hi this is life Johnson I'm associate editor for macro and today I'm gonna be
looking at the Saddleback Leather thin front pocket backpack I'll be honest
with you I've used the Saddleback bag for years now you mainly use the
messenger bag but you know we're covering Macbook bags here at Macworld
and because i've know how good that messenger bag is that i been i wanted to
see what one of their real backpacks look like so I've been using this for
about two weeks now and so this is the subtle but thin front pocket backpack
this is why they call it the the the front pocket it's got a front pocket
here it's got a side pocket here and it is the thin one they make a bigger one
in this this costs four hundred and sixty-seven dollars no it's not what the
thing is you probably never buy another bag again and they make another one
that's bigger and it cost about a hundred dollars more but the thing is is
okay so we're going to see one of the biggest things here the bigger one
actually has a sleeve for your macbook generally a Mac and Mac world when we
talk about good laptop bags we don't you know include those that don't have
laptop sleeves but you'll see here that I actually just included sleeve all the
time even if I had a bag that I do it in so let's show you this is a full grain
leather it's thick I mean they call this Saddleback Leather company trust me as a
former cowboy this is actual saddle leather you could use this stuff like I
am from Texas and I used to work on a ranch it's it gets a lot more malleable
the more you use it and this is quickly you know a lot of stuff is super you
know you're looking at careful - you can see that it's already getting very
comfortable and see this is the thing there are no breakable parts on this it
is I can break anything well you know there's no snaps there's no zippers it's
the stuff that's just gonna get breakdown
yeah and so you know this is takes really but you know the more you use
this and I know from my own messenger bag this gets really quick to do it's
almost time so this gives you an idea so here's the main enclosure or Gomi so
I've packed this with all my stuff this is you know literally what I would have
brought today so here we go we have my hoodie here so you got that that's a big
bit of space right there and got my Magic Mouse got another mouse
Logitech mouse and I got the dongle on it because you know we're Mac users and
got my Bose QuietComfort 35 headphones and sunglasses and then we have the iPad
nine point seven inch iPad and oh look another MacBook and then we have my
lemming baby my 15-inch MacBook Pro and as you can see I keep this on a sleeve
so it doesn't get scratched up and then get it but the thing is the only thing
that you really have to worry about as I say in my written review is you know
nothing is really going to affect this from the outside unless you know you
fall into a river or you know someone takes a sledgehammer to it I mean if
this is some really tough stuff and you know as you can see here that if they're
easy even like this little band here that you can use to tighten it up and so
as it's leather it's all leather and and so on the back here you have these
adjustable straps see even that it's even connected to down here with buckles
now the interesting thing is I thought this would be super uncomfortable but
it's it's a it's a it's an it shows you how well this thing is designed that
it's actually really comfortable when it's heavy they put these in the exact
right spots and you know these are optional they come with it I mean they
will come with it oh yes I can and so yeah well that'll give you a
night while we're talking here I can put all this stuff back in here and give you
an idea of what it looks like this is I know from experience with my other bag
it's pretty darn waterproof and once you is so water proof that you know I was
reading some people talking about how you you know I love this bag man but I
wouldn't take it on Safari or something cuz he was talking about actually wading
through rivers and stuff with it and he says you know it's so water proof that
it needs holes in it to drain the water out because it's nice literally going
through the rivers and stuff I wouldn't recommend doing no and that's what I say
my review out like I said this you know you can take care of this as you
but I haven't done anything to that other bag in years and this this is that
good quality of leather as I say there's some there's something you sometimes
hear leather products and you have to use put it you know put oil on it
everything basically it becomes another pet it requires so much love and
attention this is not one of those bags you could but there's no need to do it
and you can basically to go it's that that good of weather and another
important point see back here they also have a little quick stuff it that's
actually how I have my umbrella stuffed in here it's actually in the back one so
don't forget what I got in here don't actually have anything in here but
there's a deck of cards on the other side sometimes put my magic mouse in
there so yeah I could do that right now and yeah they fit in there even with the
umbrella in there so this is it and it is for pant now the you know I was
already talking about how I love the engineering of this bag with the stress
you know how it doesn't feel heavy it is four pounds empty and of course they get
super heavy the more that you you do it i think i mess something up here but
it's with my packing but that's fine but but yeah you know it's significantly
more heavier than more you put into it but the nice thing is is this thing once
you put it on look at it you don't feel it I mean it doesn't feel as heavy as it
should feel it's actually pretty comfortable if you know I go around San
Francisco all the time I live up on the hills here I take this hiking I take
this commuting and it's always comfortable that's guess it can you can
actually just take my off yes and I used that because that's what's comfortable
for me and that's the nice thing as you can slide it up and down and so
technically you don't even have to put them on usually when I see the product
photos they actually don't have them on but I keep them on and they gives you an
idea of remember how saying that the leather is very malleable and stuff it's
it's only took a couple of days for this to feel good
oh it smells wonderful and matter of fact they sent me this is the chestnut
when it comes to four different colors and also has a pigskin lining I should
say it's you know outside of cowhide but since the interiors his pics again but
the tobacco color one I don't know what it is I also have a folio backpack I
mean excuse me laptop bag briefcase that I will also be
talking about and that tobacco one smells so nice I don't know what it is
about that leather but this one smells wonderful too and you know have heard
people talking about that they look all weird because they're sitting there
sniffing the thing all the time yes it does smell absolutely wonderful and but
the tobacco colored one smells better so yes this one cost four hundred and
sixty-seven on saddleback calm I believe it's that same amount on Amazon the I
don't know off the top of my head with the price of the big you know the normal
one is it's put about a hundred dollars more again though you know this this is
a lifetime bag and I can yes it actually has a 100 year warranty that's how
interested they are in these I mean that's how confident they are in these
bags and having years one and put it through hell honestly it's yeah it lives
into that and in a part and a lot of big part of that it's not only the quality
of the leather but the buckles and everything you know there's nothing that
easily breaks like a zipper and stuff and the big negative is like that I
started out with was you know that there is no dedicated sleeve to this thing you
know if you there is one in the bigger one I want to emphasize that you know
there is actually one of the bigger one and I can put you know 15 inches as big
as MacBooks ago to these days and so everything you saw how much I had in
there you know everything fits fine and here even with the sleeve but but yeah
there is no dedicated sleeve in there and you saw I just carry my regular
MacBook without which I which I use for quick on-the-go writing but I just carry
it without a sleeve it's pretty tough that's the nice thing about Apple stuff
it's pretty tough anyway but if you're worried about something it's scratched
you know that that is something cuz they consider you are going to want a
leave and of course they make leather sleeves for this stuff but it's but I
I'm most I think interested in the comfort of this and you know that
there's a there's another bits you know it's the buckles do slow you down a
little bit even wonder the most shoes so you know if you're wanting something
where you could just slip around grab your wallet or something it's gonna take
a little bit more time to do that every time so there's that so the lack of the
sleeve those you know that slow down of course the cost but again you know
you're this is a big investment it's like I offered like I say in the written
review it's kind of like an Apple product it's a combination of substance
and style so yes it's 4.5 out of 5 and yeah it is
editor's choice and the main thing that's keeping it you know is that lack
of a sleeve and like I said normally on our backpack roundup we actually require
that there be a sleeve in there but in this case I you know where I went
without it because I love this bag and you know it would be great so once again
if you want a little bit more detailed information I think I've said all of it
here actually uh check out our written review on macro calm and we'll see you
in the future for more bag reviews