Timbuk2 Uptown Laptop TSA-Friendly Backpack

I am severely disappointed in this bag. I have owned two Timbuk2 bags prior to this and I always swallowed the price tag because of the unbelievable quality and durability of their bags. This is clearly not the case on the Uptown. Upon receiving I noticed how cheaply made the bag was:

No reinforced bottom.

Straps thin and single stiched.

Ultrathin pack material.

Worst of all, the carrying handles are a joke. The thinnest single piece of nylon I have ever seen a pack. My 1990's Jansport made this feel like a glass egg!

At first I thought I was the victim of poor quality control, but even on the Timbuk2 site there are customers crying out for more durability on this pack! WAKE UP TIMBUK2!!

By the way, my strap broke at the bottom during my first trip to work. So it was really fun carrying my backpack around in my arms like a sack all day!

To give you an idea, it had a small 15" laptop, Ipad, a 1"binder, three pens and my car keys. I admit one of those pens weighed a few ounces, but come on! Seriously, the bag was no where near it's proposed weight or size capacity.

It's just really sad to see a grassroots company like Timbuk2 sell out to try and make a buck from the people who backed you from the beginning.

Needless to say, thanks to Amazon, the bag is going back and I'll never trust in Timbuk2 again. I can only hope you learn from my mistake and steer clear.

I've had this backpack for couple months now and I honestly love it more and more....

What I use it for:

daily bus commute to work, I usually carry iPad, 15'' laptop, gzillion cables, chargers, headsets, ... occasionally a jacket (even winter fleece jacket fits), and yes also coffee mug

What I was worried about:

1. the material feel thin and cheap. I was wrong, honestly it works great, I actually like how light it is

2. zippers feel cheap as well, but work, no issue there

What I love:

1. tons of pockets

2. laptop pocket I used it 6x at the airports already, never had to pull my laptop out of the backpack so convenient, yes people are jealous

3. shoulder straps really nicely fit, this is probably the most comfortable backpack I used so far

What I don't care about but you might:

1. this is not waterproof backpack, I would not take it skying

2. it has no waist strap

3. it is not "tough" backpack, don't expect same material you are used to from messenger bag, this backpack is as light and simple as possible

Is there anything to improve: Well yes, there is always something.

1. I would love to see mouse pocket (yeah geeky stuff) and padded sunglasses pocket

2. Perhaps a bit less flimsy zippers.

3. true napoleon pocket (the existing napoleon pocket is sideways, but deep down and thus harder to pull stuff from)

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Yes, it's kind of expensive. But totally worth it!

I had my Timbuk2 messenger bag for 12 years, and decided it was time to upgrade. I've got a lot of back problems, and was told the messenger style bag isn't helping. (The messenger bag is still going strong BTW, speaks volumes about the quality of Timbuk2!)

I travel, A LOT, and this bag really saves time and effort at the airport. I was a little weary that the TSA would let it through without me taking my computer out, but so far I've been through DCA, CLT, BWI, and SAV with no problems. I'm going through LAX tomorrow and expect the same.

The only thing that concerns me about this bag is where the straps are connected it looks like there is a lot of stress on the stitching. I'm confident Timbuk2 knows what they are doing, and I guess only time will tell. I'll update if I have any problems.

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I have always been a Timbuk2 customer and love their products very much. However, it's time to once again make all of the products in American only. Either make the products here in the US or drop the price. Quantity will not out-live quality.

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I have had several timbuk2 bags and this is my favorite. The TSA friendly compartment holds my laptop and this section also easily holds my iPad as well. There is a section for all my power cords, a smaller section for pens etc. And the kicker is there is a compartment for a small amount of clothing. I recently went on a two day business trip and was able to carry just this bag. And given all these compartments, this bag is quite small.

I may never get another kind of bag again.

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