Help Me Decide Which Case!

Message

teknoT42 · #1 Post by **teknoT42** » Sat Dec 25, 2004 2:04 am

Hey All,
I am looking buy either of these two cases and wanted to know which one you would prefer and why?
There is Bag 1:
http://www-605.ibm.com/content/product_ ... NAME_7.gif
* ThinkPad compartment size 31 x 25.5 x 5 cm
* Top loading center compartment for ThinkPad
* Adjustable ergonomic shoulder strap
* Foam, padded ThinkPad compartment
* Bag exterior: Black Nylon with IBM logo
* Lifetime Warranty for faulty workmanship & materials Global
or

Bag 2:
http://www-605.ibm.com/content/product_ ... NAME_7.gif
# Robust Features - Made from 600D Polyester.
# Features non-skid rubber feet, shoulder strap, exterior accessory/printer pocket, adjustable divider to seperate the AC adapter from the notebook computer, has an interior pocket and pockets for business cards, pens and diskettes.
# Black in colour.[/u][/b]

teknoT42 · #2 Post by **teknoT42** » Sat Dec 25, 2004 2:40 am

16 views and no replies !!
Can someone please reply with a cast of their vote?

I need to buy it tonight because in a couple of weeks i will be off on a trip
cheers

jeroenp · #3 Post by **jeroenp** » Sat Dec 25, 2004 4:08 am

teknoT42 wrote:Hey All,
I am looking buy either of these two cases and wanted to know which one you would prefer and why?

I'd say: neither of them.
I really dislike shoulder-bags for two reasons:

they literally scream 'steal me, STEAL ME' as it's so obvious a laptop is inside
you don't want to know how BAD they are for your back

I'd go for a good laptop backpack.
My personal backpack is a 'big brain bag' from Tom Bihn. I bought it more than 7 years ago for about USD 120, and only now it is starting to wear a little bit. No wonder - I'm a heavy user - it's been with me daily in public traffic, air-ports, while biking, wandering, and even for short holidays.

Tom Bihn now builds a newer model, the 'brain bag'.
Some people I know have it, and like it a lot.

A smaller alternative with nicer design is the 'smart Alec'.

For both bags, you might want to consider a protective inner-bag for your laptop. For the original 'big brain bag', Tom had 'lap dog bags'.
Now he has improved the design, and introduced new technology for better protection, in two formats and different sizes:

a portrait shaped protective bag called 'monolith'
a landscape shaped protective bag called 'brain cell'

I know there are plenty more back-pack manufacturers around, so you might want to look around further.
The reason I prefer Tom Bihn is that he comes from a hiking background, so he has a lot of experience in practical use of these things.

DavidNZ · #4 Post by **DavidNZ** » Sat Dec 25, 2004 4:45 am

Agreed. Backpacks are the way to go if you're doing lots of 'lugging' - i.e., walking longer distances. When I travel, I use this: http://www.radtech.us/Products/Backpacks.aspx#Sphere

I bought it locally here in NZ, but Radtech has them in the US. Excellent pack. Perfect for a 12", but there are larger ones that would fit the T series.

For day-to-day back and forth to the office, I use a LowePro Madison 1200:

http://www.epinions.com/content_83657199236 (my review)

Can't get it anymore, but LowePro have a new range out for laptops. Far superior to most computer bags I've seen.

teknoT42 · #5 Post by **teknoT42** » Sat Dec 25, 2004 5:37 pm

Hi there,
thanks for your comments,
thing is i already have a backpack which contains my documents for school etc.. so therefore I need a bag that i can either strap around my shoulders on carry with my hand.
thanks

brewt · #6 Post by **brewt** » Sat Dec 25, 2004 7:01 pm

Well if you've got room in your backpack, you could always get a sleevecase (sfbags.com's SleeveCase, or shinza, etc).

texasdiver · #7 Post by **texasdiver** » Sat Dec 25, 2004 7:37 pm

I actually wouldn't get either of them.

Like others have said, if you are backpack inclined, get a backack case, or get a padded sleeve and put it in a regular backpack. If it were me and I was commuting with a backpack, I'd use my existing Marmot pack and get the smallest case that holds the laptop and power brick and keep it inside my backpack. I haven't inspected the current crop of laptop backpacks so I don't know about them.

If I were using it for business use, I'd get one of the zip top or flap top shoulder cases that has lots of extra room for documents. I'm partial to shoulder bags for my use because i'm on planes a lot and work at a desk and it's nice to have a bag that can sit at your feet and allow you to access everything. I'm not sure the backpack bags will allow you to get things out of them easily when they are at your feet on a plane. I'm currently partial to something like the Tom Bihn Empire Builder or Trager Courier. You can see them both at the Tom Bihn site:

http://www.tombihn.com/

Altough for your time frame, the Tom Bihn is probably out of the question because they have a long lead time usually. The Trager Courier is very nice though.

My current bag is a Tumi expandable but I'm going to replace it with either one of the two that I mentioned. I want one with a contrasting color interior so it is easier to find things. Brenthaven also makes nice bags, but none that will perfectly fit the 15" T42p.

teknoT42 · #8 Post by **teknoT42** » Sat Dec 25, 2004 8:26 pm

I ended up buying the second one because it is polyster..

eriqesque · #9 Post by **eriqesque** » Sat Dec 25, 2004 9:18 pm

Kinda makes sense.
Ask for other peoples advice. Then do just the opposite.

Champ · #10 Post by **Champ** » Sat Dec 25, 2004 10:37 pm

since he got a bag now... give me some advice in what is hte best sleeve for a 15'' t42

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=6472

I was inititally going with Shinza then heard about bad fit or scratching fit so then I'm thinking powersleeve? but its' like a $100 canadian :s

teknoT42 · #11 Post by **teknoT42** » Sun Dec 26, 2004 12:42 am

eriqesque wrote:Kinda makes sense.
Ask for other peoples advice. Then do just the opposite.

Hey there,
well:
a) the topic was really dedicated to those two bags because that is the budget I had..
b) I cannot order any of the mentioned bags because I am outside of the US (yes I know they can ship them..)

jeroenp · #12 Post by **jeroenp** » Sun Dec 26, 2004 5:44 am

texasdiver wrote:I want one with a contrasting color interior so it is easier to find things. Brenthaven also makes nice bags, but none that will perfectly fit the 15" T42p.

Hey - I just ordered a T42p Q1U (and a truckload of options) with Bill. He's gonna send it to NY where we will visit friends next week. Then I will take it back home to Amsterdam.

If I read his forum right, Tom Bihn is considering making the interior color more contrasting. That certainly would be appealing (spelling?) to me.

Let me know what your experience are, as I'll probably want to buy a new bag during next year.

texasdiver · #13 Post by **texasdiver** » Sun Dec 26, 2004 11:21 am

I have a business trip scheduled to Seattle the first week of January so I was planning to drop in on the Tom Bihn retail store and paw through the bag selection. Also take a hard look at the Trager bags which are also from Seattle. I'll post my impressions and conclusions afterwards.

I've used a Tumi Expandable brief with a Targus laptop sleeve for the past 10 years or so. The Tumi is a tough bag made of ballistic. I had the zippers replaced once and wore through one shoulder strap. I'm now using the shoulder strap off a camera bag that I rarely use. The Tumi is OK but I think it's rather overpriced and I really don't like how some of the exterior pockets work. They are big and swallow a lot of things but the end up with lots of junk in them. Plus, there's no perfect spot to carry a cell phone.

I had my eye on the Brenthaven bags after looking at them closely in a Seattle luggage shop some time ago. They are clearly superior to the Tumi when it comes to laptop protection as they are more designed for that whereas the Tumi is more of a briefcase that can carry a laptop. However, the standard size Brenthaven bags look like they are just a shade too small to take a T42p with the large battery. And the oversize Brenthaven is just too big. So I'm looking at alternatives.

I work out of home office as a consultant and frequently travel by air to meetings so I don't need a bag for day-to-day use but rather one for frequent trips on airplanes and to carry the laptop into hotel meeting rooms where I give powerpoint presentations and that sort of thing. So I prefer a business-type case that will sit on the ground at my feet and let me extract documents. Also one that will ride on a rollaboard. So I need two stiff handles on top so that the strap on the rollaboard can attach to the laptop case and carry it through airports.

texasdiver · #14 Post by **texasdiver** » Sun Dec 26, 2004 3:11 pm

Another interesting looking business-ish bag that I just came across is the Booq Cobra:

http://www.booqbags.com/Detail.bok?no=87

It's marketed for 15" powerbooks but should work nicely with the 15" T42p. Haven't seen one in person though, just saw this bag mentioned over in the Ars Technica forums.

CChoi83 · #15 Post by **CChoi83** » Mon Dec 27, 2004 2:29 am

For protection, nothing beats a Pelican Case.

esxmac · #16 Post by **esxmac** » Tue Dec 28, 2004 2:12 am

I vote for neither too. I like the rolling cases; I have the ThinkPad Vertical Roller Case.

This thing is great--multiple document pockets, fits my two-inch programming books with ease, has a drink holder on the side, and provides a very nicely cushioned compartment for my T42p. The material is very durable and is water resistant coated or something, ie, really tough and practically water proof.

Help Me Decide Which Case!

Which Bag Is Better?

Help Me Decide Which Case!

Re: Help Me Decide Which Case!

Who is online