Swissgear GA-7316-06F00 Ibex back pack 17″ blue
Posted by Notcot on Apr 8, 2010 in PCs & Laptops |
Product Description
Freecom – Swissgear IBEX Computer Back Pack 17 Blue. Fits 17notebooks; Ipod/mp3 player pocket; Reinforced ergonomic handle;Case base stabilizer platform; Essentials organizer; Air flow backpadding; Shock absorbing shoulder straps. 29447
This is quite simply the finest laptop bag I have ever used (and I have had a few).
When I first unpacked it, it looked smaller than I expected.
I wondered if it would carry everything?
In my case this is often 2 15.4″ laptops, power supplies, leads, the odd folder, papers and other odds and ends.
I should have known better. It carries all of this with absolute ease, and with masses of space remaining!
This thing is like the Tardis!!
Great, I hear you say, it holds lots, but how is it in actual use?
Ok, the important thing first. Laptop storage.
The section for your laptop is both very well padded and big enough to handle the largest of 17″ widescreen laptops. I tested that with a couple of friends laptops and it kept them safe and secure. If you have a big 17″ laptop, this will certainly do the job for you.
It also holds 2 15.4″ laptops vey nicely.
Storage.
There are pockets and little storage pouches everywhere!
Honestly, at times I forget where I have put something and have to root around to find it. This,in my eyes is no bad thing. You will never be short of space to store whatever you happen to be carrying.
Oh there are of course 2 mesh pockets (1 each side) for carrying bottles of water and a (padded) mp3 storage pocket on the top with a pass through hole for the headphone cable
Build Quality.
Well there is no question this is built to last and take a lot of punishment.
The zips are smooth and seem very strong (and there are lots of them).
It has a reinforced (and they mean reinforced!) carrying handle on the top which I can guarantee you will never fail you!
It is a steel cable surrounded by a plastic sheath and finally that is surrounded by a contoured carrying handle,and the cable is reveted into the body of the bag.
Carrying it around.
Well the handle is very comfortable when you use it, but most of the time it will be on your back and this is where this really comes into its own.
The shoulder straps are thickly padded and have an effective shock absorbtion system.
Also the back is very well padded but in a design to also allow the flow of air so you don’t end up with a wet back due to sweat (it works too!)
I have had this loaded up with all my work gear plus a change of clothes. When you lift it, it is heavy but on your back the weight is so well distributed you don’t really notice it.
A little touch that shows how much thought went into this is the way it just stays upright when you put it down. You don’t have to worry about it tipping over and potentially damamging your laptop (not that it would, that is well protected).
This particular bag will not be for everyone, most people will not need something capable of holding as much as this does. For those people I would say look at one of the other Swissgear bags, they are built just as well, only smaller.
But, if you are like me, and need a LOT of storage space, look no further because you will find nothing better!
It may seem expensive, but you are paying for quality and I expect this to pay for itself with many years of loyal service. If anything was to fail then you have the limited lifetime warranty to fall back on.
Rating: 5 / 5
This bag is large – it may not be for everyone. However, it was perfect for my needs, which were for a bag that could carry not only a 17″ laptop but also a couple of books, a coat and my lunch for the day.
It’s very well made – stitching, zips, handles etc all very high quality and feels like it will last a long time. There are a lot of pockets and almost all of them are useful – phone, mouse, ext HD all ‘slot’ in easily so you don’t have lots of stuff jumbled up in one or two large compartments.
Ergonomically it’s very well designed too – the weight is extremely well distributed once on your shoulders and the weight of the bag & contents (which can be quite substantial with books, bottles of water etc), mostly ‘disappears’ because it sits right up on your shoulders rather than hanging further down your back – which is true of every other bag I’ve had.
Highly recommended – as long as you need something big.
Rating: 5 / 5
Recieved the bag in good time and have just used it to carry my laptop on a long flight using the bag as hand luggage. Excellent bag with plenty of storage space. Also really comfortable regardless of how heavy you make it. Very pleased with it and two people that have seen it have since ordered one themselvesw.
Rating: 5 / 5
I deliberated for a while whether to get this bag or the pegasus, which I believe has slightly less pouches/pockets.
I eventually went for this one (I think the nice blue shades edged it) and whilst happy, it probably could have done with one less pouch on the front.
Whilst it’s great to have a number of different pockets, if you fill one up enough, it just pushes into the next one anyway, so you cant really fit anything else in.
Also, its built for 17″ laptops, but I found my dell 15″ XPS laptop (with a protruding battery) a fairly tight squeeze if I had the slipcase round it.
There’s a couple of seemingly superfluous side pouches, when one larger one is generally enough, but said, build quality seems excellent and its a very comfortable and sturdy bag.
The hard base allows it to stand up right with ease too.
Overall, a recommended product.
Rating: 4 / 5
This bag is very strong, extremely well made and obviously will last for a long time. It has great protection for my 17″ laptop, lots of pockets for cables, files etc. A bit on the heavy side, but that is because they have made it strong. Highly recommend if you travel a lot with your laptop and accessories. Many pockets will take ipod, DS, mobile phone, waterbottles, travel documents, pens, keys, etc. A good feature is the easy access pocket at the top. Well designed with everything you could possibly think of in the usual Victorinox style.
Rating: 5 / 5