Sacks Packing Functional Style
Today’s kids don’t have to walk to school through a snowstorm uphill both ways, but they’ve got their own problems. Such as how to carry all the gear modern life demands--computer, CDs, MP3 player--without looking like a geek. Or winding up prematurely stooped trying to carry 40 pounds of equipment around on an 80-pound body.
Fortunately, the backpack industry has responded with a slew of innovative designs aimed at making stuff easier to carry, or at least letting you look a little bit cooler.
AirPacks, a 4-year-old Massachusetts company, makes a line of bag systems that have inflatable straps and lumbar support that allegedly redistribute the weight of the pack so that 40 pounds feels like 10. Whatever. They look pretty cool.
The AirWave pack, which sells for about $60, offers a special compartment for a CD player and headphones, along with side mesh pockets for stuff such as a water bottle and a cell phone. You can find them at retailers or at https://www.airpacks.com.
Rolling backpacks started to get hot last year among the kiddie set. This year, mass marketers are really pushing them.
These packs have wheels, like some luggage, but they also have straps so they can be toted on the back. On smooth ground, youngsters can pull their gear behind them instead of carrying it.
Consumer Reports recently tested a number of these packs, many of which had trouble keeping the wheels on or repeatedly toppled over with normal use. Top marks went to the Olympia Leather Trim, which sells for about $20, and the Spalding Crosswalk, at $30. Both are available in department stores.
L.L. Bean offers a wide variety of backpacks, the most innovative of which is the $45 Cruise Pack, which comes with an unusual “trap door” at the bottom of the pack. The feature is especially useful for grabbing small objects that have drifted down, or just to quickly empty everything out. Cruise has two interior pockets, three exterior pockets and a mesh water bottle pocket. It’s available at https://www.llbean.com.
Kids who bike will love Eagle Creek’s $100 Vanadium pack, part of the popular Matrix line. The Vanadium offers the usual accouterments, such as a Shower Cap that keeps rain out and Pocket-It pocket for such things as a CD player. But it’s also got the Marsupial Pouch, a pocket with an elastic lip designed to keep your helmet secure when it’s not on your noggin. Check travel and sporting goods stores.
JanSport’s line routinely gets top rankings for comfort, but the styles are hip too. The company has dozens of styles, most with pockets for CD players and holes for earphones, along with a special, easily accessible pocket for a cell phone or pocket computer. My fave is the $70 Air Wrap, a funky single-strap system with all that and a really cool design too. It’s available in sporting goods stores.
And finally, the bag I’ve carried for five years is made by Tenba, a brand easiest to find through the Web site, at https://www.tenba.com. Tenba makes a line of briefcases called computer travelers that have a snap-on shoulder harness. They convert instantly to backpacks, with lots of pockets and space inside for a computer--with a hard computer case--and all the accessories. They run about $200.
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Dave Wilson is The Times’ personal technology columnist.
