Laughing Squid - Latest Comments in Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Brett — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 00:51:40 -0000

Thanks for the review on the Hacker. I am going back to grad school and was thinking this would be a perfect laptop/ book bag to take to class. I have always used a backpack for school but I like how this can either be strapped to your back or used as more of a messenger. Do you find it to be comfortable when you carry it "messenger style" (one strap over the shoulder) even though it is a vertical bag?

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Patti Roll — Sat, 06 Oct 2007 23:52:43 -0000

Rachel and Melissa,
We are indeed _sorely_ missing some product perspectives on the timbuk2 site. We had a photo shoot a few weeks ago and should be done compositing the images and have them up soon.
In the interim, I dug through the raw images and posted a few on flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photo...

Hope that helps.

Scott- thanks for your review of this bag. We're stoked that you like it and are always interested in consumer feedback (even when it's not so flattering). There's a few more Hacker-specific posts on getsatsisfaction too.

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Average Zen Nihilist — Tue, 18 Sep 2007 23:21:43 -0000

so how much room do you have left with all that stuff in there? i'll soon be a student again and i'm looking for a bag that can carry a macbook, dslr with maybe 2 lenses, a few notepads and a text book or two while also small enough to be OK in crowded places or the subway etc.

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Scott Beale — Sun, 02 Sep 2007 01:52:11 -0000

Thomas, for me it's the other way around, the goal of my bag is to carry all of my gear and the Hacker Bag does a pretty good job doing that.

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Thomas — Sun, 02 Sep 2007 01:46:43 -0000

I found you from your comment on Jeremiah 's post. Excellent information. I find it helpful to see the gear other people in the industry are carrying to ensure I carry the correct gear for what I need to do.

Jeremiah mentions that his goal in carrying his gear is o be a ready-to-publish multi media platform. What would you say the goal of all the gear in your bag is?

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

melisaa — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 21:57:21 -0000

I read this post and bought the bag. Really, this bag is seriously better than the Blogger. Timbuk2 really needs to add more info about it because it has some seriously ingenious features. The backpack straps tuck in wonderfully if you want a messenger. The backpack feature itself is great because I am a tiny person and I love the access of a messenger, but I look a little overwhelmed carrying it around. Now I can switch when I don't need the access. The switching is a little more awkward than the bumbackpack, another contender, but the vertical profile is less overwhelming on my small frame.

Another great feature is that the computer compartment is more forgiving. The blogger's is a little snugger and harder to get a larger computer in and out of. It also has a nice water bottle holder, organizer pockets, and plenty of room for a book and some folders. Also...it's waterproof. This one's a keeper.

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Scott Beale — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 12:08:48 -0000

Rachel, regarding shooting additional photos of the bag to help you determine if you should buy it or not, this is really something that Timbuk2 should be doing. I just wrote about how much I liked it, but I really donâ€™t have the time or resources to setup extensive products shots of the bag. I would suggest that you contact Timbuk2 and ask them to add more photos of the bag.

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Rachel — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 11:55:59 -0000

Hi Scott, as you mentioned in your Blogger bag post, it's good to see more of a bag before dropping a lot of money on it. I love Timbuk2, but I already have a laptop bag so I need to know if this is as perfect as it looks before dropping $120 on a second bag. It would be awesome if you could post more pics of the Hacker bag. I'd like to see the back + straps, especially in backpack mode but also when not so I can see where the straps tuck in; closer semi-vertical views of the pockets; and a shot of the bottom would be nice. Is the waterproof liner just in the flap, or on the whole outside of the bag? Thanks!

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Tommy Lane — Wed, 15 Aug 2007 17:54:39 -0000

I just got a Timbuk2 Hacker delivered today. It's a nice bag but I didn't know it had exposed zippers where the laptop compartment is. I was thinking that the laptop compartment was under the flap. I ride a bicycle to work everyday and I'm concerned about rain. In my opinion, no laptop bag should be made in such a way that electronics can get leaked on in the rain.

Is this a concern of yours? I had 100 dollars credit from them and waited a while to use it hoping something like this would come along. Had I known about the zippers, I would not have gotten it.

It's a nice bag, though, I must admit. My concern is for my laptop staying dry. My Crumpler Crisp Suit does a nice job of that but I wanted a backpack option sometimes.

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

keri — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 17:57:25 -0000

"You mean, they explain that theyâ€™re maintaining only a token manufacturing presence in San Francisco, because without using labor from the worldâ€™s largest dictatorship, they canâ€™t compete out in the land of mall rats?

Like I said, Chrome bags are actually made in San Francisco."

Actually Joey, Timbuk2 makes bags in SF too. lots of them each and every day. many of the bags made for companies like REI and Levi's are made in a factory in the Mission district of SF.
and yes TImbuk2 does make bags overseas. but the fact remains that they still operate a manufacturing and distribution facility as well as administration offices on US soil. these facilities employ over 100 hundred bay area individuals who all pay taxes and support their local community in many ways. operation of a US facility takes a lot. do you know what it takes? it sure sounds like you do....

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Scott Beale — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 20:46:27 -0000

Hey, you guys have a lot of questions, so I'll try to answer some of them here:

Alexandru - I'll look into the comment font size issue when I get back to town.

Joesph - Yes I agree, the Chrome bags are great. I've owned a couple of them as well.

Neil - The weight of course depends on how much you stuff into it, but to me the bag does a great job of weight distribution. If I'm really packing things in, I switch to backpack mode, which is more comfortable.

Ben & Kendrick - I've always just put my camera directly into my bag, so in my case, the camera is only protected by the bag itself. The black case in the photo is for the spare lens.

Cal - I could take a photo of everything in the bag, but I doubt it would really do much for you, since you would only see what at the top.

William - My choice of mobile device is the iPhone (no surprise for people reading this blog) and it goes in my pocket, not my bag. Until Apple adds a terminal application, the only remote admin stuff I can do are only things that are web-based.

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Chip — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 20:11:02 -0000

All this Camera tech talk--and all I can offer is that "Rocket" is a bona-fide "Bomb Pop" --- A Cherry/7-UP/Blueberry original

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Joseph Brenner — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 19:23:06 -0000

"Here is the link to the actual page on the Timbuk2 site, explaining the Made in China issue here"

You mean, they explain that they're maintaining only a token manufacturing presence in San Francisco, because without using labor from the world's largest dictatorship, they can't compete out in the land of mall rats?

Like I said, Chrome bags are actually made in San Francisco.

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Guest — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 12:12:18 -0000

Here is the link to the actual page on the Timbuk2 site, explaining the Made in China issue here

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

William Ward — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 22:50:40 -0000

Hi Scott. Impressive collection of gear - I'm eyeballing my Canon 10D with that longing feeling for an upgrade that I can't justify. ;) Looks like a good bag though, and certainly one that would fit my similar collection of provisions.

I didn't see any smartphones or PDAs, however. What's your choice of mobile device and do you do any remote system administration for the Squid with it?

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

milkham — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 21:11:48 -0000

Can we see a couple of shots of how this all fits in the bag?

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Juan — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 20:54:48 -0000

it seems like everyone who lives in the city has a black North Face fleece jacket and a Timbuk2 bag. read my timbuk2 post

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Jeff — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 18:52:49 -0000

REI is selling the blogger bag for > $50 at their online outlet.

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

eelke — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 17:52:06 -0000

I prefer Knomo bags. Very sturdy (leather), great design and they can at least hold a 17" MBP

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

kendrick — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 16:36:32 -0000

Hey Scott, how much padding is there in the bag for your SLR? The product shots on the Timbuk2 website are inconclusive to say the least.

Thanks!

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Ben Campbell — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 15:33:12 -0000

How well is the camera protected? Is it just floating around with other stuff? Is the black zipper case in the lower right a lens case?

I've been looking for a good compact solution for my MBP 15 plus a Canon 20D with a few lenses. I've tried one of the crumpler backpacks, but all it's padding makes it bulky for the amount of cargo it can carry.

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Neil — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 15:26:14 -0000

How much does all of this weigh? Does the bag have that "I am going to sever your arm at the shoulder" feeling when it's full?

It does look promising. My two *sighs*: it's only available in nylon (I like their waxed canvas) and the colour choices are a bit... scant.

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

notpeter — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 14:56:14 -0000

All Timbuk2 Hacker bags are imported. Only when you choose custom colors for your bag are they "sfmade".

I'd link it, but sfmade.org seems to be down.

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

faisal — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 14:35:27 -0000

wow thanks for the recommendation! After I read your post last night, I immediately got one. Ive been looking for a laptop bag that can fit my MBP as well as my Nikon D70 plus my ipod etc etc etc...all the while looking cool doing it.

Thanks!

Re: Timbuk2 Hacker Bag, The Ultimate Vertical Laptop Bag | Laughing Squid

Thomas Lockney — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 14:09:01 -0000

I've been trying to find a picture of this thing in backpack-mode everywhere, to no avail. Any chance of uploading one or know where I might find one?

Also, I'm also seeing the small comment form font issue. I'm running FF on Ubuntu Fiesty. It's definitely not fun trying to read it.