In addition to a 22″ (or so) rollaboard, every road warrior has either a laptop bag or backpack. I’ve always been firmly on “team laptop,” with my primary laptop bag being a Tumi Alpha.
If I’m not checking my rollaboard, then this combo works perfectly, because as I shared in this post, I simply hang my laptop bag over my rollaboard.
It works great, since the laptop bag essentially counter balances the weight of the rollaboard when rolling it.
But the more I travel, the more I realize how much laptop bags suck whenever not used in conjunction with my rollaboard. Perhaps it’s false causation, though my left shoulder is starting to develop some issues compared to my right shoulder (at least that’s what my doctor, er, massage therapist in Thailand, told me), and I can’t help but think it has to do with all the years I’ve been carrying a laptop bag over my left shoulder. For what it’s worth my laptop bags are super heavy, but I think it has to do more with the “crooked” stance than anything else.
So I’ve actually started taking a backpack on some trips instead of a laptop bag. I’m not sure I actually have to explain the benefits of backpacks, as Dora the Explorer does a pretty good job of it here:
My change of heart is probably due to flying Alaska Airlines. They have an amazing 20 minute baggage guarantee, so checked bags always arrive at the carousel within 20 minutes of the door opening. Given that Alaska seems to start boarding their flights on average about 56 minutes before departure, I’ve found it’s more efficient to just check my bag and not have to get to the gate an hour before departure to secure overhead bin space. And when walking more than a few feet it’s always more comfortable to have a backpack than laptop bag hanging off your back.
So are you team laptop or team backpack?
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