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Vertical carrying case for laptops, $65
By Todd Kelly -- toddk@home.com.
With more and more PowerBook users looking to lighten their carrying load, a lighter carrying bag would be a perfect place to shed some weight. I had been using a "Wall Street" PowerBook and a rather heavy - but roomy - Samsonite laptop briefcase for a long time, but the weight was becoming too much to be tolerated. I went in search for a lighter bag and a lighter laptop.
After purchasing a PowerBook G3 2000 (codename Pismo), I was thrilled at the weight difference. But my bag was still a behemoth — it weighed several pounds empty. My search brought me to Spire’s web site (www.spireusa.com), and it was there that I found my dream bag.
Spire makes bags of all shapes and sizes — backpacks, daypacks, courier packs, etc. I decided to buy their "Vurt" bag — at $65 it was well within my price range, and had a list of terrific features. The design of the bag is its best feature — it is a vertical bag (hence the name). I didn’t think much of this at first, but after using it for only 10 minutes I was hooked. By being vertical instead of horizontal, the bag stays close your body when you carry it. My Samsonite was a horizontal bag, and it was uncomfortable to carry due to the way it would swing away from me in certain situations. My trips to the chiropractor were become more and more frequent.
The Vurt bag begs to be carried on your shoulder, with its thick padded carrying strap and comfortable carrying height. It also weighs next to nothing when empty — a brilliant design element in itself. Should you need the bag to stay extra close to your side, a waist strap is included that clips in place.
Sure — it’s light, but can it carry anything? You bet your sweet Pismo it does. In fact, I didn’t realize how much it could actually carry until I filled it up. Here’s what I have in mine: My PowerBook, a Palm III, a Nikon CoolPix 950, a few PC cards, a few CD’s, a mouse and mouse pad, checkbook, misc. cables, diskettes, and pens and pencils. There are two mesh pockets underneath the main flap, and a large zippered pocket behind those. An open pocket sits behind the zippered one, and has small compartments for pens, PC cards, etc. The outside flap has a zippered pocket as well, and I usually toss my power adapter in there.
And how is the PowerBook protected? With an ingenious thick padded pocket that fits into the zippered bag. Why is it ingenious? Because it can be taken out and used by itself if you just want to grab the protected ‘Book and run…something I do all the time. The Spire web site has a great QuickTime VR movie that shows how the inner bag works (http://www.spireusa.com/products/notebook/vurt/vurtvirtual.htm).
Construction is also top notch, with extra tough fabrics and seams. It comes in several colors — traditional black/black, charcoal/black, midnight blue/black, and for the truly adventurous, red/black.
Overall, the Vurt is one of my favorite purchases to date. A great design, a great price, and a healthier spine. My chiropractor won’t be happy, but I’m hooked on my Vurt bag.
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