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by Doug Landry
In the beginning at Shaun Jackson Design, there was the Lapdog, and it was good. It carried everything and the kitchen sink with your laptop and won design award after award for its innovative work-anywhere style that allowed the user to unfold a few flaps and have a portable office on his or her lap.
Wanting more than just a basic "sleeve" design and less than the full Lapdog, the gurus at Shaun Jackson came up with the Laptrap, which retains the "unfolding office on the lap" in a compact size can also fit inside the user's larger backpack or briefcase.
As with many of the small Mac bag makers that rely on high quality and customer service to compete with larger bag manufacturers, the workmanship of the Laptrap is superb. The zippers and fasteners are beefed up and seem very durable and underneath the high-grade nylon fabric is a layer of padding to protect your computer investment.
PBZone Bag Week Review:
Shaun Jackson Design's LaptrapA Portable Office on Your Lap
Price:
$59.95 (As reviewed with shoulder and backpack straps, $79.95)
Requirements:
Lap. Computer.
What's Hot:
Flexible, protects entire laptop when working anywhere
What's Not:
Work-inside-your-bag style may not be for everyone
The Laptrap features a center compartment for the laptop and two large side pockets that fold under the main section when "closed" and hang to the sides when open. The main compartment has a velcro strip with adjustable and detachable round sections of foam risers to lift the rear of the laptop up to improve airflow and ergonomics if the user wishes. There's space for 12 CDs in pockets on the upper half of the main compartment.
There's an optional $10 padded shoulder strap in addition to a $15 "mesh backpack harness" available from Shaun Jackson for the Laptrap. You can buy either strap, or both with the Laptrap for $80. We preferred the sturdy and comfortable single shoulder strap over the mesh harness, but we would suggest getting both for $20 if you might need the backpack-style harness once in awhile.
In the 17" PowerBook era, it's important to know the exact dimensions of any PowerBook bag before you buy. The computer compartment on the Laptrap is 14"x11"x1.75", so it'll fit any size machine up to the 15" PowerBook G4s comfortably, but not the 17" PowerBook. The dimensions of the entire bag are 14"x11"3", so it'll fit in most other briefcases or backpacks, though it could easily be carried on its own if the user desired a trimmed-down carrying case.
For someone who likes the lap-office concept and prefers the flexibility of the Laptrap's scaled-down design versus the Lapdog, this product is perfect. It's not too expensive ($59.95), is well-built, and protects the laptop adequately. The only downside to the Laptrap is that its basic concept may not be for everyone. However, if you're the kind of PowerBook user who only needs a place to sit to get right to work, the Laptrap is a convenient home for your laptop and gear.
As part of our "Bag Week," Shaun Jackson Design is offering PBZone readers an exclusive $20 discount off their original Lapdog design for a limited time. Use coupon code "pbzone" on their website to receive the discount. Also, visit the main news page for more PBZone-exclusive discounts and other bag reviews this week during our ongoing PBZone Bag Week.
Published by Doug B. Landry and contributing staff. Trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc., and others reserved. ©2003 Delta Design. Publishing headquarters is located in Baton Rouge, LA Index version 1.1.2
