Prosversatile, heavy when packed full, Durable, great deal
I bought this bag because I needed something to carry items to keep me busy at my spouse's work office. It is a nice large bag that holds a huge variety of things. It is tall enough for a computer, but there's no padding to protect it. It is best as a single day bag, because weighed down with all the books, papers, colored pencils, ipod, etc. that it can hold, it gets heavy. I used it as a carry on airplane bag once and it was quite versatile. I packed a days worth of clothes and some busy work. The compartment on the strap was convenient for plane tickets. The strap was also padded well for over the shoulder carrying and the whole bag fit under the airplane seat pretty well. Once again, it was a little big for smaller planes. The size is not a problem if you are quite strong, but I wouldn't recommend it fully packed to a smaller person. I bought the pink color and was afraid it would get dirty, but it hasn't. Rather, it is a pretty color and compliments my red hair well.
My daughter returned to school and asked for a messenger bag for her birthday. She needed a sturdy, strong bag with compartments, pockets, etc to carry and organize all the necessities required to go from daytime office worker to nighttime college student. I bought her this bag in black and she loves it...uses it every day. She even said to me this morning, with the bag slung across her body "You know what else - it's a great weekend get-a-way bag". There you go...5 stars from me!
I have owned and used this bag for nearly 2 years and, while I liked it at first, I now find it irritating. As some hve said, the strap may be too long for some, and it is also awkward when it twists.
But what really bothers me is the overly large flap. It I keep it closed, I find myself wrestling with the flap to get at the contents. If I leave the flap open, the contents are likely to spill when picking it up by the clumsy strap. The bag has an adequte number of pockets, however, which makes it convenient.
mybe it's just me, but I'd prefer a bag with a zip open top and forget the useles flap.
Unless you are 6 feet tall this bag is going to be to long. Even with the strap adjusted to the shortest length it is way to big. I bought this for my son for middle school and since he likes the bag I am paying to have the strap shortened otherwise this would go back. So much for saving money! Poor design on the over the shoulder strap. We bought the large size so I can't comment on the medium.
