Swiss Gear SA1923 Black TSA Friendly ScanSmart Laptop Backpack - Fits Most 15 Inch Laptops and Tablets

Replacement for similar model. Love it.

I cant tell you how excited I am this bag is in the Gold Box on Amazon! Totally getting a new one despite trepidation to retire the old one... I travel a lot and have had a bag nearly identical to this model 1923 for a while. Its been all over the USA and throughout the World with me. It is not only incredibly durable but has easy to reach pockets for everything. The ScanSmart is great for airports who allow it. The trim is reflective which am pretty sure saved my butt when I was walking through a back alley in France last month... blasted scooters. This bag has stories, many stories. Its the most interesting bag in the world and has been the best backpack Ive ever owned. After years of severe abuse; here are my notes on this bag: Note: I give this 5 stars on account of the fact that its outlasted any other bag Ive owned: Pros: Durability: Seriously, over 150k miles Ive traveled with this bag... Its still intact. And I didnt buy it, I found it on the side of a rubbish bin full of junk from China. So yeah, dont judge me for dumpster diving when I saw something I knew would be awesome, despite its likely use in an Asian drug deal or hostage exchange! It gained a new life as my travel companion. The Small top/outer pocket: This little bugger will hold 82 Euro in change with room for train tickets and is still so easy to get to you can grab a Euro on the fly without removing the pack and the zipper prevents loss of contents. (Actual reach ability will vary on your flexibility and length of arms) Airflow: It didnt make my back all sweaty carrying it all day on a hot late spring afternoon wandering the streets in Amsterdam. Its also very comfortable to wear and didnt give me trouble despite many long walks and hikes including a 35 km jaunt around Paris holding 2 days worth of clothes, trinkets, laptop and a large camera. Pockets galore: The little pocket inside, labeled as an MP3 pocket is a flap pocket that very nicely holds anything you want to get at easily... such as headphones like I use it for. Especially useful when in tight spaces like a tiny plane seat where disturbing the large smelly man asleep next to you on an Inter-European commuter flight could result in disastrous consequences. Yet another time this bag likely saved my life. Rugged handle: The Handle at the top is not only useful for lifting the bag and easily retrieving it from overhead bins, It will save your life by providing something for someone to grab onto when you slip on a gangplank exiting a channel ferry in Belgium and prevent you from entering cold icy waters of the Rhine in mid winter. Cons: Zippers: While the actual pulls are metal and will last a million years the tracks are plastic, very durable but after an encounter with a rogue hatch on a train in Germany, the zipper on one of the pockets would stick on the track. This was abuse, not manufacturing defect. Any other bag would have be unusable at that point, I just stopped opening the pocket all the way until it finally came undone in LA leaving only one of the two pulls on the track. (Looking forward to the new one to use that pocket again!) Inside Liner: After its encounter with a garbage bin which brought this pack to me, I had to wash it. The inside lining of the bag came apart. Maybe a toss through the industrial dryer on high wasnt a good idea despite the germ/smell killing benefits. If you get dumpster residue on yours; it will take a wash, just hang it up to dry as I did on subsequent washes. (Its endured at least 3 washing machine visits since Ive had it) Bottle Pockets: The mesh pockets on the side are great but the elastic will fail eventually and cause you to lose your water bottle somewhere in Paris and leave you parched after that amazing ham and cheese street-crepe, curse you worn out elastic. The above mentioned dryer encounter likely didnt help the elasticity. Summary: Buy this bag! It will save your life several times and endure some of the most harsh beatings you could ever imagine while containing all of your vital travel items and mementos on the way and at the same time protecting your laptop. I hope the new one will accumulate as many stories and adventures as the old one has.

I ordered two of these backpacks. One was for me (as a law student) and another was for my mother to take to work. The backpack has so many outer pockets and inner compartments to store various sizes and types of materials. The backpack is very laptop friendly with its padded laptop pocket, but also retains plenty of space for textbooks, notebooks, and various other necessary materials (depending on what purpose you use the backpack for). Alternatively, the backpack is TSA-friendly, and is easy to travel with. I was skeptical ordering this backpack because I wanted something that could accommodate my many textbooks, notebooks, and laptop (and miscellaneous school supplies), and this backpack did the trick. I am super excited to use this backpack and would encourage anyone looking for a durable, functional backpack to consider this one.

Have been using this tough bag now for a few weeks and must say...its all they say it is. Tough. Durable. Good space for my 17 laptop and a few college books...it is snug, but thats ok in my mind. Its not intended to carry a lot of books, but I can get two normal-sized books and a notebook in the main compartment, and all the needed accessories/school supplies fit nicely in the remaining pockets. This bags doubles as my go-to-work bag, so it is used everyday, 7 days a week. Stitching is holding up well, zippers operate easily and appear rugged enough to withstand lots of use, and straps are very comfortable and adjustable. Its not the cheapest out there, but it you are looking for an excellent bag to last for years...this one is worth a look. I did order the SA1753 but was not impressed with how the space was utilized. The SA1923 has more pockets and I was better able to organize all my work and school supplies. 2 side pockets along with an outer mesh for water bottles; 2 front pockets; 1 inner netted pocket at the top of the bag (if full, makes bag tipsy); 1 large main compartment; 1 lap top compartment at the rear of the bag; and 1 thin compartment separating the laptop and main compartment areas with a pocket for file/folder-sized items. Even though this last compartment is thin, I can still fit in my daily newspaper and stethoscope. I would definitely recommend this bag for college students, and even for business professionals who dont mind leaving a brief case at home.

This backpack is just OK. I bought a backpack from Walmart I think(actually my wife bought it....;)with skulls on it. It was for kids going back to school. Well I like skulls, even though Im older now, and it was just a great backpack! Everything was in the correct spot! The 1 and only thing that was lacking that this backpack has, is the side drink holder pockets! Those are great! Everything else is more of a pain then anything else. The quality seems good after having it for 2 months. Still looks good and all that, which is to be expected for a $60 backpack! Its just that the pickets, and everything is just a little off, and that little off makes them not convenient and you misplace and lose stuff easily because of it. Stuff that used to take me a minute to grab in my old backpack, doesnt stay in place with this one, and I have to dig for it! I HATE THAT! The pockets also are not meant to get into on the go. And Im always on the go, so thats very inconvenient!

I have been using this backpack daily for four months now, and its been holding up well to the abuse. I generally carry the following: - A 15.6 inch HP laptop - Power cord for said laptop - Extension cord for power at coffee shops - Power spliter so I can get power at coffee shops - Books of various sizes (for the most part, small - about 5x8 on average, 1/2 - 1 thick) - First aid kit - External Hard Drive - etc. As you can see, I carry a LOT of stuff, generally running about 25lbs worth of stuff in my backpack at any given time. I was hesitant to buy this backpack initially due to reviews about breaking straps, but so far I havent had any issues with it. Now, for me, I would prefer to have a bit more room in the backpack, but thats just because, as mentioned earlier, I carry a LOT of stuff. For the pro/con list people: Pros: - Good padding on the back, pretty comfortable - Decent number of pockets. Two large (one only for laptop, one for laptop + accessories), one medium sized (should be able to fit an iPad), and at least five small pockets (one hidden inside the medium pocket. - Fits my 15.6 laptop perfectly - Two water bottle carrying slots Cons: - The side zipper pockets cant carry much if you use water bottles since they interfere with each other. - Could use a bit more padding on the bottom of the backpack

So as the title says, I would like to specifically address the topic of the size of this backpack. Ive read MULTIPLE reviews that say it will fit a Dell XPS 17 (which is about 17.4). Within 10 mins after I post this review, I should have two pictures up for you, showing you the fit of the XPS 17 and another of the tag that says Fits up to a 15 laptop. So, if you are willing to struggle a bit, it actually will fit the Dell XPS 17 laptop, but this is EXTREMELY tight. Its just trying to squeeze that one last corner. If you have a laptop that is just 1/2 an inch or more smaller, I feel positive it would fit. Sadly, without a struggle and the risk of breaking the zipper or scratching the laptop corner, I just cant safely say youd want this backpack for a 17 laptop. Now to confirm the other reviews, it is a great backpack. It feels sturdy, strong, and has plenty of space. It fits my large 32 oz waterbottle in either side as well. Two small pockets on the front, one with place for ipod and the other with spaces for pens/pencils. Two pockets on either side, underneath the waterbottle holders. These pockets are about 3/4 the height of the whole backpack, so nice to fit many things. Then three main pockets, one for the laptop, one thin one, probably only paper/folders would fit here. And then the last one is fairly big, enough so to hold a large textbook, binders, etc. So a great backpack for anyone with a laptop under 17.

I have been using this backpack for about an year now and personally, its an amazing backpack for me. I was in school when I bought this and now I am working, so it has seen all kinds loads from just a tablet in it to a overload of camping items. The bag kind of has only one useful big area to keep your books and stuff. The laptop zip can fit a 15.6 inch laptop (Mine is a 15.6 Lenovo Ideapad). But anything bigger than that will not fit. It has a very convenient welcrove supported holder for the laptop. I have used this bag to overload it with items while I was relocating, so having a smartscan zip was very convenient in the airport. Whatever is grey in front, glows in the dark, so it works as a reflector if you use a bike to commute. Overall, I am very happy with the bag and the load it can take.

This bag is great, really liked it and I had always wanted one. It had fit all my laptop gear and then some. BUT, it didnt fit the laptop itself. I have an MSI Titan gaming laptop (17.3in) and the corner of the laptop sticks out of the bag and I cant zip it up. Forget fitting it into the laptop sleeve slot. Maybe if it was thinner it would have fit, but my MSI too thicc with its nice cooling system. Boyfriend is happy to take it off my hands tho!

My husband loves this backpack!