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| Product: Zoom Laptop Backpack |
Company: Spire, Inc. |
| Web: www.spireusa.com |
Phone: 303-444-9454 |
| Platform: Your back |
SRP: US$120
Street Price: same |
Cred Rating: | Special Award: |
Once you've made the commitment to use a
laptop, there's a whole set of choices that go along with it. You
have to decide whether to get peripherals that will go with both your
laptop and desktop machines or separate devices for each one. Will
you synchronize your laptop and desktop machines? How will you back
up your files? There's another choice -- an important one -- about
how much stuff to carry along with your laptop. And no less
important, the decision about what to carry it in. It makes no sense
to buy an expensive computer and try to save a few bucks on the
carrying case.
Spire's Zoom backpack isn't your usual laptop case. For one thing,
it's a *backpack*. It's also available in black, gray, red or yellow.
It doesn't have a major computer company's logo on it. This
combination makes the Zoom a stealth bag, one that doesn't scream
"Steal me!" like your standard-issue black laptop carrying
case. That's a great feature here in New York, where you can have
your car tires stolen if your speed drops below 20 MPH.
The Zoom also provides a lot of protection for your laptop. It fits
well, and it has chest and hip straps, so it attaches to your body as
securely as possible. When it's adjusted correctly, it doesn't sway
about like other backpacks. In fact, I tried jumping up and down
while carrying a laptop in the Zoom; there was no movement
whatsoever.
Your laptop fits into a removable padded pouch with a Velcro closure.
The pouch slides into a pocket inside the Zoom that secures with a
drawstring. The compartment with the pocket is padded as well, so
there's always a couple of layers of padding between your computer
and the harsh world outside. Speaking of which, I wore the Zoom
through a heavy rain and a hurricane, and my laptop remained dry and
safe inside.
The Zoom is large enough to fit even *really* big laptops. Dell's
Inspiron 7000 and Apple's PowerBook G3 are mentioned specifically,
and they're among the largest available. It has an outer mesh pocket,
outer compartment and two inner compartments. One of the inner
compartments has several pockets in it as well. There's room in the
backpack for a reasonable number of peripherals, enough to make it
almost uncomfortably heavy, but it's not meant to carry everything
you could possibly need.
Regarding heavy loads, the Zoom deals with them like many good
backpacks do: a waist strap puts the weight on your hips rather than
letting your back and shoulders do all the work. It's solidly
constructed, too, with YKK zippers and tough Cordura nylon. The only
thing keeping it from being ideal is a tiny detail on the straps: the
nylon straps are doubled back at the ends and sewn about an inch from
the end, leaving an inch of nylon dangling. It's an odd oversight
from a company that seems to have put so much care into the rest of
the design. It even has a small reflector on the back that was meant
to hold a bike light!
I've carried many laptop computers in many different cases and
Spire's Zoom backpack is my new favorite. It's solid
construction and thoughtful design stand out in a field crowded with
generic-looking rectangular black bags that do little to protect your
computer against theft or damage, and its reasonable price is icing
on the cake. If you have a laptop and can use a backpack, Spire's
Zoom is for you.
- Andrew Sasaki [10/18/99]
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