Ogio Metro

This is a wonderful bag. The price is a bit on the high end (though nowhere near a Timbuk2), but so is the bag. Right off the bat a number of things are noticeable about its design. The outer material is a fairly rugged cloth, but it has a plastic coating applied to the inside of the fabric to weatherproof it (good ol’ Scotch Guard will help even more). The zippers are similarly weatherproofed, as is the audio port to run a headphone cable through. The bag exudes compartments, with an externally accessible laptop compartment that is well padded and very easy to access (easily holds a 15″ or smaller machine, 17″ may be possible but check the dimensions), a side compartment for an umbrella on one side, and two smaller compartments on the other (I keep my travel mouse in one, and my Zune, DS, and phone chargers in the other), a nice compartment on the bottom that I use for power bricks, two pouches at the top that both have access to the audio port (one is for a cd player, the other a smaller mp3 player- I use the cd player pouch for sync cables and other miscellaneous stuff), a large compartment for books and the such, and a smaller front compartment for pens, sterno pads, paperbacks, and other smaller things. This is a bag where organization is easy.

It is, however, huge. You can hold a lot of books in it, great for college students toting around many textbooks. I found the main compartment very accommodating for a second laptop in a sleeve, a computer book, and magazines. My wife now uses the bag and thoroughly pushes how much it can hold (she is a grad student, so has her laptop, her own textbooks, folders of student work and tests that needs to be graded, stacks of scientific papers she is reviewing, a brick of a TI-86, etc). So far the bag has not been bested by her.

The shoulder straps are well padded and there is a sternum strap between them. After a good deal of heavy use (I bought mine while still at MS, so several years ago), the bag shows almost no wear. It may retail for around $80, but it will last you a good deal of time. There is a padded grab handle at the top, which makes it convenient to carry.

All and all I can find very little to complain about. Almost all of my criteria are met by this beast, however I did stop using it. It is a heck of a thing to complain about, but the bag is actually a bit too big for me personally. I travel enough, and it can be a tight fit if I have to put it under an airline seat (it will fit, but your legs won’t), though it will fit fine in most overhead bins. I don’t need all of the space it offers, so I end up with needless bulk. I suspect the smaller Ogio backpacks would be better for me.

Pros

• Well made bag, great material, weatherproof, wear resistant, at a decent price
• Compartments for all your gadget needs, clearly intended for the technophile
• More room than you know what to do with
• Comfortable

Cons

• More room than you know what to do with
• Drab colors

Conclusion – Grade: A

This is a great bag, but you likely should pick a model a bit smaller unless you *really* need all of the room- my two day hiking packs have fewer cubic inches of space. Other than the size, and drab colors that may not appeal to everyone, I have nothing bad to say about this bag. It is a great Geek bag, and you can find previous year models on eBags for $40 at closeout (though usually its because the color scheme is being cancelled, often with good reason).

~Joshbw