Booq Boa Flow M Laptop Backpack Review
Brands like Booq do their homework before releasing items into the market. It isn't that their products are perfect, but rather that when you uses them you genuinely feel that thought was put into their design and function. I've owned an assortment of their products, and am continually impressed by the experience. My newest Booq is the Boa Flow laptop computer carrying backpack. It comes in a few sizes and I have the "M' (medium model). There is a larger model that will fit more stuff, but is mostly meant to house large sized (17 inch screen and a bit above) notebook computers. One this I really like about the Booq Boa Flow is that it is able to hold other stuff as well. Booq has designed in a bunch of other large and small pockets and cargo areas. Some of these are quite dedicated. Such as for cables, water bottles, umbrellas, cameras, and other items. Despite the medium size, I can carry my 15 inch notebook computer, a host of cables, some pens and other stationary, an iPad, a few magazines, umbrella, and some documents - all with comfortable room for more. The Boa Flow is even an improvement organizationally from their previous Python model. Materials wise Booq only uses fine ballistic nylon, sturdy zippers, and other quality materials. The designs of their stuff looks really cool as well. Not too dorky, but certainly futuristic enough to impress people. Plus, that black with orange trim is a great looking motif. Some of the materials are a bit scratchy, but don't really affect the wearing experience that much. This includes the orange mesh material on the back part of the bag. Again, that doesn't affect you unless you are wearing the bag without a shirt on.
The Booq Boa M has a ton of padding all over it, and I feel really confident about the safety of my stuff inside. For comfort the laptop computer compartment is placed closest to your back. This gives the illusion that the bag weighs less than it does by centralizing weight close to you. You also don't feel stuff sloshing around in the bag while wearing it, which is a problem with some other bags. Like I said, cargo room is impressive (you can see Booq's site for full measurements), and the thing only weighs 4.5 pounds when empty.
The way of ppening the pockets is cleverly designed. When opening them you won't running the risk of having all your stuff fall out. Some bags create a liability in that they will open up all the way and fall back, allowing your stuff to crash to the floor - I don't think that this is an issue here. The straps are thick and ergonomically designed with lots of padding. Like other Booq backpacks, it is really a pleasure to wear. There are lots of straps for additional support if you want or need it - great for the urban hiker. The longer waist strap dangles around pretty low unless you cleverly tuck it somewhere. Earlier Booq bags allowed you to detach this part, but it is stuck on here. I would have liked the ability to take this strap off and stow it in the bag somewhere unless I wanted to use it. There is a interestingly placed pocket dedicated to carrying SLR style cameras. Problem is that unless you have a smaller SLR , you'll need to remove your lens before putting the camera body in the pocket. While you can place lenses in the main compartment, I would have liked a bit more room in this pocket to keep my camera, given the ultra-high amount of padding in this zone. As it is, I just keep my camera in the middle cargo area where most of your miscellaneous stuff will go.
Booq also offers a location service that allows you to register your bag based on its serial number. If lost, people can go to a website or call a phone number and get your bag pack to you. They call this Terralinq, and I believe it is included with the purchase if you choose to register for it.
As you can see complaints about the Booq Boa Flow M back are minimal. Booq has been doing a great job of improvement their products, and always focusing on both form and function. If you are looking for a well made laptop back of a medium or large size suitable for commutes or travel, these make excellent options. Plus, I haven't found anything that beats them from a comfort perspective - that are also very nicely designed from an aesthetic standpoint. At $199.95, the Boa Flow M is more than most ballistic nylon laptop bags - making this a luxury item for most. If you are willing to invest it in, you'll be happy. I've had a lot of computer bags over the last 10 years, and I am pretty sure I am going to stick with Booqs from now on.
Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch reviews site aBlogtoRead.com
The way of ppening the pockets is cleverly designed. When opening them you won't running the risk of having all your stuff fall out. Some bags create a liability in that they will open up all the way and fall back, allowing your stuff to crash to the floor - I don't think that this is an issue here. The straps are thick and ergonomically designed with lots of padding. Like other Booq backpacks, it is really a pleasure to wear. There are lots of straps for additional support if you want or need it - great for the urban hiker. The longer waist strap dangles around pretty low unless you cleverly tuck it somewhere. Earlier Booq bags allowed you to detach this part, but it is stuck on here. I would have liked the ability to take this strap off and stow it in the bag somewhere unless I wanted to use it. There is a interestingly placed pocket dedicated to carrying SLR style cameras. Problem is that unless you have a smaller SLR , you'll need to remove your lens before putting the camera body in the pocket. While you can place lenses in the main compartment, I would have liked a bit more room in this pocket to keep my camera, given the ultra-high amount of padding in this zone. As it is, I just keep my camera in the middle cargo area where most of your miscellaneous stuff will go.
Booq also offers a location service that allows you to register your bag based on its serial number. If lost, people can go to a website or call a phone number and get your bag pack to you. They call this Terralinq, and I believe it is included with the purchase if you choose to register for it.
As you can see complaints about the Booq Boa Flow M back are minimal. Booq has been doing a great job of improvement their products, and always focusing on both form and function. If you are looking for a well made laptop back of a medium or large size suitable for commutes or travel, these make excellent options. Plus, I haven't found anything that beats them from a comfort perspective - that are also very nicely designed from an aesthetic standpoint. At $199.95, the Boa Flow M is more than most ballistic nylon laptop bags - making this a luxury item for most. If you are willing to invest it in, you'll be happy. I've had a lot of computer bags over the last 10 years, and I am pretty sure I am going to stick with Booqs from now on.
Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch reviews site aBlogtoRead.com
