Kensington Terrain Notebook Messenger Bag

Submitted by Adam on August 25, 2006 - 5:31pm.

Cool Stuff

Kensington Bag 1

If you have listened to the show for any amount of time, you know that we love Kensington products. Perhaps the company is best known for its patented Kensington lock, but they make so many cool devices.

Recently Kensington sent us this excellent laptop bag. As soon as I recieved it, I began giving it my rough real world treatment.

There are many things to love about this laptop bag, but I could also find a few areas that could use some improvement.

The first feature that stands out is the materials that make up this bag. It isn't the usual real or fake canvas, it is made out of a very sturdy canvas similar to what you'd find on an old army tent. It is soft, but extremely durable. It also features nice corduroy trim of a quality that I haven't seen since the 70s.

Many if not most laptops sold today have 15.4" wide screens. Older bags are too small for these laptops and most bags that do fit 15.4" laptops are huge. Kensington takes an interesting approach to this problem. Rather than place the bag in horizontally so that either the front or the back is facing up or down, the laptop is placed in this messenger bag vertically.

kensington bag2

If this bag has any fault it is that it is lacking in pockets and expansion space. If you have a laptop and need a messenger bag, you likely have an MP3 player, digital camera, mouse and all of the charging and connection cables. This bag will hold most everything, but not in any organized way. It features a total of three small pockets not counting the main bag area that is split into two sections for the laptop and other cargo.

I plan on using this bag for a while, but it forces me to travel light. I carry my charger, MP3 player, mouse and a few smaller cables. When I want to carry more accessories, my projector or my digital camera stuff, I use a larger bag.

This bag's greatest strength is that it lets you carry a large laptop without being a large laptop bag. With its vertical carrying design this laptop is highly recommended for students and travelers who don't need to carry a lot of extra accessories.

The messenger bag design is great, I have carried it to and from appointments for about three weeks and I love the way the weight is distributed.

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Ditto

Submitted by Smart Computer User on December 14, 2007 - 8:16pm.

What a great bag. It doesn't yell "steal me." The "fault" of limited additional totage is a weight blessing - and loose cables, mice and chargers can be tamed with an Eagle Creek Pack-It Tube Cube. P.S. - the reviewer didn't mention the expandable sides (like my "fat" pants), which adds, well, expandability.