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This Intrepid Bag Co. bag holds your entire EDC kit – including an iPad Pro or laptop

The Zinnia Convertible bag converts from a backpack to a crossbody bag, but what doesn’t change is its ability to hold everything you need to carry for your day.  The Zinnia is made of rich, mahogany-colored leather, lined with a wool-blend fabric imported from England, and accented with forged steel hardware and hand-pounded copper rivets.  It’s designed wider on the bottom than the top, so it can stand up on its own.  Its strap easily converts from backpack to crossbody by simply pulling the straps into place – no unbuckling and rerouting straps required.  And the straps are padded for comfort.

The Zinnia Convertible has a padded internal pocket that holds an iPad Pro 12.9 or up to a 13″ laptop, and there’s enough space inside to hold all your other stuff – as you can see from the picture.  The front flap with interior rain flaps keeps the contents safe and dry.  There are several external pockets:  two expanding side water bottle pockets, two easy-access back pockets, and a front pocket with magnetic closure.

The Zinnia is handmade in the USA with vegetable-tanned, full-grain mahogany saddle leather and with UV-resistant marine-grade nylon stitching (used in parachute construction).  It weighs 3 pounds and measures  12.5” x 10” x 4”.  The Zinnia Convertible is $329 from the Intrepid Bag Co.

Waterfield announces its new Atlas Executive Athletic Holdall

Waterfield has recently announced its Atlas Executive Athletic Holdall, a bag designed to be an all-in-one everyday transporter. It is meant to be both a briefcase and athletic bag, enabling you to seamlessly go from gym to office and back again. It has a padded laptop compartment and organizational pockets for all your EDC needs plus separate compartments to hold your workout gear (including shoes) as well. The Altas Holdall is made from black ballistic nylon or brown waxed canvas with full-grain leather accents. The bag is not too big or heavy: 16″ (L) x 10″ (H) x 8.5″ (W) weighing just over 3 lbs.

I regularly carry multiple bags with me to work:

All of this adds up to a very clunky way to get from home to work and back. When I saw the Waterfield Atlas Executive Athletic Holdall my initial thought was…I so need that. Combining all my stuff into a single carry solution while looking very professional and organized would be truly brilliant.

Waterfield begins taking orders for the $429 Altas Executive Holdall on Dec. 31st with orders shipping in mid January.

Carry your laptop in style with the backpack from Duchess Case

A few years ago, I reviewed a cute little clutch case for the iPad mini from Duchess Case.  The case looked like a clutch handbag instead of a utilitarian bag, so it was ideal for the woman who wanted something more fashionable than the standard tablet case.  I was checking out the Duchess Case website recently because I wondered if they had a similar case to fit the 12.9″ iPad Pro, and I was disappointed to see they don’t have a tablet case that size.  However, they do have a backpack that looks very similar to that cute little iPad mini clutch.

The Backpack for laptop has the same vintage style as the clutch I reviewed, with the same “kisslock” closure used on old-fashioned coin purses and handbags.  The backpack is 13.7″ tall X 9″ wide, so it should handily fit a variety of laptops or a 12.9″ iPad Pro. The bag has two interior sections: one for the laptop, and the other for notebooks, papers, or other gear.  The Backpack for Laptop is made of the same highly textured fabric the mini clutch used, and it’s available in blue, black, green, gray, lemon green, purple, red, or yellow for $159.00 at Duchess Case.

Peak Design Everyday Sling 5L bag review

The bags we use to carry our daily gear are chosen based on a variety of criteria. Large messenger bags work great when you have a lot of bulky items, smaller bags are better when all you need to carry is a wallet and a phone. And then there are medium sized bags like the Peak Design Everyday Sling bag which we’re going to talk about today.

What is it?

The Everyday Sling 5L bag from Peak Design is a small bag that can be worn over the shoulder or as a waist bag (aka fanny pack) and has been designed to be used as a camera bag, small drone bag, or general purpose bag.

Design and features

The Sling bag is available in two sizes, the 10L version and a 5L version like the one that was sent to me. Both versions of the bag are made of weatherproof 400D nylon canvas and are available in black or ash. I was sent the ash version of the Sling bag which matches the Peak Design Everyday Messenger bag and Everyday Tote bag that I’ve also reviewed.

This bag doesn’t have a flap, but a zippered top that provides access to the interior. On the front of the bag is a horizontal zipper which secures the quick-access front pocket. This pocket is roomy enough to hold a large phone like my Pixel 2 XL.

For security, the zipper pull for the main compartment can be locked into the zipper pull for the quick-access pocket.

Here’s a view of the back of the Sling bag which as you can see, does not have any pockets.

The top of the bag has a padded grab handle with a leather accent.

The adjustable shoulder strap can be flipped for left or right shoulder carry and the extra length of the strap can be hidden in a slot on the back of the bag.

The strap has a quick adjuster loop that makes it easy to loosen and tighten the strap while you’re wearing the bag, and the g-hook provides a way to quickly switch the bag from shoulder to waist carry.

I prefer to wear bags crossbody style, but I was surprised by how comfortable the Sling is to wear around the waist. I can imagine wearing it this way while hiking.

The exterior of the Sling also has a dedicated attachment point for Peak Design’s Capture Clip system which is designed to attach cameras to the outside of the bag for quick access.

The Sling reminds me of a clamshell. The main compartment doesn’t have a flap to secure it, but a zipper which allows the front part of the bag to hinge forward.

Peak Design bags all have FlexFold dividers which are a really cool way to organize your gear inside the bag. Inside the Sling are two FlexFold origami dividers that can be repositioned, folded or even removed to configure the interior of the bag exactly how you want it.

The interior of the bag is an open compartment with a small stretch pocket on the side and a padded open topped pocket along the back that is large enough to hold a tablet with dimensions no larger than 9.4 x 7.3 x 0.6 inch (24 cm x 18.5 cm x 1.5 cm).  The top of the tablet pocket has a magnetic closure.

If we flip the Sling bag around, we can see the other side of the bag where there’s a zippered pocket.

Inside the pocket are 4 small pockets that can hold memory cards or other small items.

The Sling 5L is designed to hold small drones like the DJI Mavic or DJI Spark, and small mirrorless or DSLR cameras.

I don’t own a DJI drone and I no longer have a dedicated DSLR camera, but do have a collection of EDC gear that goes with me to and from work each day. Here’s my latest selection minus an A5 notebook, and my Pixel 2 XL which I used to take this photo.

And here we see all my items stowed neatly in the Peak Design Everyday Sling 5L bag. The bag was able to hold the majority of my essentials, but I did have to compromise and remove one of the individual notebooks from my X47 leather notebook binder instead of carrying the whole thing. I was able to put the thin A5 notebook in the tablet pocket inside the Sling.

Another compromise I made was not being able to put my lunch in the Sling since there was absolutely no room left to hold even a small container of food.

Bonus points for the fact that the Sling 5L sits upright on a flat surface without falling over.

Positives

  • Multiple ways to carry
  • Customizable FlexFold organization dividers
  • Small but can hold a lot of gear

Negatives

  • 5L version can feel cramped if you like to carry a lot of gear

Final thoughts

Since reviewing the Peak Design Everyday Messenger bag, I’ve become a fan of their bags. The bags are well made, expertly designed for customization, and stylish. The Everyday Sling 5L is a great little bag for people who don’t carry a lot of gear with them each day or want a dedicated bag for a small mirrorless camera kit or drone kit. This is another winner for Peak Design and I’m happy to recommend it.

Price: $99.95
Where to buy: Amazon
Source: The sample for this review was provided by Peak Design.

Waterfield Air Porter carry-on bag review

Earlier this year, I reviewed the Waterfield Maverick Laptop Messenger Bag and loved it for its leather which gets better looking as it’s used and abused. Waterfield’s new Air Porter carry-on bag serves a different function and wasn’t made to compete with the Maverick—but it sorta can. The Air Porter may be made to be a carry-on bag for air travel (we’ll get into that later), but it can easily be an all-around bag for work and car trips. Waterfield based the Air Porter’s design on feedback they received from their customers using an online survey. Waterfield addressed as many requested features as possible and the result is a bag that can do just about anything required of a bag—and then some.

The Waterfield Air Porter bag isn’t covered in leather like the Maverick bag. The bag I’m reviewing is more similar to the Waterfield Bolt backpack and briefcase with its waxed canvas and leather trim appearance. Like leather, waxed canvas looks better with age, but doesn’t have that “cachet” the Maverick has. No matter, because in the weeks I’ve had the Air Porter, I’ve come to depend on its sheer usefulness. This is a bag that means business. It’s the size of a briefcase and can hold a bunch of stuff. At the time of writing this review, Here’s what I have stuffed inside the Air Porter: Various paperwork, 12.9 in. iPad Pro (inside a thick Speck case), 3 pairs of earphones for future reviews, four charging cords with plugs, two portable chargers, two flashlights, eye medicine, card key for the office, wallet and car keys. All that and the Air Porter is not even half full.

The Air Porter bag measures 10.25” H X 4.5” W X 15” L. Waterfield sized the bag to fit within TSA’s sizing guidelines for air travel. This size allows the bag to be stowed upright under an airline seat while still leaving room for feet. It also opens flat for easier TSA screening and access to the laptop compartment.

As I said, the construction of the Waterfield Air Porter bag is waxed canvas. The canvas has been made water resistant, so getting caught in the rain is not a problem. Plus the bag’s zippers are waterproof. For the record—I really like these zippers. They are smooth and are almost invisible when closed—another nice design touch borrowed from the Bolt line.

Note that the Air Porter also comes in a black ballistic nylon material. This gives the bag a smoother, more professional look, but is every bit as tough—if not tougher than canvas. I try to be as unprofessional as possible, so the more casual canvas look is my preference.

The front of the Air Porter bag has a large pocket and smaller zippered compartment, all hidden by a leather flap that magnetically closes. This clever flap adjusts to accommodate more or fewer items. The interior is lined in a burnt-orange colored nylon fabric. This color is more tasteful than the bright orange found inside some bags and backpacks, yet still serves as a nice contrast so items are be easily found without having to shine a light inside. Like many carry-on bags, the back of the Air Porter has a wide, sturdy slot for slipping over rolling suitcase handles freeing up hands and shoulders. Both ends of the Air Porter have large, vertical pockets for water bottles. When not in use, these pockets can collapse and snap closed.

One of my minor complaints about the Maverick bag was the way the strap was sewn into the bag itself. I had issues with usually having to untwist the strap before I could use it. That’s not an issue with the Air Porter. The adjustable strap has clips on each end that swivel, so there is no wrong way to throw the bag on your shoulders. The strap also has a wide padded section which makes using the bag much more comfortable, especially if weighed down. The strap is removable if you prefer using the bag’s sewn-in leather carry handles.

The Waterfield Air Porter has a total of 17 pockets and spaces. The main compartment has a large open area with large and small pockets lining its sides. The larger pockets are made of the same orange nylon, while smaller pockets are a black, stretchy mesh material that can hold irregularly shaped objects. There is also an attached key chain with a carabiner which can help save some time searching for lost or misplaced keys.

The second open compartment is divided into two pockets. One is felt-lined for either a laptop or iPad. The pocket has cutaways on both ends for charging cables to slip through for easy charging while the bag is closed—a nice touch. My large iPad Pro with its oversized case fits perfectly into this pocket. The other large pocket also has two smaller pockets attached. This is perfect for paper, magazines, and other flat items.

If you can’t find room for everything you need to carry, there’s an optional Air Caddy. This pouch can be purchased separately or along with the Air Porter. With its many pockets, the Caddy allows you to pack items you need more often, such as a smartphone, cords and such. This way—as on a flight—the larger Air Porter can be stowed either under a seat or in the overhead bin while the Air Caddy can be placed in the seat pouch within easy reach. The Air Caddy is even large enough to hold a regular-sized iPad. Heavy-duty zippers protect what’s inside. The Air Caddy easily fits either inside the Air Porter’s main compartment or front pocket.

The Waterfield Air Porter carry-on bag is a perfect bag for traveling. It’s large enough for just about anything you want to carry, yet small enough to fit under airline seats for easy reach. And it’s TSA friendly—a big deal in today’s world. It’s always fun to see what products Waterfield is planning and the Air Porter was worth the wait.

Positives

  • Extremely well made
  • Can take abuse
  • Room for just about everything
  • TSA friendly
  • Comes with optional extra pouch
  • Hand-made in the USA

Negatives

  • Expensive

Price: $359
Where to buy: Waterfield Design
Source: The sample for this review was provided by Waterfield Design.