Anyone have pictures of Crumpler 'Consid. Embarrassment'?

I'm trying to decide between the Manhattan Portage expandable messenger bag (14.5 x 11 x 4-9)
the timbuk2 commute (16 x 11.25 x 6), and the
Crumpler considerable embarrassment (16 x 11.8 x 6).

I've only seen the MP in person, and I thought it was exactly the size I was looking for - not too small, not too big and bulky. However, the timbuk2 and crumpler bags seem better constructed and have more/better pockets.

I'm mostly looking at the Crumpler, but my main concern is that it's too big. In my hours of searching, I haven't found a single picture of the Considerable Embarrassment, other than the bland shot from crumpler's website.

Does anyone have the considerable embarr. that could take some pictures of the bag from the side, back, inside, and most importantly, while wearing it? For all the good reviews crumpler gets everywhere, someone has to actually own one.

If no one does here, has anyone at least seen one that could describe how it looks, or how it compares size-wize to the MP, normal timbuk2's, or whatever else?

 

If you look on Ebay, a company called Photococan sells the Considerable Embarrassment for a good price and has nice pictures of the bag. I tried to find a link for you, but they don't seem to have the bag listed at the moment. Anyway, e-mail Lillian at [email protected] and tell her what you want. I am sure she can send you the photos since they have posted them and give you a price on the bag you want. They are incredibly reliable- if you don't like it, they issue a full refund (less the shipping, of course).
It has a very nice capacity and is only 28 ounces in weight. I can't take pictures of it- bought it for my daughter, who uses it daily for law schools (and having finals at the moment, so that is the last thing she will want to do). It holds a laptop and around 1.5-2 reams of paper (that was how it was described to me capacity-wise). She's on the shorter sode (5'3") and it doesn't look too unwieldy. We liked it cosmetically better than the Timbuk 2 and, if I remember correctly, it was close to a pound lighter.

It is a nicely constructed bag. It has a padded laptop compartment, with extra cushioning on the bottom. It provides adequate protection for somewhat careful useage. It is not a sleeve that you can toss the bag across the room, like I know some people are prone to do. If you take reasonable care the sleeve is fine, easy to access; I liked the velcro strap across the top, so if you don't close the bag, it is not an issue.

The bag itself closes with velcro and the clips, so if you are running (as from class to class) and are too lazy to hook the straps, you still get a good quick closure. The main compartment is a nice size, not annoyingly subdivided if you have bulkier items (like books). There are no external zippered compartments, so your MP3 and the like have to go in the inner zipper compartment. The strap has large hooks onto large D-rings, so you can attach a small pouch or something for your cell phone there if you want.

My daughter really liked the appearance- it doesn't look like a laptop bag, it looks like a messenger bag. Edges are rounded and the material is waterproof. The strap has a detachable cushion which matches the color of the bag.

I haven't seen the Manhattan Portage, but I looked at the link above. Is it actually a laptop bag- I didn't see mention of a padded sleeve? Also- if the back compartment is padded, there doesn't seem to be any flap over the top of the laptop. This might not matter to you- for our purposes, when the unit is being tossed quickly into a bag running to class, in and out of a bag all day long, I think having the laptop secured in its sleeve is nice in case the bag isn't securely fastened. Similarly, I wanted a bag that had velcro closure, because I know that when a laptop is going in and out of a bag several times a day the likelihood of always fastening clips greatly diminishes. Lastly, I didn't see a weight listed on the site. Weight was personally a big issue and to spend a lot to get a lighter laptop just to put it in a heavy bag (like the Tumi, for ex.) didn't make sense.

Anyway, hope that helped a little.

 

m61376 - Thank you for the reply, that was very helpful. I will email photococan and see if I can get some more pictures.

I found this website that has some pictures, but I'm not sure what to make of them. From the picture of the guy wearing it, the bag looks a little more square-ish (similar to, say, a purse), as opposed to the rectangular look I associate with mess. bags and briefcases. In person, did you think it looked more rectangular than that?

The manhattan portage bag isn't actually a laptop bag, but that isn't really a huge deal for me. I certainly do carry my laptop with me, but I usually go without it, so using my own laptop sleeve isn't too big of a problem. I don't want too much of the capacity taken up by an empty sleeve, either. My biggest problem with the MP bag is really the durability and lack of waterproof lining that the other bags have.

I'm in medical school, so I'm looking for a slightly more mature looking bag (will be wearing it with suits and ties and whatnot often in 2 yrs), which is what I like about the simplicity of the MP bag. Though if your daughter is about my age, the crumpler would probably work for me also. Thanks for your help.

 

It isn't square, but is somewhat rectangular looking without being overly wide. Some of the bags were a little overpowering in width. If you don't have a laptop in the bag, the sleeve will compress if you're carrying other stuff, so it is not a waste of space. As I said, I really like the fact that there is a velcro closure over the unit when in the bag.

It is not a business style bag, esp. since the colors are bright, but is not an immature look either (if that description helps). It is a really nice stylish and functional bag. Word of advice- you won't find yourself wearing suits/ties as much as you anticipate when you graduate medical school and this is a nice bag that will serve you well in school and through your residency.

It basically comes down to whether you want something a little funky or serious in style.

HTH