparison to those bags because I'm certain they are equally great, so choose yours, but for me and for the price I have no desire or need to trade this bag for anything else, and would absolutely buy it again. Good luck, and happy picture taking!
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Posted: Jun 10 2009
This is a great bag. I use Rebel XTI with attached battery grip (growing to a 50D shortly). Has plenty of room for my 70-300MM IS attached to camera. I usually also pack 28-105MM and a 50MM. With all of the above still has plenty of room for another body or 2-3 lens. Padding is great, however this bag is very large. I wouldn't recommend buying if this were going to be on your back for a long time (2+ hours), however it fits in the over head compartments on air planes and can still hold an extra set of clothes and/or a light jacket, as well as all cables/charges extra batteries etc. The built in dust/rain/wind guard is a great plus, also adds extra padding to bottom when not in use.
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Posted: May 22 2009
My mom is a professional seamstress and I don't think she'll ever have to repair this bag like she has done to my other bags. I load this thing up to the brim and carry it often. I use it for camcorder gear (including the Panasonic HVX200) and serious audio recording equipment, usually with a laptop, including the 15" Macbook Pro, which is fairly large for a 15". This LowePro backpack can handle a lot of gear and a lot of weight. It's really a backbreaker, but it can hold up and feels comfy. As much as I'd like the larger wheeled version, the CompuTrekker AW is about as big as you can go that'll still fit under an airlines seat in coach. I've never had a snafu tucking it under, and it barely clears allowable footroom. Of course, it'll fit in the overhead, but these days you never know if there'll be any overhead space available, but rest assured you're entitled to underseat space and this backpack will fit. Unlike many other bags, the laptop compartment is in the back, so it's super easy to slip it in and out without having to open up the bag itself. Just watch out laying this backpack on its back, then all the weight is on the laptop. That's a small compromise for having such a convenient laptop compartment. The tripod feature of this backpack is useful, just a bit strange when you put the bag down, as the tripod extends beyond the bottom of the bag. I carry a Manfrotto, so you know this bag can hold a lot of weight. The flexibility of the internal dividers allow for various configurations, especially with the HVX I can only put one vertical divider.
