Considering that the author likes the idea of carrying his stuff in a brown paper bag. I don't think a beat up looking laptop would bother him. In fact, if you look at the picture, there are a few scratches and dings on his laptop.
Minor scratches won't affect functionality in any way, in fact, I think there is a certain beauty to it. A laptop is a tool, a tool is meant to be used, and usage leaves marks. If it looks spotless, it is as if no work has been done on it.
In my netbook bag: charger, ac cord for the charger, hdmi cord, tiny wired mouse, laser pointer thing, pens/paper, notes, business cards, usb sticks with various linux distros (i often give these away) a kick-ass wifi dongle, ubertooth, and various usb cables. Im not having all that bouncing around in a canvas sack. This thing is small enough to qualify as a "purse" when the flight attendant tells me to check my carryon.
Couldn’t you just mod the bag or add another bag to put inside the movie prop bag? I think the whole point of it is security through obscurity. i.e. People are less likely to rob a cheap bag.
Nothing to argue about arbitrary disdain for backpacks ¯\_(ツ)_/¯, but I don't remember one backpack that I saw and thought "wow that backpack is ostentatious, that guy is a showoff". Not once.
They also mentioned theft deterrence as secondary goals, so my recommendation stands for everyone else who doesn't have random hatred towards backpacks. :)
You don't need to drop $300+ on a Tom Bihn to have a totally functional backpack with a laptop sleeve, for cryin' out loud. So many backpacks have it, and it's not a premium feature.
> For me, the ultimate laptop bag is one that looks nothing like a laptop bag; it should look like nothing special at all.
That sounds like almost any regular backpack then. They can also be pretty weather proof, don't need to be carried in one hand, aren't open topped showing what's inside easily, and padded. Any simple and cheap backpack would solve this exact problem but better surely, unless your desire is to be different rather than just to move your laptop from one place to another with little ceremony.
Where I'm from, a simple and cheap backpack is just as much a target as a laptop bag. The only solution is to just keep an eye on your stuff, and be aware of your surroundings, at all times.
I don't even live in SF but I'm a bit skeptical that a lot of people even carry around an obvious dedicated laptop bag at this point. I don't see them.
Laptop sleeve are nice, I used to use them... but they need to be the _perfect_ size for your laptop.
Otherwise they are hard to open/close if they are just a bit too small, or they are floppy if they are too big.
I currently have three laptops, they all have their own dimensions. So I would need three sleeves to carry anyone of them at any given time.
For work, I switched between three sizes in the last two years.
Meanwhile, my 5yo hiking backpack with a water pouch dedicated space is able to carry any of those laptops safely.
Yup simple laptop sleeve with a good zip and a reliable handle works well for me. In case of inclement weather there's a ziplock bag inside big enough for the laptop.
That goes inside another thin bag for safe carry. If I'm visiting somewhere new and carrying other things, bag-in-bag works well; leave the day bag in the conference room, the thin bag with the laptop comes with me.
Yeah I don't get why I don't see these more often. I have a case around my MacBook and it's a pretty good protector. My tip: get something cheap from Amazon. I tried the Incase Hardshell and it broke within a year.
When I lived in San Francisco, backpacks were marginalized as being associated with being too poor to own a car. High-school students might carry a backpack, college students might carry a backpack, people on the bus might carry a backpack, but mostly not professionals who drove to work.
Maybe that's changed, though. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zwWpqsI_3s purports to be from 02022, and in its first minute, I count 17 pedestrians of whom 4 are wearing backpacks. So maybe backpacks are mainstream in SF now.
Maybe it's just startup life, but living in SF during the 2010s decade, I didn't know many people who drove to work. Who wants to sit in traffic and then pay like $300 a month in parking fees when you can sit in traffic on MUNI vehicles for much less, while doing something useful?
Even people who lived in the farther-out suburbs usually drove to BART.
Even if it's marginalized, you can still just use it. I think I used to think that way in high school, but it's hard for me to understand functioning adults avoiding a type of bag, otherwise useful, because it's associated with being poor.
>When I lived in San Francisco, backpacks were marginalized as being associated with being too poor to own a car. High-school students might carry a backpack, college students might carry a backpack, people on the bus might carry a backpack, but mostly not professionals who drove to work.
Huh? By extension you seem to be implying anyone who doesn't drive to work is not a "professional", which is bananas.
Smart people took Caltrain, BART, or a company sponsored gentrification shuttle into work and reclaimed the time they'd spend driving to "work". (AKA shitpost -- I noticed a remarkable uptick in trolling during commute hours back in the days I lived in the bay during rush hour.)
Anyways, no, carrying a backpack is not a sign someone is "poor" in SF, or anywhere else -- it's usually a sign they value their back.
Some folks wear messenger bags instead, but those were usually bicyclists.
I see people who look like hedge fund managers wearing backpacks (obviously not Jansport). VCs and founders certainly do. Go on Bart- most people have a backpack. Nothing to do with whether you own a car. Driving to and/or parking in the city is a nightmare.
I'm in the suburban Seattle area, and many, many adult professionals carry a backpack...even when they commute a few miles by car and walk 100 feet into their offices.
> For me, the ultimate laptop bag is one that looks nothing like a laptop bag; it should look like nothing special at all.
Why, exactly? Is the thought that a thief is less likely to steal your laptop if he thinks it's a bag of groceries?
All of the other shortcomings seem to vastly outweigh the gain (lack of bang/bump protection; the fact that you're carrying a laptop in a grocery bag makes it more likely to naturally sway and bang against your leg as you carry it; that if you set it down like a grocery bag it will probably topple over due to lack of structural integrity; that you're leaving it out in the open rather than concealing it in your backpack; etc). And for all that trade-off, I'm not even sure what problem he's trying to solve in the first place that he feels his laptop bag should be inconspicuous above all else.
And it is easy for a thief to see that a bag is heavy and slim to judge that it contains something valuable. Anf then the thief can just forcefully take the bag from you.
In Barcelona there are a lot of cases when a thieve on a motorbike would try to snatch a bag or women handbag from a pedestrian waiting on a red light.
With a back pack it does not work. The drawback of a backpack is that a thief can just open the backpack or even cut with a sharp knife and one would not notice. But more expensive back-packs with a good design have protection against cutting and easy opening while on the back and with a cheaper one can be held in front.
Slightly related: the ultimate move prop laptop was from "Twister" where they had sgi laptops. Note that sgi never made a laptop.
However what is even cooler is that someone actually circuit bent a sgi O2 into laptop form factor. Unfortunately the link to the project page is dead, my disappointment is immeasurable.
I have an O2 in storage and have been meaning to try a rebuild of this for... well, at least a decade at this point. Since I finally have a decent 3D printing setup now maybe I can actually make some progress this winter!
A common strategy among bicycle messengers too. A high end bike wrapped in electrical tape with a crap paint job doesn't look to appealing and will be a struggle to sell.
How would any bag be an obvious diaper bag? A quick image search for diaper bag shows bags that could just as easily hold laptops or cameras. Parents want to look fashionable too.
The ruse would fail instantly you took the camera out of the bag. Or when you have no child, and look like you are wealthy enough to have a camera hobby.
I really like the idea of making everyday objects into computing devices/holders for computing devices. For example, I have a set of 5 vintage American Tourister suitcases [1] lying around, and I think they would make for awesome suitcase computers.
For this movie bag, it would be cool to see some more modifications. Maybe sew in a laptop sleeve and accessories pouch to make everything fit better?
the ultimate laptop bag is an inflatable orange swimming tow float bag:
1. it looks nothing like a laptop bag
2. it will protect your laptop from water, even completely submerged.
3. it will protect your laptop from falling when side pockets are inflated.
4. you can take your laptop to the beach and not worry about it getting stolen.
5. you can use it as a pillow when hiking or at the beach.
6. much cheaper than a laptop bag.
mine's a Decathlon OWS 500, but i guess that it's as good as any.
warning: all tow floats do leak in the storage compartment, especially if you do swim with it (as opposed to sitting on the beach), so if you really intend to put a laptop in, make sure to put it into a proper water tight sleeve/ziplock bag, e.g. an aloksak.
Readit News
- Gets the rainwater or any other hazardous material in.
- Extremely easy to check out what's inside for a thief.
- Can slide out easily and fall when toppled.
Terrible overall. Could make it to Top 10 Worst Laptop Bags though.
Just use a Tom Bihn that uses a separate, rigid, harder to access sleeve inside your backpack for laptops.
Minor scratches won't affect functionality in any way, in fact, I think there is a certain beauty to it. A laptop is a tool, a tool is meant to be used, and usage leaves marks. If it looks spotless, it is as if no work has been done on it.
personally I use an old shoulder bag, but we've all got our proclivities
I chuckled when I read that because the post's introduction casually mentions attending Cloudflare's board meeting.
They also mentioned theft deterrence as secondary goals, so my recommendation stands for everyone else who doesn't have random hatred towards backpacks. :)
Deleted Comment
Maybe also add lower-budget recommendations.
https://www.osprey.com/astronova
> Can slide out easily and fall when toppled.
What..? Do you live in some ideal zero-friction world or what?
That sounds like almost any regular backpack then. They can also be pretty weather proof, don't need to be carried in one hand, aren't open topped showing what's inside easily, and padded. Any simple and cheap backpack would solve this exact problem but better surely, unless your desire is to be different rather than just to move your laptop from one place to another with little ceremony.
Where I'm from, a simple and cheap backpack is just as much a target as a laptop bag. The only solution is to just keep an eye on your stuff, and be aware of your surroundings, at all times.
You're missing some context here — this is in San Fransisco.
I prefer to use a laptop sleeve, and then it doesn't matter if it is padded or not.
Otherwise they are hard to open/close if they are just a bit too small, or they are floppy if they are too big.
I currently have three laptops, they all have their own dimensions. So I would need three sleeves to carry anyone of them at any given time. For work, I switched between three sizes in the last two years.
Meanwhile, my 5yo hiking backpack with a water pouch dedicated space is able to carry any of those laptops safely.
That goes inside another thin bag for safe carry. If I'm visiting somewhere new and carrying other things, bag-in-bag works well; leave the day bag in the conference room, the thin bag with the laptop comes with me.
Maybe that's changed, though. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zwWpqsI_3s purports to be from 02022, and in its first minute, I count 17 pedestrians of whom 4 are wearing backpacks. So maybe backpacks are mainstream in SF now.
Even people who lived in the farther-out suburbs usually drove to BART.
The majority of all commuters in SF do not commute by car: https://www.sf.gov/data--vision-zero-benchmarking-commute-me...
This has been true for at least a decade. The trend, even ignoring COVID, is that a decreasing proportion do so.
Deleted Comment
Huh? By extension you seem to be implying anyone who doesn't drive to work is not a "professional", which is bananas.
Smart people took Caltrain, BART, or a company sponsored gentrification shuttle into work and reclaimed the time they'd spend driving to "work". (AKA shitpost -- I noticed a remarkable uptick in trolling during commute hours back in the days I lived in the bay during rush hour.)
Anyways, no, carrying a backpack is not a sign someone is "poor" in SF, or anywhere else -- it's usually a sign they value their back.
Some folks wear messenger bags instead, but those were usually bicyclists.
Why, exactly? Is the thought that a thief is less likely to steal your laptop if he thinks it's a bag of groceries?
All of the other shortcomings seem to vastly outweigh the gain (lack of bang/bump protection; the fact that you're carrying a laptop in a grocery bag makes it more likely to naturally sway and bang against your leg as you carry it; that if you set it down like a grocery bag it will probably topple over due to lack of structural integrity; that you're leaving it out in the open rather than concealing it in your backpack; etc). And for all that trade-off, I'm not even sure what problem he's trying to solve in the first place that he feels his laptop bag should be inconspicuous above all else.
In Barcelona there are a lot of cases when a thieve on a motorbike would try to snatch a bag or women handbag from a pedestrian waiting on a red light.
With a back pack it does not work. The drawback of a backpack is that a thief can just open the backpack or even cut with a sharp knife and one would not notice. But more expensive back-packs with a good design have protection against cutting and easy opening while on the back and with a cheaper one can be held in front.
However what is even cooler is that someone actually circuit bent a sgi O2 into laptop form factor. Unfortunately the link to the project page is dead, my disappointment is immeasurable.
https://www.siliconbunny.com/silicon-graphics-laptops/
https://web.archive.org/web/20050212100138/http://www.jumbop...
And the bit on product placement
https://web.archive.org/web/20000414090221/http://www.bftr.c...
I have an O2 in storage and have been meaning to try a rebuild of this for... well, at least a decade at this point. Since I finally have a decent 3D printing setup now maybe I can actually make some progress this winter!
The ruse would fail instantly you took the camera out of the bag. Or when you have no child, and look like you are wealthy enough to have a camera hobby.
For this movie bag, it would be cool to see some more modifications. Maybe sew in a laptop sleeve and accessories pouch to make everything fit better?
1. Like this: https://i.etsystatic.com/42664500/r/il/709f97/5624109170/il_...
mine's a Decathlon OWS 500, but i guess that it's as good as any.