So, the contender from parts unknown, the Everki Concept Premium Checkpoint Friendly Laptop Backpack, up to 17.3”.

I was definitely hesitant purchasing this bag – at $295 it is not a cheap investment, and is actually the most expensive piece of luggage I have ever purchased (28” hard-side luggage included). So I received this bag and it came packed in its own Everki white bag that I can see myself using as an expensive laundry bag. The website shows all of the good features of this bag, so I’ll just say that it is as it appears in the videos and pictures. The stitching appears to be good, the leather and ballistic nylon have a good feel, and it does feel a solid bag. One thing that I didn’t notice from the website is that the strapping materials is similar to that of a car’s seatbelt, so it has a great smooth feel to it and definitely seems durable. The buckles on the shoulder straps are also metal, which was weird to me at first, but they should hold up better than plastic.

I managed to squeeze everything in the bag I needed to bring with me, and the separate laptop and tablet compartments do help keep things separated. My laptop fit just fine in the sleeve, and there is even more room in there so I could upgrade to a larger laptop if need be. The corner pads on the bottom are solid and definitely add a layer of protection in case of a bag drop (unless it drops on the top). The orange lining is great and allows me to quickly find things in the bag, which is helpful when it is chock full of items. This bag has most of the organizational features you would expect of a laptop backpack, and I managed to fill up all the little slots and zipper compartments. I actually think there could be more compartments in the bag if they wanted to =). I was able to get my water bottle into the side of the bag, but it is a somewhat tight fit. I was worried that it may slip out (happens sometimes when pulling my current bag out of the overhead), but I found that I could snake the compression strap through my water bottle’s carabiner clip and secure it in place nicely!

So, here are some pics of the bags outside and inside packed with my stuff:

So, the good things in this bag:

• Appears extremely well made and durable with good materials and stitching.
• Some great organizational features that work well for my typical work travel.
• Internal setup works well for me and allows me to put my laptop and tablet in a separate compartment that I open for Airport screening and keep my laptop in the fold down sleeve (in most countries) and remove my tablet w/ keyboard dock to through in a bin.
• Nice thick padded and comfortable shoulder straps – we shall see how well these hold up.

Some things that I don’t like about the bag:

• The price!
• It can only ever really serve as a laptop bag and would not be very well suited as a carry-on bag for clothes.
• There is no carabiner clip or webbing straps on the front of the bag for affixing an ID tag or hanging other items. How are people to know just WHO I am without my 1K tag hanging in their face while they wait behind me in line? =)~ I managed to solve this by sneaking some cable locks in the clips of the compression strap buckles though.
• Hard sunglasses case is a little too big and takes up some room in the main compartment.
• Never really heard of Everki before and concerned about the long-term durability of the bag and whether I’ll have to replace it or send it in for repair after a few years.