Bellroy Tokyo Messenger Bag Review (Beautiful, but enough laptop protection?)

[@Nomads.Nation]

Do you want to help me build a game-changing backpack? 👉🏼 nomadsnation.com/building-a-backpack

[@AboutThings_byTarif]

THE ENTIRE WORLD AARON! That's who.

[@Nomads.Nation]

that could check out

[@mjharders]

We hate when the measurment is in pounds🤣But seriously, below 1kg is typically expressed in grams in Australia.

[@Nomads.Nation]

Ah that’s good to know! Ignorant American strikes again 😂

[@ChrisW81105]

Hahaha Aaron, my man! I was going to leave a cheeky comment about the grams ;) but some people beat me to it. You made your channel even better when you included litres when describing water bottles. Love this bag! If only messenger bags didn’t F up my bag when packed out and for long periods or time. Cheers, Chris

[@Nomads.Nation]

ha thanks Chris

[@corvus917]

This kind of feels like Bellroy's more messenger-style approach to what Alpaka did with the Bravo Tote. While I can appreciate Bellroy's aesthetic sensibilities, I feel as though Alpaka did this type of bag better at a lower price, twice over if you include both the Bravo Tote and the Elements Tech Brief Pro.

[@Nomads.Nation]

well said!

[@goldiepr]

Aaron great review as always ! .... what are our thoughts on the laneway totepack ? pretty much a lite totepack with a laptop sleeve and some different materials but havent seen you review either

[@Nomads.Nation]

Thanks a ton! I don’t have the Laneway yet so can’t say for sure, hoping to soon

[@jesusnunez1735]

Which one do you recommend? Bellroy Tokyo work 20L or Tokyo messenger 18L? Looking to buy one not sure which one to go for.

[@Nomads.Nation]

Tokyo Work Bag all day

[@jesusnunez1735]

@@Nomads.Nation thank you! Love the reviews, and your production team! Keep up the good work!

[@Nomads.Nation]

@@jesusnunez1735 thank you so much!

[@kaci0098]

I bought this bag last month and returned it in 2 hours. At this price there are way more better alternatives like timbuk2, alpaka, and aer. I noticed that they're still using the same loops on the Bellroy Tokyo workbag, which are not reliable and durable; there are multiple negative reviews about these specific loops, I'm surprised they did not upgrade them! Also, a laptop, an iPad, a 750ml water bottle, a sony xm4, a paperback, and other bits and bobs can easily hit the weight up to 4kg, which makes this bag unbearably uncomfortable to use, not to mention the two teeny tiny connectors!

[@Nomads.Nation]

thanks for sharing!

[@allysonsherwood4870]

can you pleeaaase review the bellroy lite totepack

[@Nomads.Nation]

It’s on our wish list!

[@evelynemarcil]

Do you plan on reviewing the Bellroy Lite Totepack?

[@Nomads.Nation]

not on our radar right now, but I'll add to our wish list

[@oscarmejia5901]

Hi Aaron! I’m going to Europe in the fall can you suggest a personal item backpack for those cheap airlines?

[@Nomads.Nation]

Hopefully one of these should work - kzbin.info/www/bejne/iqXKqmVtnLp-frssi=U-xQsLuI_D7Rp1ao

[@oscarmejia5901]

@@Nomads.Nation you’re awesome! Looking at the Able Carry 13

[@Images_of_threat]

6:26 what bag is inn this clip here???

[@Nomads.Nation]

Mopak Urban Backpack

[@Jdgoldf]

how does this compare to the tokyo work bag

[@Nomads.Nation]

Aesthetic aside, I much prefer the Tokyo Work Bag - it's bigger, and has much better access points all around

[@mohammedfaiisal]

Waited a while for this one. As I have a 14 inch macbook. Currently have the tomtoc sleeve with handle. That's nice and compact

[@Nomads.Nation]

I’ll have to check it out

[@elanthys]

To quote a certain KZbinr I heard once, Grams and Kilos go together like Tacos and Tequila 😄

[@Nomads.Nation]

sounds like something I'd say haha

[@HelloPengyou-j4i]

Hi! Huge fan of the videos. I've been looking into a pack called the Jansport Odyssey. It seems really feature rich and is also very reasonably priced (80 on Amazon), but I can't seem to find any review on it on KZbin. It seems to compare well with packs like the NF router. Would definitely appreciate a review if possible! Thanks

[@Nomads.Nation]

we'll def add it to our wish list! (but keep in mind it's a very longg wish list)

[@kennethh8540]

Rest of the world measure bags in grams 😂

[@James-zy4nc]

It’s obnoxious the Bellroy site doesn’t localize. Like if I’m in the US, I don’t want to see metric.

[@kennethh8540]

@James-zy4nc yea they should have considered 4% of the world's population when they list their products and give both imperial and metric measurements 😂

[@Nomads.Nation]

I’m based in Hong Kong which uses BOTH systems so that might help make some sense of it. Good to learn how other countries do it!

[@JBBell]

Canada measures products in grams, but we give our own weights in pounds. Nothing makes sense here

[@Nomads.Nation]

@@JBBell 😂

[@unfi6798]

BT is a Scrapbooking Bag.

[@Nomads.Nation]

😃

[@krisk.4935]

this feels like a downgrade from the System Work Bag that is essentially being replaced by it

[@Nomads.Nation]

I haven't reviewed that bag yet so can't say for sure...

[@Christopher-today]

Hey Aaron, Great review as always but I’m going to to finally say it. Bellroy has gone from a wonderful, scrappy, dare I say fair priced company providing innovative products to a bunch of designers playing with themselves and getting off on their “quirky” designs and “innovative” material. All the real feature innovation is gone, every bag has serious missing components and the pricing is STUPID. I was such a huge fan of these guys, they made my favourite small laptop briefcase years ago along with other products I love. Now I’m basically disgusted by them. Do they even test the products in real world use? I’d say no. Sorry for the negative comment but it’s about Bellroy not your coverage. They’ve become the Apple of bags. People buy just because of the name. Such a sad outcome from such a great start. Cheers, Christopher PS. Be careful if you want to put a padded sleeve on your 14” laptop. The way Bellroy sizes their pockets I’ve found any addition to the laptop dimensions (specifically a Mac product) will usually cause the laptop not to fit. Like I said, no real world testing. Sizing exactly for a specific MacBook tends to leave a ton of other laptops millimeters too big to fit. So stupid. PPS. Bonus question about your Alpaka Totepack review. Do you think you could fit a hoodie in the front pocket while having a tech pouch in the main pocket?

[@Nomads.Nation]

thanks for your comment Christopher! You aren't alone in feeling this way, but I will say it depends on the product for me. Do I think this is their best product and the best price? No. But some of their other newer bags have still been blowing my mind such as the Desk Caddy, Venture Ready Sling 2.5L, and Venture Sling 9L. They don't always hit it out of the park, but many times they still do (imo)

[@Christopher-today]

@@Nomads.Nation those 2 slings are amongst the incredibly few things they’ve done right so I’ll give you that one but by in large their offerings have become weak with practically everyone missing something core while being overpriced. I’m willing to debate this as a long time fan turned disgusted customer. I was part of the Flight Bag debacle and their dumb a55 suggestion how to fix it. I’ve bought so many products hoping they’d live up to the old Bellroy standard only to be disappointed. I mean why do most of their bags have almost no padding or false bottom and yet the laptop pocket is sized such a sleeve makes it basically if not completely unusable. They really also need to stop saying it’s compatible with a 14 or 16 inch laptop and be honest - it’s sized to fit MacBooks and if you don’t have one then throw the dice as to whether it’ll fit. If they want to essentially cater to just Apple people then say it. I’ve recommended bags to windows/linux laptop users in the past as well as those with hard shell cases on their MacBook only to have them need to return them because of Bellroy’s sizing decisions. Heck there’s lots to like about this messenger. I’m actually considering buying it (call me a hypocrite) but at it’s price, with its poor laptop protection and NO back pocket I’m just not sure how I can as much as I want a messenger like this. And don’t get me started on the lack of back pockets on most of their slings and other bags. In today’s world it’s an essential feature, especially for slings but no they’d rather add some “innovative” feature they can up charge for than something basic and useful. Oh and who the heck puts a zipper on an internal laptop pocket. I guess it’s another “innovation”. I mean yeah a zippers so much more useful than real padding or a fuller false bottom. I want to still love their products but what gets me the most is once you use them you realize no one there has done any real world product testing. It’s all form, no function outside of a couple of products that slipped through the circle jerk of design leads. I’m never this negative but Bellroy has just eaten away my last nerve as a longtime fan, customer and as an idiot who’s been burned recommending them 1 time to many. Just look at their current catalog and prove me wrong. The misses so out-way the hits these days. imo anyway. ;) As always I love the work you do and have mad respect for your actual engagement with your community. It’s a pity Bellroy wasn’t so engaged. Cheers, Christopher

[@Christopher-today]

Hey Aaron, An update… Bellroy is totally dead to me now… I took a chance and ordered the messenger but first I reached out to Bellroy support and asked if I could fit a laptop with a sleeve around it in the less than padded laptop compartment. I specifically asked about Bellroy’s 2 sleeves and was assured that all their sleeves will fit their laptop compartments. What a joke. Got the Light Sleeve and even without a laptop in it there’s NO chance it’ll fit. They don’t even support like products across their own line. Needless to say the overpriced bag and sleeve are going back and I’m urging everyone to be extremely careful when buying a product from this company until they get back to what they were when they started and not this company that’s living off their past and name. Untill then they’re dead to me. Christopher

[@Nomads.Nation]

thanks for your feedback Christopher! Just to clarify though, you are able to return it without any fees?

[@Christopher-today]

Since I went through Amazon (in Canada it’s easier) yes I can which I suppose it’s a small conciliation.

[@Skynet6009]

Grams and Kilos because the world doesn't measure in inches and pounds.

[@James-zy4nc]

There are certain products (like bags) that are typically measure in imperial units, regardless of where they’re sold.

[@kennethh8540]

@@James-zy4nc erm...no?

[@James-zy4nc]

@@kennethh8540 erm… yes? Do you really think Aaron, a guy who reviews bags for a living, and LIVES IN HONG KONG, which is on the metric system, would call that out for no reason?

[@Nomads.Nation]

We use a mix in Hong Kong - I appreciate everyone’s perspectives though as I am learning a lot 💪🏻

[@kennethh8540]

@James-zy4nc that's because most of the bags he reviewed are US brands. Check out Alpaka, Bric's, Porter, Fjallraven etc and see if they provide pounds or kg 😉

[@zetazalazar]

Hey Aaron! I know you usually respond to every comment so, PLEASE I need your help ♥ I'll buy a travel backpack soon, will definitely do it through your links 'cause I've probably watched 300 hours of your content lately, looking for the perfect bag. PLEASE help me. I'll buy the one you tell me to (yes I take responsability for it). I'm traveling Australia, will soon go back to Argentina for a few months and will then travel Europe for 3 months. I carry a heavy a$$ computer with me (2kg gaming laptop) that I use for work, and I'm 100% planning to travel with just a carry on backpack, non negotiable. I don't really mind traveling light on clothes, I'm very adaptable when it comes to clothing. I'm 6"4 (193cm) so, being this tall, backpacks don't look AS BIG on me as on the average height man. I LOVE technology in general, organization, admin compartments, hidden zips, etc. Aesthetics isn't my priority. I like the tech look on the AER TP3 and PeakDesign styles, but I'm open to any style. My options after watching a lot of your videos are: AER TP3 (¿Is 35L enough for a three months trip to Europe?) PeakDesign TBP 45L (I don't and won't own a camera) Pakt TBP 45L (love the ecosystem with the ETB but it comes at like 800 Australian Dollars so not sure if worth it, but I'm okay with making an investment). Osprey Farpoint 40L (I care too much about my laptop for a front tech compartment). Tortuga is not an option as they're not delivering outside US. Is there any other option I might be overlooking? What do you think would be a good choice? Aaron if you read all this THANK YOU so much for everything you do and how much you help this community. We all agree on you being a top-of-the-game creator.

[@Nomads.Nation]

I think these are all great options! For me I like to travel as light as possible - for example I just did a 1 month trip to the US with a 22 liter bag... and loved it! So for those reasons if you travel light I think the Aer TP3 can absolutely work for your trip. You just gotta keep up with laundry and not bring too much stuff.

[@zetazalazar]

@@Nomads.Nation thanks so very much for taking the time to reply Aaron. Will get the AER then and will definitely keep on supporting your channel as much as possible. All the best!

[@ChrisW81105]

@@Nomads.Nationyou’re a legend for responding to all comments from your fans! Keep it up mate. Cheers chris

[@Nomads.Nation]

@@ChrisW81105 cheers Chris!

[@ParkerBinion]

$228 for that little thing? No thank you. My ITS Diacreet Messenger Dan Matsuda design blows this away at 1/4th the price.

[@Nomads.Nation]

Yes it’s expensive for sure

[@PhilippeHavard]

I just had a look at this bag, sorry but... so ugly! we really can't compare...

[@paraagshah4153]

So they made a much smaller, inferior version of the Evergoods Transit Duffle TD35 and costs much more. No, thank you.

[@Nomads.Nation]

I agree that this bag is very expensive, but I see no similarities to the TD35, they are completely different products

[@paraagshah4153]

@@Nomads.Nation I understand that they are in different categories and for different purposes. However, the main cavity side pockets for holding a bottle or umbrella, the support material for holding the main cavity access open, and overall design make it appear just like a miniature version of the TD35, for a different purpose.

[@Nomads.Nation]

@@paraagshah4153 ok, interesting take

[@marcelogarcia5539]

Such a small bag should have *no* external water bottle holders. And about who measures weight in grams, I would say 95% of the world that uses the metric system. Why this obsession with the bottle of water? Do you people live in the desert? In general, you go from office to home, or you will work in some kind of Starbucks, where you can get water. Maybe a small bottle while you are in transit, but a 1L is absurd. Also, 1L is 1Kg extra of weight.

[@Nomads.Nation]

lots of people love their water bottles. We recently polled our community on it and here are the results - kzbin.infoUgkx_j_kvFqwcBy3GeWAiNIBXR0QqZ0WGw8C