San Francisco has quite a few talented bag makers on its hands, and Chrome is clearly one of them: the company’s Vega ($80) is being pitched at iPad users as a “musette-style utility bag” — sold in six color combinations. Each bears the Chrome logo and a chrome shoulder strap length manager, using a series of four pockets to hold items: there’s a large unpadded one to loosely hold a 13″ to 15″ laptop, a smaller one in front of that to hold an iPad, then a zippered pocket to hold accessories, and two small open pockets for pens, pencils, or other items. Velcro and plastic snaps hold the top flap closed, and a fully open large pocket on the bag’s rear is there for a water bottle or something you need to grab without opening it up. The single best feature of Vega is the material, which Chrome guarantees for life: weatherproof Cordura on the outside, and 18-ounce weatherproof truck tarp liner on the inside, together making Vega feel near-invincible. With more padding, it’d be easy to recommend to anyone as a mini-messenger bag, but as-is, we can see it working pretty well with an iPad and DSLR or computer combination, provided you’re willing to use a little something to keep your devices from banging around inside.
Our Rating
Company and Price
Company: Chrome Industries
Website: www.Chromebaggstore.com
Model: Vega
Price: $80
Compatible: iPad (2010)