I've been using a smaller PacSafe portable "safe" for several years. It has become so worn that the steel mesh is wearing through the fabric and the some of the strands in the steel cable are broken which regularly poke my fingers. It looks like it's falling apart but it's still just as secure as the day I bought it. These things are tough. It's a great feeling to lock up expensive items and not worry about them. I know four people who bought PacSafe bags after I showed them how well it worked.
PacSafe has made some improvements. The steel cable used to pass through the top of the steel mesh under the fabric. This could invisibly break or fool thieves into thinking they could just cut the fabric around the cable. Now they wind the cable through ten external steel-reinforced holes which makes the cable completely visible and more intimidating to a thief with a knife or scissors. It also puts no strain on the internal mesh and the fabric when pulling the locking "nut" through it. Also the locking "nut" embedded in the cable which the system completely relies on is now steel instead of nylon which makes it harder to damage with a tool or simply melt off with a lighter.
One added feature is straps with snaps that keep the bag "deflated" for storage or transportation. The steel mesh will want to expand the bag to its maximum size and these straps will keep it compact.
The only missing feature is a hole on the bottom to attach the free end of the cable to. With older smaller bags this turned the cable into an uncomfortable but usable shoulder strap with a sliding fabric sleeve so you wouldn't have the cable cutting into you (so much). I was also able to use this hole to attach a much more comfortable camera strap which turned it into a camera bag. With this model, the steel cable just dangles uselessly whenever the bag is open. There is no handle or strap which makes it very awkward to lift and carry with heavy contents. Even a simple handle would have made this a five-star product.
One thing they didn't improve is the protection of the ends of the cable. They still use rubber shrink tubing which will eventually expand and tear, exposing the end of the cable which has pointy strands.
I purchased this bag for a trip to the Bahamas so we could leave whatever valuables and gear in a beach bag attached to lawn chairs at the pool and go where we wanted to. The bag was fulfilled it's purpose keeping our gear safe for hours and left me not worrying about our stuff like used to do on vacation.
This bag is very large. I had debated between the 12L and this 20L. If you just want to store a couple of tablets and a non-DSLR camera you can do it easily in the 12L I am sure. See others reviews to see what you think. I believe them. The 20L is almost like a grocery bag in size and takes up most of a large beach bag if you do what we did and 'hide' it inside there. I was able to fit two sets of goggles, snorkels, a travel zoom camera and had enough room to easily house a laptop computer or any number of other items. Two or three people could easily keep all their key valuables in here. I think it would even hold two 15 inch laptops with some room to spare.
The build quality is great and I genuinely felt it did the job. The wire mesh goes all the way to the top and the cable is a solid deterrent to theft. The lock mechanism is easy to figure out and use once you read the instructions. We were able to put the bag inside a less conspicuous beach bag and then just put the cable out the side. It had enough length that I could run the cable down and around two lawn chairs and still bring it back up to the lock part easily with some slack.
One could argue that the mesh holes are large enough that someone with a knife could get a camera or a phone out of it. To me, that's not what this thing defends against. It's not invincible. It's a deterrent. A thief is not likely to want to spend a lot of time trying to saw a hole in your bag when he doesn't even know what's in there. Someone genuinely determined could of course get a good pair of bolt cutters and run off with it, but that's going to be noticeable unless you leave it unattended at night or something.
All-in-all a great product that gave us great piece of mind. I opted for the 20L because I thought I might need the room and it was only about 10-15 dollars more. I wound up using the room, but I might also get the 12L for lighter trips. I like this product and vendor that much.
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Great for what it is. You know the old saying that locks only protect you from basically honest people. Bought for overseas trip, and used it daily to lock up camera equipment in room while out, also good for cruise ship travel; I suffered no losses and it worked perfectly. It did give me a high degree of "peace of mind" which is invaluable. Bag is well made and should last a lifetime. It effectively stops the sneak thief, pilferers, maid/yard man theft, and the quick snatch. But really all you need is a good set of wire snips to get into it. On the up side,1] out of sight out of mind, 2] it sends 95% of travel thieves to the next car or room for the "easy prey". Yes I would buy it again and I will continue to use it
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I rated this bag as ok because I don't know if it work as no one tried to steal or get into it which is a good thing. I will give you what I feel are the pro's and con's. We bought 2 of these for vacation. I put one in the rental car, wrapped it around the seat frame, and put the mat over it. With tinted windows you could not see it. The other one I secured around the hotel safe. Split valubales between me and my wife for security purposes. I would say this was a good investment.
Pros:
Easy to use
Long cable that allows you to wrap around just about anyting.
Comes with a lock.
Takes a beating.
Fits in luggage.
Cons:
One of the inside wires was broken and scratched the lens on my camera.
Wire cable should be thicker. You could cut this cable with wire cutters.
Lock could be bigger. I used my own.
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Just got back from the Islands and used this everyday to hold camera, iPad, wallets, passports, and jewelry while in our room. We also used it in our automobile when we went to the beach, hooking the cable onto the inside of the trunk for an extra measure of safety. Peace of mind is worth the cost. Once you get the hang of the locking mechanism, and that isn't that difficult, you'll travel much more safely.
I found the back very well constructed and thought out. I am able to carry my 15in dell laptop with me without any problems. It will hold a 17 in laptop also. It has plent of extra pockets to carry acessories or other small items. It has sufficient room for notebooks and a couple of books also. I my only issue is I wish the it has pinch more room to carry more books or folders. Don't get me wrong it carries more than most other similar notebook backpacks but I currently have aneed to carry around 2 very thick books and a few smaller books. I just have to carry one in hand on those time sI need both just because i personally feel if I stuffed in the backpack it would apply too much pressure on the notebook and potientially cause harm to it. Other than that it is an EXCELLENT backpack and does not give the outwards appearance of a carrying a laptop so does not draw attention.
