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

I got this as a gift for someone who travels a lot, so I cant really speak to longevity. Ive had dozens of laptop backpack over the years and this one has to be one of the best designed ones Ive seen. I initially purchased the larger one, since the detentions were only a half inch larger in each direction! That was a huge mistake. a half inch all around is way larger than one would think and no way that one would have fit under an airline seat. This bag, on the other hand is the perfect size for someone who has to carry a lot of gear, but needs to remain conscientious of size. The fact that it opens up like a clam shell is really nice. To think of all the times I had to manage two laptops, shoes, belt, wallet, carry on.....just shoot me already! This bag definitely keeps the line moving faster. Wish everyone had a similar set up going through the TSA checkpoints!

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.

A very, very nice backpack. Sturdy, well made, and plenty of pockets to keep things organized. I particularly like the laptop pocket with the side zipper (makes it really easy to get in and out and the location of the zipper makes that compartment easy to find, two things I would have never thought to look for but really make a difference) and the way you can open the bag all the way up (without spilling your contents everywhere) to avoid taking the laptop when traveling is simply a great innovation. This really is a top notch backpack that has everything I need for work. when searching for things I dont like about it, I have to get really nit-picky. I would say the front compartment which would normally hold pens and business cards and such just seems off. The slots are an odd size and things dont fit great in it. However, there is a netted pocket inside the main compartment that is great for small things and thats where I keep my pens and other junk. Also, the side pockets are pretty small, so my mouse and charger are a tight fit, but in the end, they do fit. Obviously, these are very, very minor drawbacks to an otherwise stellar backpack and I would recommend this bag to anyone interested in a well made, professionally minded, nice looking backpack, especially considering the price. Ive had worse backpacks that cost twice as much (if not more!)

I have been using my Swissgear backpack for a number of months now and could not be more pleased with it. Not long after buying this from Amazon, I was given a new laptop to use. My Original HP 17 laptop fit in it perfectly with some room to spare. The new Dell developer 19.5 laptop pushed the limits. At first I thought there was no way I was going to get it to fit. I then figured out the right method of sliding the bottom corner in first, then follow with the top corner. It then slid in the rest of the way with just a gentle tug at the last corner to get it to fit in. The zipper has been holding up great for the last several months with no trouble! I love the durability of this backpack. It holds everything I need, including a 19,200 ma backup batter pack for my peripheral recharging needs. I cant say enough nice things about it, Enjoy yours!

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!

Very nice bag. I returned it as it was a bit big and bulky for a 15 inch laptop bag. Will be good if you plan on putting a lot of stuff in it. But it was just too much bag for what I travel with as I dislike bulky things.

I have only been using this backpack for a few months but already I can tell it is the best backpack I have owned. Cavernous on the inside. Fits my work laptop Dell M4800 (a large laptop for a 15) with plenty of extra room. Not too bulky. Comfortable to carry even with heavy laptop and charger. Lots of thoughtful gizmos like sunglasses holder, adjustable bottle pockets, carabiner hook for keys etc. Looking forward to many years of service. I noticed that lots of people commented on the ScanSmart feature. Its my experience that the TSA agents are not familiar with or dont care about the rule that you can fold your bag open and put the computer through the scanner. I have tried this with a TSA-friendly briefcase and been told Nope. many times until I gave up. So my $.02 is dont worry about the ScanSmart feature but do get this backpack for its capacity, comfort, creature features, and build quality.

I have held of putting in this review for almost a year so I was sure what I was talking about. I have used this as a every day bag and for hiking, mountain bike riding, off road motoro bike riding, camping and work trips away with laptops etc. I purchased this bag based on several key features, 1. side mesh pockets for keys (Im lucky I live in a town with little crime so not worried about security), 2. large side zip pockets for water bottles or laptop chargers etc, 3. front lower pocket with organiser for pens, eye drops, wallet, meds and the like. Not quit as good as previous bags with the actual pockets, but still pretty good, have found it is more a free for all type pocket 4. top front pocket is good for sun glasses (wrapped in own soft protection bag) 5. Main compartment good for most things. down side is it has two sleeves for keeping books organised, but I find it gets in the way when storing pretty much anything in the compartment, Im tempted to cut them out 6. Two laptop / document storage compartments against the back of the pack, good for 15 HP laptop and also useful for any books etc General comments 1. The top handle flops down meaning it seriously gets in the way when putting anything in the main compartment, I fixed this by zip tieing it to one of the straps at the top of the shoulder straps in a upright position, works well. 2. The shoulder straps sit well on my shoulder and do not clash with my arms when walking 3. It is not the lightest bag but this means it stands up pretty much by itself when it put in on the floor as opposed to falling over like a lighter bag (personal hate of mine) 4. I have used it for some long off road motor bike rides with out problem, nothing even looks like it will fail 5. its not the biggest bag, but that stops me from carring to much, I can get enought in it for a over night work trip away with a bit of carful packing 6. I like the styling, not your average bag 7. Zips are great and take a lot of abuse Summary It took me a long time to find this bag as shopping on line is not the same as in store, I live in town with no bag stores. My research was worth it as I would buy this bag again if it still made and if there was nothing else newer that was better. However I suspect that will be five or more years away as it is very well made.

Ive had this backpack for around 4 years now. The material of the product is amazing very durable. I am not pretty sure if this can handle big portions of water. But for sure it can handle a light rain. For traveling is amazing, you can pack at least 4 days of clothes inside this+ your laptop and any other gadgets you can fit in all those pockets. The best backpack ive ever had. 100% recommended

I purchased this bag once I started traveling for work. I have a HP ZBook - Bang & Olufsen computer (massive piece of equipment) and it fits snug. Ive used it for carrying files to and from our different locations in the US and it has several compartments that are accessible and convenient to have. Ive even used this for personal travels and was impressed by the durability, comfortability and capacity. Ive used it daily for over a year and I see no signs of wear. The zippers are all in the same condition as when I bought it. Its swiss-made! I would recommend this over other back packs. Note: Ive never actually tried to use the TSA friendly ScanSmart feature I always just take it out and put it into a separate bin but I might try it next time if I have some time!