Timbuk2 Commute 2.0

Our reviewer called this a “messenger-style” bag for folks who plan on traveling with their laptop, but not cycling with it. Lauren Klein a former bike messenger and current PhD student who commutes 10+ miles daily in New York City, tested this bag and four others for four months this spring for Gear Junkie.

The Timbuk2 Commute 2.0 was the most “briefcase-like” of the bunch, she said. It was okay for users who don’t plan on pedaling, said Klein, adding that the bag was good for airport security because the laptop sleeve unzips to lay flat, making computer removal at security checks unnecessary. (Timbuk2 calls this feature “TSA Compliant.”)

Other nice features include a corduroy-lined computer compartment, a waterproof front flap, and a waterproof, rubberized bottom.

But performance on a bike, Klein said, was below average. She said the Commute’s strap was problematic — she couldn’t shorten it enough to keep it stable, demoting it, in Klein’s classification, to a “messenger-style” bag not a true messenger bag. She also disliked the laptop sleeve’s placement, which kept her computer uncomfortably next to her back.

The price is $110, which is average to high. But performance suffers and Klein said the Commute may not be good for folks who plan on doing much, well, commuting for real.

—Lauren Klein reviewed the Baileyworks Messenger Bag and the Patagonia Half Mass Messenger Bag for GearJunkie.com last month. This post was written by Stephen Krcmar.