Is Crumpler’s oddly-named Considerable Embarrassment messenger/laptop bag an embarrassment? Hardly.
The bag has a quirky name — as do all of Crumpler’s products. I won’t even try to understand what it means. What I do know is that looks are deceiving. Meaning that it can hold a ton of stuff, despite it’s slim profile. It doesn’t look like it should.
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The Considerable Embarrassment is very stylish and sturdy without trying to be too trendy. I tested out the green bag. Love, love that it is all green without any other contrasting colors. Most of the five other colors available in the Embarrassment line — from black to blue — have contrasting colored side panels. Not this one.
The bag is water resistant, made from a tough, rip-resistant nylon shell and lining. Crumpler has a reputation for making tough bags. They last for years, making them a good investment.
The fully padded laptop compartment comfortably fit my 13″ MacBook with ease.
The six pocket organizer easily accommodates pens, a small wallet, my cell phone, lip gloss, aspirin and the battery charger. It has a small zippered section that can hold change or USB flash drives without the worry of losing them.
The three internal front pockets hold a water bottle, a plastic sandwich container and an iPod Touch. It also has a seperate zip pocket which nicely stashes magazines and files. All of this when closed weighs in at 10lbs and with the adjustable removable main strap and shoulder pad, little pressure was put on my shoulder from the fully-loaded bag.
There are a few annoying features. I dislike the velcro. It always sticks to the clothes on my arm. Velcro is also super loud when opened. I realize that there isn’t a messenger bag made that doesn’t have velcro, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it.
In addition to the two velcro strips, the bag has two clasps that close it, but they are slightly hard to open. The bag is lacking an outside pocket that would be useful for cell phone or iPod storage. Slightly annoying but I can see how it would add extra bulk.
The Considerable Embarrassment messenger/laptop bag retails for $95.00 and comes in black, blue, green, brown, red and grey.
There are two other messenger bags in the Embarrassment line. The Dreadful Embarrassment bag fits the 17″ MacBook Pro and all the machines in Apple’s PowerBook series. It retails for $100 and comes in five colors. The Moderate Embarrassment bag fits 13″ laptops. It retails for $90 and also comes in five colors.
Overall the Considerable Embarrassment is a slimming bag that looks inconspiciously stylish and holds way more than it should. I think it takes ten pounds off my overall appearance!
