More than a year has passed since I bought my way into the cool club by purchasing a Macbook laptop and I couldn’t be happier. At the time of purchase, I also ordered a Crumpler The Considerable Embarrassment Laptop Bag for it, based almost soley on the name and reputation of the company. Since I own one of their larger photo backpacks I knew that everything about the bag would be top notch and didn’t even really shop around for another bag. I’ve been using this bag near daily for more than a year and figured it needs a review, so here goes.
Laptop bags come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, colors, fabrics and functions, aside from going with Crumpler, my bag needed to have the following:
- Black in color
- No screaming logos
- Dedicated padding for the laptop
- Pockets inside to keep things organized
- High quality velcro, zippers and buckles
- Long lasting
The black in color and lack of logos makes this bag look more like a man-purse or messenger style bag and nothing about it screams out that there is a spendy laptop inside, very important to me, you may disagree.
There is a dedicated section for the laptop which holds my 13.3″ Macbook just fine but will also hold up to a 15″ Macbook Pro. It has a flap that covers the laptop inside the main portion and padding on all sides.
There is one long zipper inside the bag that is great for storing magazines or papers that need to stay flat and 3 main pockets inside the front portion of the bag. The two towards the edges are deep and open, one usually holds my charger while the other is the perfect size for a 16oz Nalgene bottle. The middle pocket is a bit more shallow and has a velcro closure at the top, I usually keep business cards inside. The main portion of the bag will hold everything else, from books and notebooks to a sweatshirt if need be. On the front of the padded laptop section are some slots for pens, a small velcro covered pocket that holds my Macbook remote control and one more open pocket which I have yet to find a use for. There are no external pockets, I’m fine with that.
The main flap closes with two large velcro strips and there are buckles that can be clipped for added security. I rarely use the buckles because the velcro is just that strong, and in more than a year hasn’t collected those annoying little balls of fuzz that prevent it from working. The only zipper is as mentioned, inside, and is Crumpler branded, I’ve never had an issue with them, on my photo backack or this bag, it’s just solid and works.
I was a bit concerned with just how long this bag would last, it’s made out of Water resistant 1000D Nylon shell & 420D Ripstop Nylon lining but there is no extra padding on the bottom, which is where it comes in contact with the ground, floor, etc. Some higher end models from different companies often have rubber or a second layer of nylon around the bottom to prevent wear from running and overall use, to my surprise and delight, the bag shows no signs of wear, anywhere! The strap hasn’t started to fray, there hasn’t been one thread come loose anywhere and as mentioned, the velcro preforms as new.
The one bonus feature to this bag that I’ve yet to see in any other mass produced bag is the bright colored inside. My bag is black on the outside and a bright green on the inside. Crumpler has been doing this for as long as I know, my photo backpack being baby blue inside, and for a reason. Someone actually realized that if you drop something in the bottom of your bag, say a pen, it’s pretty hard to see down there when the liner is black, so they make them bright, fun colors to help locate what it is you are searching for. The bag also features a comfortable shoulder strap pad that doesn’t flop over like some cheap bags do.
Onto the negative aspect. The outside is listed as water resistant. It is, but since it’s not a waterproof bag and there is no main zipper for the opening, only the folded over top, don’t walk outside in the rain for hours on end and expect the inside to remain dry. At the corners of the bag there are little openings from where the fabric kind of bunches up that rain can get into. My bag is used to get my laptop and stuff from my house to my car and from my car to wherever I’m taking it. If I needed to walk several many blocks to get on a train and then go to my location in the rain, I’d consider keeping an umbrella with me.
At $85 the Crumpler The Considerable Embarrassment Laptop Bag isn’t the cheapest on the market, however considering that it’s safely kept my $1,100 Macbook safe for more than a year, I’m very happy with the purchase and have no regrets.
