As surely as the seasons turn and the sun races across the sky, Bag Week is upon us once again. Last year I took a risk by taking a white Ogio backpack for a spin (surprise: it still looks pretty good!), and this time around I decided to step out of my comfort zone again with the comparatively tiny HEX Fleet Messenger bag ($ 79.99).
There’s such a thing as being over-designed, and iPad cubby aside, the canvas Fleet bag definitely isn’t. It’s simple and squarish, and the version I spent time with was clad in fetching dark-and-light gray stripes. In an effort to mix things up a bit, HEX threw in some brown faux-leather on the zipper and around the bag’s edges, and a simple, adjustable black strap rounds out the package.
Opening up the velcro-fastened flap reveals something a bit unusual — instead of say, providing a pocket for an iPad (or a similarly svelte tablet), there’s a fabric-lined slot with a big hole it in allowing people to fiddle with their tablets while they’re ensconced in a nifty fabric frame. It’s a peculiar (and sort of cool) touch, but it requires owners to carefully peel those tabs out of whatever protective doodad they’re already wearing — kind of a hassle, if you ask me.
Now we come to the bag’s one major caveat — this little guy is wonderful if all you plan to tote around is a 15-inch laptop and an iPad, but the situation gets dicey quickly if you plan to pack some accessories (or, god forbid, a hardcover book).
The laptop compartment is lined with micro-fleece to reduce the chances of scratches and scuffs appearing on your precious portable, but it’s a pretty tight squeeze — I had to pop the tiny Logitech unifying receiver out of my 15-inch MacBook Pro’s USB port before it would go in all the way. There’s a bit of extra space in front of that main compartment that’s just large enough to contain a MacBook Pro charger a few other small doodads, but this is the sort of bag that forces you to pack wisely.
On the upside, lugging the thing around is pretty dang comfortable. There’s a tendency for unadorned messenger bag straps to dig into my shoulders, but that never happened here. Weight never manages to be an issue, probably because there’s only so much stuff you can squeeze into the bag at any one time.
Now, all that said, I don’t dislike this thing. Far from it — it’s comfy, easy on the eyes in a minimal sort of way, and the front-facing PadPort is a nice touch. I’ll admit to having some packrat-ish tendencies, though not everyone is going to need a bag that’s capable of storing tools for every contingency. Road warriors would do well to steer clear of this thing, but folks looking for a svelte, unobtrusive laptop bag will find a solid companion in the HEX Fleet Messenger.
Bag Week is our yearly celebration of laptop bags. Being that they are, for the most part, quite boring, we don’t find it odd that most folks settle for janky bags they get free with their laptops. Therefore we’ve created Bag Week, a service for you proud men and women of the laptop carrying world. We’ll be talking about a panoply of travel and back-to-school sacks and if you have a favorite you’d like featured, drop us a line at tips@techcrunch.com with the subject line BAG WEEK. You can read all of our bag week coverage here
Though it’s relatively small, Incase’s Pathway Field Bag is officially going to be my new favorite bag.
Why? It’s stylish, can fit a phone, tablet and computer (plus other accoutrement), and is compact enough to go just about anywhere with me.
The Pathway Field Bag is a single strap vertical backpack, which is great for anyone who likes to carry just the essentials. It’s made of cotton twill fabric, with various leather accents on the strap and the magnetic fold-over clasp.
Inside the main compartment, you’ll find a laptop sleeve that can hold up to a 13-inch MacBook Pro and a small zippered pocket. The bag also has sleeves on the front and the back for extra papers, a tablet, etc. along with both zippered and non-zippered pockets within that front sleeve.
If you carry photography equipment, at least anything bigger than a point-and-shoot, this isn’t the bag for you. As I said before, you can bring your laptop, tablet, a notebook, and some other papers and small things in the Pathway Field Bag, but any more will bulk the bag out to the point of discomfort.
Specific measurements are 16in x 10in x 3.5in.
What I love most about the bag is that it looks like something you’d buy at a Kenneth Cole or Lucky, yet has all the great quality of Incase’s gadget bags.
After carrying it around for a while, I find the bag to be super comfortable and it met all of my daily needs. Even so, I wouldn’t take it to a conference or use the bag for school. Carrying more than one book in this bag would be a pain, and it doesn’t have enough room for a nice camera or workout clothes. It’s more of an everyday bag for the urbanite.
The price is a bit high, at $ 169.95, but I think this will become a go-to bag for any who choose to purchase it. Recommended.
The Range Messenger is a bag designed to fit a 13-inch MacBook. It’s made of grey ripstop material and the inside is waterproof tarp to keep your hardware from getting wet on the road.
The bag is quite large, especially for the advertised sizing. At 9.9” x 16” x 4.5” you can feasibly fit a few laptops in there at once or a laptop and a bunch of books. It has a large, thick strap with dual pads and a Velcro/snap combo front closure.
On the messenger side we have the $ 90 Range Messenger.
I’ve definitely seen better messengers in this price range although this model is considerably less “sloppy” than others in the range. It holds its shape well and the main pocket is well-waterproofed. While I wouldn’t recommend it outright, if you’re looking for something for a bike commute or carrying lots of gear around town, this is something to consider.
Bag Week is our yearly celebration of laptop bags. Being that they are, for the most part, quite boring, we don’t find it odd that most folks settle for janky bags they get free with their laptops. Therefore we’ve created Bag Week, a service for you proud men and women of the laptop carrying world. We’ll be talking about a panoply of travel and back-to-school sacks and if you have a favorite you’d like featured, drop us a line at tips@techcrunch.com with the subject line BAG WEEK. You can read all of our bag week coverage here
I do not like the pleather look of the Ogio Rivet. It’s degrading. Childish. Cheap. But damn do I love this bag, which is actually made out of shiny black canvas.
We have reviewed a lot of bags at TechCrunch and it’s always been clear that Ogio knows the secret formula to a great bag. The Ogio Rivet is no different. It offers plenty of space throughout the well-made bag with enough smart storage pockets to secure everything from an iPad to the most delicate portable electronics (there’s a crush proof pocket).
The Rivet is rather large. It can hold up to a 17-inch notebook and so it swallows whole my 15-inch MacBook Pro. In fact unlike most messenger bags, there’s enough room in this bag to hold a notebook computer and a large DSLR — plus it does so with ease. The bag has a fleece-lined outer pocket labeled for a notebook, but the computer could also easily go inside the bag’s main compartment.
Ogio brags that the Rivet has a capacity of 1350 cubic inches. That’s huge while not being too big. Thankfully, like most Ogio bags, there are pockets strategically placed throughout to hold one’s accoutrements. A new crush-proof pocket rests under the top flap, offering a lot of extra protection for one lucky gadget.
I loaded up the Rivet and carried the bag around town for a few days. It performs admirably. I’ve used an Ogio Hip Hop messenger bag for nearly five years now. It’s my go-to bag. The Rivet has all the qualities I love — smart storage, comfortable strap — with additional space and new features like the crush-proof pocket. I just don’t like the pleather look.
To be clear the Rivet is not made out of pleather but canvas coated in what appears to be a very thin layer of rubber — like waxed canvas but not. The pleather look is deceiving. It feels great to the touch and the coating should make the bag water-resistant.
At $ 150 the Rivet is a touch pricey. But having used several Ogio bags over the years, I can attest to the brand’s quality. Recommended.
Bag Week is our yearly celebration of laptop bags. Being that they are, for the most part, quite boring, we don’t find it odd that most folks settle for janky bags they get free with their laptops. Therefore we’ve created Bag Week, a service for you proud men and women of the laptop carrying world. We’ll be talking about a panoply of travel and back-to-school sacks and if you have a favorite you’d like featured, drop us a line at tips@techcrunch.com with the subject line BAG WEEK. You can read all of our bag week coverage here
Question by tergue1955: How do you video chat by using kinect with someone that has a windows messenger acount? me and my friend tried video chating last night but it wouldnt let me send her an invite do u have to send a freind request to her windows email thing ?
Best answer:
Answer by Max T.Hi, try CHA-CHA-CHAT http://www.cha-cha-chat.com – Free private video chat service, you can create your own video chat and invite people by email. No installation or registration required
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It was scarcely a day ago that we got a first peek at what could be the first BlackBerry 10 devices — and now we’re looking at what may be BlackBerry 10′s cornerstone app, a reworked BlackBerry Messenger. As long as N4BB‘s details prove legitimate, the centerpiece of the app will be its theming: owners can customize the chat bubbles and backdrops to fit their finnicky ways. Of course, this being an efficiency-obsessed RIM, the theming should also be integral to keeping power consumption to a minimum: the darker the colors, the less energy a BBM conversation demands from a future BlackBerry’s big OLED screen. We don’t know whether any changes will prove more than skin deep, although the switch to the QNX-based OS might prove enough at first. We’ll know everything soon enough should of a September release for the first phone be more than just a feverish dream.
BlackBerry Messenger for BlackBerry 10 gets a possible first sighting, themes to fit that chatty lifestyle originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jun 2012 10:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Question by flatland: How to video chat someone on a PC through the kinect via Windows Live Messenger? I have a windows live account because I already have an xbox live account, but I don’t know how to chat someone who isn’t on an xbox. I added the person to my contacts and they accepted the invite but I don’t know how to make it so that they are an available chat option when on the xbox video chat screen. How do I do this? Detail would be helpful.
Best answer:
Answer by OliverChatting with Window Live Messenger friends To chat with your Windows Live Messenger friends, select Messenger Sign In after you start Video Kinect. The first time you do this you will be asked for your Windows Live ID password. Avatars are used to represent your Xbox LIVE friends and an icon of an avatar is used for your Windows Live Messenger friends.
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Nope, nothing creepy as hell going on here.
The Kissenger is a small, Skype compatible robotic pig that can sense a user’s kiss and send the sensation to another user who’s ALSO holding a f***ing pig-shaped robot to their lips. God, if this is the future I am like, soooooooooo over it. *emptying potion of immortality into toilet* “That was a juice-box.” IT WAS SYMBOLIC.
“The lips are highly touch-sensitive, but can also be manipulated by motors inside the robot.”
The robots are equipped with soft silicon pads that transmit lip movements between partners.
The Lovotics website suggests the Kissenger may appeal to singles and those who want to smooch a virtual character. The robots can use artificial intelligence (AI) to transmit those kinds of kisses, too.
Admittedly, I would call all my friends and put my wiener up to it. “Whoa bro — you sure you want your junk that close to an active robot?” Good point — I knew there was a reason I kept you around! Now, I want you to call my friend Randy and lay your penis on the receiver.
Hit the jump for a video demo of the sadness.
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Facebook’s Messenger app for Windows is now available for all to chit-chat with. Facebook has been testing the application since November as part of a private trial, but TechIT revealed the download link on Thursday. The application includes access to the chat, ticker feed and notification parts of Facebook, and only installs on Windows 7.
The app forms the latest in a series of standalone Facebook chat applications made available earlier this year. Facebook has previously released apps for iOS, Android and BlackBerry to enable users to chat on the go. The Windows 7 app doesn’t take advantage of the unique pinning features of the operating system, but it does include a neat dock feature that will snap the app to the side of the screen….
Continue reading…
We’ve already had an early peek at Facebook’s yet-to-be-released Messenger client for Windows, and now you can give it a shot yourself courtesy of a leaked copy that’s turned up on the TechIT website. Not much in the way of surprises here, but if you’re the sort that prefers desktop applications to websites or mobile apps, you’ll be glad to know that it provides access to not just Facebook chat, but status updates and notifications from your friends as well. You can find the download at the source link below (Windows 7 is required).
[Thanks, Avi]
Facebook Messenger client for Windows slips out for download originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Dec 2011 17:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Question by Wqrfqas: How do i use my kinect for xbox 360′s video chat with a computer on windowslive messenger? Okay, me and my cousin are trying to video chat together, she on the computer and me on my xbox 360 with kinect. We can’t get it to connect help!!!!!
Best answer:
Answer by Adrianoim having the same problem. when i accept the call it just returns to the kinect video screen. it seems like alot of people are having the same issue. i would suggest contacting xbox support -> Toll free: (800) 4MY-XBOX or (800) 469-9269
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