REVIEW – I’ve had a string of opinions come to me these days with serendipitous timing, however the EKSTER GRID Backpack and energy station takes the crown of the “good evaluation on the good time”. I haven’t travelled for the reason that nice pandemic of 2020, so to have my first enterprise journey proper after the EKSTER bag arrived was unbelievable to present an actual world evaluation expertise. I took the bag on public transit, in addition to by air journey, and can now try to collect my findings right into a coherent evaluation.
What’s it?
The EKSTER GRID Backpack is a trendy smaller journey bag designed with storage pockets for laptops, tablets, telephones, and all types of different objects. Additionally they promote quite a lot of equipment like a digital camera journey bag, small electronics organizer bag, laptop computer energy station (which was additionally despatched to me for this evaluation), and different objects as properly. The bag is produced from recycled supplies, and is water-resistant.
What’s within the field?
- EKSTER GRID Backpack
- Waterproof mud bag (can defend the backpack or be used individually)
- Laptop computer energy station
- USB C-C charging cable
Options (Backpack)
- 180° easy accessibility opening
- Dimensions: 12 x 18 x 6″
- Inner quantity: 21L
- Weight: 1.2 Kg
- High loading padded laptop computer compartment (as much as 16″)
- Comfortable-lined tech or sun shades pocket
- Compression straps / MOLLE-style webbing for additional gear
- Baggage passthrough strap
- Elastic water bottle pocket
- Inner iPad/pill sleeve
- Pocket for laptop computer energy financial institution and tracker card
- Air mesh ventilated again panel
- Padded again and shoulder straps
- Shoulder strap equalizer
- Materials: Water resistant 600D physique (produced from recycled PET bottles)
- Waterproof zippers
{Hardware} specs (energy station)
- Most flight-safe battery dimension (26,800 mAh)
- 2xUSB-C + 1xUSB-A output (one USB-C doubles as enter/charging port)
- Sensible LED indicators
- Dimensions: 6.9 x 3.1 x 0.8″
- Weight: 500g
- Most output: 140W (distributed between the three outputs), as much as 100W on a single USB-C
Design and options
From the second I pulled the EKSTER GRID Backpack out of the delivery bag, I might inform this was a top quality bag. The fabric feels nice, the stitching is ideal, I couldn’t discover any flaws or imperfect seams wherever. The buckles and straps are all rugged, none really feel like they’ll fail with extended use like on low-cost luggage.
The zipper pulls are a smooth rubber materials, and all the zippers are water-resistant (my greatest concern when travelling is getting caught in a downpour with my laptop computer and no umbrella, this bag helps alleviate that concern enormously).
The bag is usually black on the surface, aside from the pink bits proven above. I just like the understated design quite a bit, and there aren’t large logos wherever both.
The picture above exhibits the primary compartment’s zipper pulls and zipper, have a look at how good that stitching is, and the zipper water-resistant flaps are flawless.
The small EKSTER brand and MOLLE model webbing are proven above.
The laptop computer compartment is properly padded, and cradles the laptop computer in padding on each side. The laptop computer rests only a bit above the bottom when shoved all the best way in. A 16″ Macbook Professional slides in simply, whereas my 16″ slim Asus X16 gaming pocket book is a little more of a squeeze. Most 15.6″ and smaller laptops will work effective (particularly slim non-gaming fashions), but when my gaming laptop computer was as thick as most gaming laptops are, it most likely wouldn’t have match.
A peek into the laptop computer compartment.
Contained in the laptop computer compartment can also be a small padded space in your cellphone or sun shades or one thing of comparable dimension.
The facet pocket is RFID blocking, so it’s a great place to stow a pockets or different related objects.
The principle compartment totally opens, and has two smooth pockets within the outer liner, two internal pockets (completely sized for the laptop computer energy financial institution or a laptop computer charging brick or different related objects.
The pink pull tab offers entry to the pill storage sleeve, your iPad or related objects received’t be free in the primary compartment however fairly are snugly saved in a smooth sleeve there. My 12.9″ iPad Professional with a case matches snugly in right here. The remainder of the primary compartment can maintain the digital camera and/or tech bag, or packing cubes of your selection. I simply match my toiletries bag and two days of garments for my journey, and the simple open design made getting by TSA a breeze.
The underside of the bag has a bit of additional padding.
The shoulder straps are comfy, and I really like the additional carry deal with within the heart of the again of the bag. The again is padded and ventilated, and by no means felt too scorching or uncomfortable.
On one facet is a smooth elastic water bottle holder. Being the wholesome particular person I’m, I examined it with a 20 oz. Coke Zero and it match completely.
The laptop computer energy financial institution is a really acquainted dimension and form, I’ve owned a number of fashions from different corporations that could possibly be twins. There’s an influence button and LED indicators to present cost standing, and a trio of output ports: two USB-C ports with Energy Supply, and one USB-A port with fast cost. All three can be utilized concurrently with as much as 140 complete watts output.
A helpful specs record on the underside may be referenced when utilizing the system (I all the time forgot if the USB-C in/out or just-out might do larger wattage – it’s the in/out port that places out as much as 100W).
Setup
Setup on the EKSTER GRID backpack is so simple as chopping off the tag, whereas the laptop computer energy station merely must be charged.
Efficiency
I examined the laptop computer energy financial institution, and it delivered as much as 100 watts of energy when one USB-C system was related. I additionally examined with all three ports to a few totally different telephones/tablets/laptop computer and all work concurrently.
I used to be additionally in a position to put the ability financial institution into the padded compartment of the bag and cost my laptop computer as I travelled to the airport after my final assembly.
What I like
- A lot of cupboard space for a small bag
- Ample purpose-built pockets
- Good laptop computer storage compartment – padded, water-resistant, and doesn’t relaxation the laptop computer on backside of the bag
- Non-obligatory digital camera/tech/equipment designed to suit this bag completely
What I’d change
- Nothing!
- Aside from possibly including EKSTER’s monitoring know-how constructed into the bag – however I like that they promote the monitoring playing cards individually: plenty of persons are invested into totally different monitoring ecosystems like Apple’s FindMy or Tile, so letting you add your individual might be the higher answer.
Remaining ideas
I actually couldn’t consider any cons when writing up this evaluation of the EKSTER GRID backpack. It’s a bit greater than I often would spend for a laptop computer journey bag, however after utilizing it on a visit I feel it’s value each penny. I particularly like that it even matches on the small foot storage of an aisle seat on the airplane (pictured above). I might pack every part for a 2 day journey and nonetheless not use a carry-on baggage. If it was an extended journey, this bag nonetheless makes the proper “private merchandise” to go beneath your seat, whereas a bigger bag could possibly be checked or go within the overhead bin. I just like the water resistance and padding, and the general construct high quality leads me to consider that this bag will final me for years of sporadic journey (or ought to maintain up properly for frequent vacationers), all whereas trying nice.
Value: $195 (bag) and $140 (laptop computer powerbank)
The place to purchase: EKSTER (bag) and EKSTER (laptop computer energy financial institution)
Supply: The pattern of this product was supplied by EKSTER
