ful Out-N-About Video Review (Features Score: 0.5; Access. Score: 7) ~ Crossover Day Pack Reviews

ful Out-N-About Video Review (Features Score: 0.5; Access. Score: 7)

Posted by Unknown on Monday, February 09, 2015 with No comments

ful Out-N-About Review

Pros:

Well made with stout materials and hardware +3

Ultra cushy back with ventilation channel +1

Lash point in convenient place for keys +0.5

The bottom of the bag is flat and perpendicular to the sides so that it stands solidly without tipping over. +2

Bottom made of an ultra durable material +1

Great deal (right now). +2

Shoulder strap attached low on the sides of the bag to allow the cover flap to remain in place (preventing water ingress) +2

Shoulder strap is easily removable. +0.5

Shoulder cushion has rubbery material to prevent slippage. +1

Nice combination of pocket types on the front (behind flap). +1

Ultra-comfortable handle that I would be able to use without hand fatigue. +0.5

Two side, elasticized pockets for easy access to items without having to open the bag flap. +1

Cons:

No exterior zippered pocket for easy access to items that need some level of security (won't bounce out). -1

Black interior makes it difficult to find items or see slots for replacing pens, etc. -1

No key clip lanyard. This might be the only messenger bag that I have ever seen without one. -0.5

There is no open file pocket on the back of the bag for easy access to documents or stashing mail. -2

Velcro holds down the flap and, while handy for quickly securing the flap, it does not make up for the loud tearing sound every time you open the bag in a quiet room. -2

The elasticized side pockets while a good concept are poor in execution. Too narrow to hold a water bottle and too shallow to securely hold a cell phone. -1

No pass through on back panel that would allow you to carry this bag on the handle of your rolling luggage. -1

No separate tablet sleeve in the padded laptop compartment. This is the year 2015 folks! -0.5

The cell phone pocket is only large enough for an iPhone 5s or smaller. There are other places where you could put your phone, however. -0.5

The organizer panel is too narrow and cramped. While one can use the other pockets on either side, it is better to have everything visible and accessible behind one zipper or flap. -2

The D zipper opening on the left front pocket is not a good design. I think they were just trying to be cute without thinking about functionality. -1

The large zippered compartment on the inside of the front wall has no organization. It's just one large pocket. Why not divide it into at least three separate bays. You could go in the opposite direction and make it a simple file folder holder without zipper. (For those who think I could simply keep the zipper open, know that an unzipped zipper acts like a saw blade that will inevitably damage the side of your papers as you move about.) -2

Having all that thick padding on the back of the pack certainly makes it softer against my back and allows for a ventilation channel, but it does add weight. Is it really necessary? -0.5

Nice but not necessary:

Removable stabilizer strap on back.

Cam action for quickly adjusting the length of the shoulder strap.

Styled on front and back with sewn on panels (time and materials that could have been used for external pockets instead of decoration).

Accessibility:

A bag's accessibility is rated on a 1 - 10 scale (10 = most). Three major compartments are judged. The accessibility score for this bag:

Organizer pocket(s) = 6. Under a flap and must be unzipped. It is also tiny and the zipped compartment behind the slots is near impossible to unzip. Did someone get paid to design this? If so, they should be fired.

Main compartment = 9. Under a flap that you have to hold up to get access to your stuff. Once there, it open and large.

Laptop compartment = 6. Combined in with the main compartment. You not only need to open up the flap, but then you need to undo the Velcro closure. Why did I even bother to review this pile of junk?

Overall accessibility: 7 out of 10.

Overall:

With pros = 15.5 points, cons = -15; The ful Out-N-About earns an 0.5.