The Dilemma
I have been announcing a few unsurprising things recently. I'm about to drop another not-surprise - I'm as geeky about my packs as I am with what they carry. I have been in a constant struggle to find the perfect backpack for my tech needs. It needed to have enough pockets to be organized, enough padding to protect the contents, enough space to haul everything, and enough style to keep me fly! That criteria has been impossible to satisfy. Here's a list of what I wanted to carry with me:
- Asus 11.6" laptop & charger
- Dell 8" tablet
- MicroUSB wall charger
- 10,000 MaH battery pack
- Olympus OM-D EM-5
- Camera battery chargers
- Camera Flash
- 3 Lenses (45mm f1.8, 12-55mm EZ, 40-150 f4)
- Small tripod
You can see how finding the right pack to fit that list, plus other things I may run into along the way, might be challenging. I was able to find bags that worked with the computing items pretty well, though every bag I had felt like overkill or a purse. For the camera stuff, I couldn't find anything that I was happy with. Micro four thirds is a great camera system and no one makes a bag to match its size. This left me with two bags I had to tote with me if I thought I would need a camera and computer, neither of which I was too fond of.
The Discovery
I hadn't heard of the brand Cocoon before. I actually found them looking for bag organizers because I had enough packs and had given up on finding the perfect one. If you haven't seen this company, familiarize yourself with who they are. What Cocoon offers is a creative weave of gripping elastic straps inside your bag. When I stumbled onto their website, I found the inserts to make my bag more organized, but I also found they make bags with their organizers built in! Needless to say, I was drooling. It looked like I had found exactly what I was looking for.
I took about an hour on the website going over the specs of each bag. I think there was extra pressure because I felt if I did this right I was finally going to have the perfect bag. After laboring over the choices, I decided to go with the SLIM Backpack for laptops up to 15.6". I placed my order and fell asleep quicker knowing happiness was on the horizon.
I took about an hour on the website going over the specs of each bag. I think there was extra pressure because I felt if I did this right I was finally going to have the perfect bag. After laboring over the choices, I decided to go with the SLIM Backpack for laptops up to 15.6". I placed my order and fell asleep quicker knowing happiness was on the horizon.
The Delivery
Holy buckets - it's here! Did I make a terrible mistake? Will it be everything I've built it up to be? I guess we'll find out.
The first thing I noticed: it looks like a backpack. That's a good thing; subtlety is ideal. The next thing I noticed was how well it was put together. In my search I've bought Timbuk2 bags, but I've also purchased cheap bags because they have a pile of pockets and that's what I want. This is much more of a high-end offering than you'll find casually browsing Target or an office supply store. I was also happy to see it has waterproof zippers. I don't spend much time in the rain, but when I do, it's never the time I've decided to bring an umbrella. Between the zippers and the waterproof fabric, I feel my gear is protected from the elements.
Another thing - this backpack is THIN. Really, extremely thin. The 15" laptops I brought to college would fill this sucker up (though, by today's weight standards and thickness, that was more of a desktop than a laptop - we're talking inches thick and weight in pounds over 5). Honestly, it made me nervous. Nothing I have to go into the bag is extremely thick, but when stacked, I wasn't sure how it was going to work. I left the tag on, just in case.
Finally, I had to stick my fingers in the mesh. It was awesome! Sure, I'm 12-years-old, and I bet you'll do the same thing.
The first thing I noticed: it looks like a backpack. That's a good thing; subtlety is ideal. The next thing I noticed was how well it was put together. In my search I've bought Timbuk2 bags, but I've also purchased cheap bags because they have a pile of pockets and that's what I want. This is much more of a high-end offering than you'll find casually browsing Target or an office supply store. I was also happy to see it has waterproof zippers. I don't spend much time in the rain, but when I do, it's never the time I've decided to bring an umbrella. Between the zippers and the waterproof fabric, I feel my gear is protected from the elements.
Another thing - this backpack is THIN. Really, extremely thin. The 15" laptops I brought to college would fill this sucker up (though, by today's weight standards and thickness, that was more of a desktop than a laptop - we're talking inches thick and weight in pounds over 5). Honestly, it made me nervous. Nothing I have to go into the bag is extremely thick, but when stacked, I wasn't sure how it was going to work. I left the tag on, just in case.
Finally, I had to stick my fingers in the mesh. It was awesome! Sure, I'm 12-years-old, and I bet you'll do the same thing.
The Delight
Now we get to the fun part of the backpack: the utility! I did notice how soft the inner material is for your tablet and laptop (the small Asus laptop fit in the tablet sleeve pretty well, in case that's a question you had). I also appreciated that the bag had a flap on the side of the pouch opposite of the back. For whatever reason, that separation is appealing to me. This got me excited so I gathered my things and got ready to go. Taking everything I wanted to fit into this bag and setting it next to it (the laptop, tablet, and tripod are not pictured) was a bit overwhelming. I couldn't fathom it working as well as I had initially hoped when I ordered this bag.
But the show must go on! I started with the exciting stuff. The elastic bands have rubber ridges and as I slid things like my camera, lenses, and slick battery pack into the grid, I became more and more confident that things weren't going to come loose and fall to the bottom of the pack. In fact, I think this bag works best at its fullest. The more items you have, the less they will jostle and the better it will hold things in place. That being said, I don't think I could have added much more to the top of the bag. As I zipped it up, it was pretty clear that there isn't more room for gear in that pocket.
I moved to the back main pouch to put my computer and tablet there, along with the tripod and an HDMI cable and I was greeted with a benefit of having the Grid-It® system built into the bag. Even though all my gear in the front of the bag is lumpy and has all sorts of things poking into the next compartment, the system requires a rigid surface behind the grid to work, so when I slid my laptop into the sleeve against the front of the pouch it was like there was nothing in the pouch in front of it. It comforts me a bit to know that my laptop will have pressure dispersed if something presses against the front of the bag instead of having a single point of force against it. The tablet worked as well as a tablet does. The small tripod and HDMI cable were not a problem at all.
And all of a sudden I had a table with only a full backpack on it. I was pretty dumbfounded. It worked exactly how I had dreamed!
After using it for a while, the only major let down of this bag is that the straps feel like they are not up to par with the rest of the pouch. When you put them on, the foam is a little thin and flimsy, and it shifts around inside it's area. There's also no chest strap (as much as you made fun of that guy in high school, it really does help if you're walking or on a bike). I feel they are connected well to the pack. It's not that I'm worried they'll come off, just that they could be a whole lot better, especially considering the quality of the rest of the pack.
But the show must go on! I started with the exciting stuff. The elastic bands have rubber ridges and as I slid things like my camera, lenses, and slick battery pack into the grid, I became more and more confident that things weren't going to come loose and fall to the bottom of the pack. In fact, I think this bag works best at its fullest. The more items you have, the less they will jostle and the better it will hold things in place. That being said, I don't think I could have added much more to the top of the bag. As I zipped it up, it was pretty clear that there isn't more room for gear in that pocket.
I moved to the back main pouch to put my computer and tablet there, along with the tripod and an HDMI cable and I was greeted with a benefit of having the Grid-It® system built into the bag. Even though all my gear in the front of the bag is lumpy and has all sorts of things poking into the next compartment, the system requires a rigid surface behind the grid to work, so when I slid my laptop into the sleeve against the front of the pouch it was like there was nothing in the pouch in front of it. It comforts me a bit to know that my laptop will have pressure dispersed if something presses against the front of the bag instead of having a single point of force against it. The tablet worked as well as a tablet does. The small tripod and HDMI cable were not a problem at all.
And all of a sudden I had a table with only a full backpack on it. I was pretty dumbfounded. It worked exactly how I had dreamed!
After using it for a while, the only major let down of this bag is that the straps feel like they are not up to par with the rest of the pouch. When you put them on, the foam is a little thin and flimsy, and it shifts around inside it's area. There's also no chest strap (as much as you made fun of that guy in high school, it really does help if you're walking or on a bike). I feel they are connected well to the pack. It's not that I'm worried they'll come off, just that they could be a whole lot better, especially considering the quality of the rest of the pack.
The Decision
In case it wasn't obvious by the title of this post, I love this backpack. It's slim, light, holds all my gear, and most importantly, does so in a secure and organized fashion. If you want to do something like this but have anything larger than a pretty recent 15.6" laptop or have a full sized camera system, I'd look at other bags (by Cocoon still, of course). I ordered this bag on a whim - I didn't read any reviews or research Cocoon or their elastic system at all. The elastic weave made sense enough that I was willing to try it. I'm beyond pleasantly surprised with how effective the Grid-It® system that Cocoon offers is. It's not a huge backpack by any means, and you definitely should consider that if you're in the market, but because of the system in front, I was able to fit a surprising amount of gear into the bag. And it's not terribly expensive. It easily rings in under the Timbuk2 and North Face bags I have.
If you're in the market for a bag to organize and carry your gear, I highly recommend checking these bags out!
If you're in the market for a bag to organize and carry your gear, I highly recommend checking these bags out!
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