In the last ten years, messenger bags have become as ubiquitous as ironic facial hair. Unfortunately, many of these bags aspire to very little beyond their name. They all feel like a giant bag on a strap, a cavernous sack where everything kind of just sifts towards the bottom. On the other hand, the new Proof Laptop Messenger Bag from Timbuk2 is a bag with some serious aspirations.
Made from 14 oz. waxed canvas with leather binding and trim, this bag gives you all of the features you’d expect from a messenger bag but in a more refined package. The leather detailing is well done. The waxed canvas looks sharp and repels water quite well. The pocket layout is straightforward, and the bag has enough structure to keep that book you’ve been carrying around for the last month from sliding to the bottom and coming back out shaped like the curved blade of a snow shovel.
Even when it is fully loaded, I found this bag to be comfortable to carry. It has plenty of room for my daily commute, easily handling my laptop, lunch and few other items. It comes with a semi expandable front slash pocket that has a snap closure, a main compartment complete with organization pockets (pens, phone, etc., etc.), an internal laptop compartment which will hold a medium sized laptop and a zippered back pocket where you can stash a tablet, small laptop or the latest copy of your favorite magazine (if, like me, you still retain some analogue reading habits).
The interior is lined with a pleasantly smooth fabric and in a touch of excellent problem solving they sewed a couple of magnets into the accordion fold on each side of the main compartment. This keeps the edges folded in when the main flap is closed, adding another layer of protection from those pesky raindrops. Another big bonus is that the main flap uses snap closures instead of Velcro. Now I can discreetly open my bag when I am late to a meeting instead of announcing my tardiness to the world with a definitive rrrrip.
The bag is part of Timbuk2’s new Distilled Collection and in this case I feel like that is an appropriate name. They have succeeded in distilling all the aspects of the classic messenger bag into a more modern, sleek, and stylish package. It is a messenger bag for grown ups.
The good:
- well designed
- solidly built
- excellent detailing
- thoroughly functional
The bad:
- we’re all getting older
Would I recommend it? Absolutely.
Available from Timbuk2 for about $199 (marked down at the time of this post to $179)
boring stuff:
All images via Timbuk2
Timbuk2 provided me with a free review sample. This did not affect the opinions expressed in my review.