Laptop bag recommendations?
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I've been using ThinkGeek's Bag of Holding as a laptop bag for a while. My first one, the metal clasp on the strap broke after about three years.
Foolishly, instead of buying a new strap, I bought their new and shiny version of the bag. And the new version is a piece of shit. I've been through two of them in eighteen months (plus one that was DOA).
I want something that's going to last me more than nine months. Does anybody have any particular recommendations for a laptop bag that'll fit a 15.6" laptop?
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@Unperverted-Vixen I have a SwissGear backpack for my laptop and it seems to work fine, plus tons of space.
I think it's this model specifically:
(Ben fix that link that's almost certainly broken.)
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I just stick it in my backpack. Dunno what you need a specially designed bag for. Thing's lasted me three years.
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@Unperverted-Vixen said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
Does anybody have any particular recommendations for a laptop bag that'll fit a 15.6" laptop?
Most laptop bags are pretty terrible, but a lot of backpacks now have divisions in them that are designed to hold a laptop (including a velcro strap to keep things from moving around). The best thing is that they have much better straps for over the shoulders and are far better adapted to holding other things as well. I keep my laptop in a soft cover inside this (which I got nearly 10 years ago and which is starting to wear very thin around the corners) as that only adds a little weight and helps keep things clean, but you totally don't need to do that (and I might skip the cover if I'm on a business trip in order to save a little weight).
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@pie_flavor said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
Dunno what you need a specially designed bag for.
I got a lot of comments that it "looks unprofessional".
Yes, same fucking argument people use for shoe laces. Apparently things that most people find more convenient and even superior in some ways (for example, using a backpack means I don't have to lug it around as a briefcase so my hand gets tired sooner, or have a strap that keeps digging into one of my shoulders because of poor weight distribution) is "not for adults".
Fucking humans.
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@Onyx said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
I got a lot of comments that it "looks unprofessional".
('cause every girl's crazy 'bout a sharp dressed man)
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@Onyx That's dumb. My dad does the same thing and has done for thirty-odd years. Nobody's ever told him that.
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@Unperverted-Vixen I've used a Solo backpack for years; while I don't haul around a 17" desktop replacement laptop anymore, it works just fine for all the junk I do still carry. This one looks close to the one I have. (I like the water bottle pockets for going to conventions.)
Before that I had an earlier version of this Kensington backpack with the lumbar support thing. Can't say if that was actually helpful, but it was OK.
Unfortunately, messenger-style bags and I don't go together well, so I don't have a good suggestion for those. I do recommend going to a store and trying some of them out to see if you like how they hang on you and if you like their specific combination of pockets and such. It can be hard to try with the right amount of weight, though. :/
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@Onyx said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
I got a lot of comments that it "looks unprofessional".
Not a thing in Seattle. In Seattle, the most image-conscious CEOs have no problem wearing backpacks.
I wager it would be in a stuck-up East Coast city.
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@blakeyrat said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
Not a thing in Seattle. In Seattle, the most image-conscious CEOs have no problem wearing backpacks.
I wager it would be in a stuck-up East Coast city.Round here, it tends to be lawyers who use briefcases (and not much electronics). Everyone else is not so silly.
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@pie_flavor said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
I just stick it in my backpack. Dunno what you need a specially designed bag for. Thing's lasted me three years.
Any backpack I've had, the pockets are too big and it's going to rattle around. Less of a concern with an SSD than spinning rust, I guess, but it still seems bad.
@Parody said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
I do recommend going to a store and trying some of them out to see if you like how they hang on you and if you like their specific combination of pockets and such. It can be hard to try with the right amount of weight, though. :/
Well, the weight I can get close by just bringing in my current laptop.
Looks like Target may actually have more of a selection than I assumed, so I'll have to stop in. Is there another "type" of store that I should be considering that would have a better selection, though?
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@Unperverted-Vixen said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
@pie_flavor said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
I just stick it in my backpack. Dunno what you need a specially designed bag for. Thing's lasted me three years.
Any backpack I've had, the pockets are too big and it's going to rattle around. Less of a concern with an SSD than spinning rust, I guess, but it still seems bad.
A laptop being moved over a long distance should be in some form of 'off' where the hard disk isn't spinning, no matter what.
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@Unperverted-Vixen make sure the shoulder straps are wide whatever backpack you're getting. I second @blakeyrat 's recommendation. I've had a swissgear that I used for the last three years which I've now passed on to my cousin. Built real well.
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@pie_flavor said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
A laptop being moved over a long distance should be in some form of 'off' where the hard disk isn't spinning, no matter what.
False. I've flown across the Atlantic while working on my presentation. ;)
Seriously, as long as the physical disk heads are parked (handled automatically in all modern HDDs), it doesn't matter whether the computer is off or not.
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I'd posit that if your laptop has any spinning disks in it at all, you're Doing It Wrong.
I have an Örben backpack I bought at Wal-Mart for fairly cheap. I used to use a more expensive one from Target but it broke after a few months.
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@mott555 said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
I'd posit that if your laptop has any spinning disks in it at all, you're Doing It Wrong.
SSD space is far more expensive, and there's that writability thing which Chrome will definitely shorten the life of. My laptop has a 256GB SSD and a 1TB HDD.
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@pie_flavor said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
and there's that writability thing which Chrome will definitely shorten the life of.
That hasn't been true basically in your entire lifetime. You being 7.
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@pie_flavor I've never had an SSD wear out. I've had a few fail, back in the early days of SSDs, but those were controller failures and not worn-out flash cells. My laptop has a 1 TB SSD and a 700 GB SSD. The 1 TB one was expensive but only because it's NVMe, the other is a Crucial/Micron because they make some very-affordable large SSDs.
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@pie_flavor They're like $200 now. That's like 1/50th of what you spent in fucking rent in your shitty expensive city.
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@pie_flavor said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
@mott555 said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
700 GB SSD
*salivates*
Strangely, Crucial's 1 TB is now cheaper than the 750. I guess the 750 is an old model on an older process.
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@pie_flavor said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
SSD space is far more expensive, and there's that writability thing which Chrome will definitely shorten the life of.
It's not been a problem so far with this laptop (5 years old) with a 500GB SSD.
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@blakeyrat Nah, more like 1/5. Still pretty bad though.
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@mott555 said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
My laptop has a 1 TB SSD
So does my work one! It's sweet! (Dell XPS 15 9570)
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@dkf said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
@pie_flavor said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
SSD space is far more expensive, and there's that writability thing which Chrome will definitely shorten the life of.
It's not been a problem so far with this laptop (5 years old) with a 500GB SSD.
Depends on use-case, probably. This is my all-purpose, and video games are rather large.
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@mott555 The slower Samsung 1 TB model (840? IIRC?) was $200 on NewEgg the other day. The faster one was closer to $300.
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We've had a couple of Targus backpacks for years. They're great. Something like this:
Laptop Backpacks | Backpacks with Laptop Sleeve | Targus
Targus laptop backpacks are designed for durability, function, and style. Find travel, school, and work backpacks with laptop compartments today!
Though fairly old, so they look at bit different.
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@Unperverted-Vixen said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
@Parody said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
I do recommend going to a store and trying some of them out to see if you like how they hang on you and if you like their specific combination of pockets and such. It can be hard to try with the right amount of weight, though. :/
Well, the weight I can get close by just bringing in my current laptop.
Looks like Target may actually have more of a selection than I assumed, so I'll have to stop in. Is there another "type" of store that I should be considering that would have a better selection, though?Electronics/computer parts stores (MicroCenter, Fry's, Best Buy) and office supply stores (Office Depot/OfficeMax, Staples) should have a bunch.
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@blakeyrat said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
I wager it would be in a stuck-up East Coast city.
You're not wrong. There are a few exceptions (executives can get away with anything), but the reaction of most people in my area to someone wearing a backpack to work would be "You're not in college anymore, why do you still look like you are?"
I'm sure it varies by industry sector as well as by geographical area, though.
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@heterodox said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
I'm sure it varies by industry sector as well as by geographical area, though.
Must be. I used to see bankers with sporty backpacks and messenger bags in Zürich, and this around some rather high-profile banks. And I have yet to meet a profession that is more into moronic choices in clothing and accessories for the sake of seeming "professional".
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@heterodox said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
as well as by geographical area
YEah, the standard here is messenger bags or backpacks. At least Silly Valley does something right...
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@heterodox said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
@blakeyrat said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
I wager it would be in a stuck-up East Coast city.
You're not wrong. There are a few exceptions (executives can get away with anything), but the reaction of most people in my area to someone wearing a backpack to work would be "You're not in college anymore, why do you still look like you are?"
I'm sure it varies by industry sector as well as by geographical area, though.
You see a lot of commuters around here with them. Or at least, when I've had to travel around on the Metro during working hours I certainly have.
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@boomzilla said in Laptop bag recommendations?:
You see a lot of commuters around here with them. Or at least, when I've had to travel around on the Metro during working hours I certainly have.
Ah, fair play. I usually don't take the Metro-- the last month or so has demonstrated why.
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