paulr

At first when I decided to retire my three year old 15" MacBook Pro this month and replace it with a smaller, lighter 13" model, I figured I could just keep using my trusty (and expensive) Cargo SFBag. The SFBags are totally indestructible and despite me having lugged it everywhere for years and dropped it more times than I care to admit, it still looks like new.

But, new computer, new me - this demands a new look right?

I settled on a Ristretto Messenger bag from Tom Bihn. TB has just released a version 2.0 of this bag with a slightly modified design and mine arrived promptly after ordering online.

This bag is tiny! Really not much bigger than the 13" MacBook itself, it comes standard in a nice green (looks better in person than the catalog photo) with bright orange inside. A good bag has a bright color inside to make it easier to see the items jostling around the bottom. This is just one of many nice design touches from Tom Bihn.

The MacBook slides easily into the back pocket leaving a front zippered pouch and open area for cables and other accessories. An open envelope style slot at the back serves to hold papers or magazines.

Inside the main flap there are several o-ring style attachment points where you clip on other accessories like pouches (sold separately). Tom Bihn provides one key hook add on for attaching your keys. This is a good idea for me and gets them out of my pocket where they usually ride (unfashionably).

I was disappointed to see a dorky waist strap on the back of the bag for attaching it more securely when hauling a lot of stuff I suppose (or maybe when running with it?). At first glance this seemed permanently attached too and I was contemplating how to cut it off when some googling revealed that it has a super smart design that let's it snap off leaving only two tiny fabric loops on the bag. You can always re-attach it when needed.

So far I'm loving this bag. It's light (less than a pound), small and looks great. While not as luxurious as my SFBag, it's a lot smaller and (hopefully) trendier.