Slappa Hardbody Pro Case Review

by Kevin O'Brien

Briefcase style notebook cases are nothing new to the market, but those claiming to be fire resistant are few and far between. The Slappa Hardbody Pro is one such bag, that claims fire, water, and shock resistance, which comes at a bargain considering the retail cost is only $129.99. Read on to see how well this bag held up under the rigors of daily use, and the occasional dousing of lighter fluid.

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Features

• Fire, water and shock resistant xEVA shell
• Honeycomb frame for maximum shell stabilization
• 15" or 17" padded laptop storage compartment
• Stylish ballistix nylon finishing and comfort shoulder strap
• Dedicated compartments for storing laptop accessories
• Weight: 5lbs 11.1oz
• Price: $129.99

Build and Design

The Slappa Hardbody Pro notebook case is a semi-rugged case designed to safely carry your notebook and other accessories inside its protective xEVA shell. The outside shell is very rigid, able to keep it shape under mild or moderate pressure, protecting the contents if something heavier was dropped on it. The outside surface is also quite durable, showing only minor scuffs after being tossed around the office or thrown on gravel before being lit on fire.

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Build quality is top notch with finishing touches inside and out that give the case a very polished look. Inside, not a loose strand of string could be found, and even the areas where straps were riveted on had cloth stickers covering the exposed metal.

Notebook Protection

The Slappa Hardbody Pro protects your notebook from most of the elements, with a safe zippered enclosure inside the briefcase. Gravity is kept at bay with lots of padding, Velcro securing straps, and the rigid external shell that absorbs strong impacts and spreads the force along the exterior instead of directly at the notebook inside. Dust and light water is kept away from the notebook when the compartment is zipped shut. Last but not least, one of nature's most destructive forces (fire) doesn't even stand a chance trying to harm the contents when the case is closed.

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When I first read that this case was fire resistant, I wanted to find out to what extent it had been tested. It seemed that Slappa has had previous fire testing done to one of their CD cases on a BBQ, so I wanted to perform a similar test of my own with this case having a notebook inside of it. The test consisted of saturating the top of the case with lighter fluid, and lighting it on fire for one minute. Halfway through the test, we didn't think it had large enough ball of flames, so we doused it again with more lighter fluid. When it was time to put it out, we splashed it with a single cup of water, and immediately took temperature readings.

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Fire Test Video

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During the fire, the top surface reached temperatures in excess of 400F, peaking above 500F maxing out my IR gun. After the test had finished, the inside of the notebook case was a cool 60 degrees Fahrenheit, including the reverse side of the panel that was on fire for one minute. The notebook and magazine inside the case were in perfect shape, and no warmer from when they were first dropped in.

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The top surface took most of the brunt during the test, with a great deal of charred nylon and pleather. The key thing to notice though is the top surface did not sag, burn through, or melt past the very top layer of material. The only fatal damage it received was a partially melted zipper from where the paper was resting after it went up in flames. With a bit of work with a wire brush, and maybe a pair of scissors to cut off the melted top layer, the case would still be perfectly functional.

Conclusion

The Slappa Hardbody Pro is an affordable rugged notebook case that offers great protection to the contents strapped safely inside. This case held up very well against one full minute of intense fire (with an extra splash of lighter fluid), with only mild charring of the top layer of material. If the zipper didn't melt from my mistake of placing the burning paper torch, we would have one awesome gnarly briefcase to use on business trips.

Pros

• Looks awesome before and after fire damage
• Durable shell doesn't show wear under normal duty, only seems to attract dirt
• Non-scratching inside keeps glossy notebooks safe

Cons

• Zipper is not fire proof

Availability

The Slappa Hardbody Pro is available on the Slappa website.

 

This is hands down one of the most amazing laptop cases we've reviewed on this site. Other than the minor zipper damage this case was 100 percent usable after being in the middle of a raging inferno!

Kevin isn't joking when he says all you have to do is clean off the burnt top layer and the bag still looks pretty good.

If you're looking for a durable hard case for your laptop, this case is an excellent choice.

Edit:

I just received an email from the team at Slappa. They loved the video so much that they've decided to offer all of our visitors and regular forum members a 15% off discount code on laptop gear for the month of April. Just visit the Slappa website and use the code "notebookreview" during checkout.

Cool!

 

I have not used the laptop bag but I have 5 of their very similarly built CD cases and I have had nothing but good luck. They make a rugged dependable case.

 

Now that's a good laptop bag.

Thanks for the review guys ^^

 

Seems like a great bag and a great company!

Thanks for the review!

 

Wow... new meaning to the term "kill it with fire!"

 

Pretty awesome. I just wish I knew how much the damn thing weighed

 

lol...Thx for the hot review

Seem like a safe thing to do

Even better

 

Wow...I'm impressed. Fortunately I don't think I'll need fire resistence, but it's good to know that if I needed a fire resistant laptop case for some reason there's one out there.

Of course the general ruggedness would be more practically useful. Chances are if there was a fire my notebook wouldn't be in the case at any rate. Though I can't help picturing James Bond throwing a notebook through a towering inferno inside of one of these cases.

 

Pre or Post charring

Updated the review

 

hahaha... best case review I've ever seen. That video was great.

 

LOL, i heard someone coughing!

 

I think that coughing was coming from four members of the editorial team who were on site for the flame resistance test. I'm pretty sure all four of us have developed severe lung problems but we've still been coming to work

Seriously, that test put off a lot of smoke and serious flames. Don't try that at home if you buy one of these awesome cases for yourself.

Or ... if you do try it at home, don't blame us.

 

If I ever go to war i'm bringing this with me. Not for keeping the laptop in, to keep me in.

Seriously though thats one hell of a bag. Anyone who has flown Ryan Air in Ireland should have one of these to protect their investment from the luggage crews. They somehow manage to burn your luggage and set stuff on fire in a country where it's always raining and cold.

Great review.

 

*burns

Great review, thanks!

 

Great review! Kevin, you pyro . . .

Definitely one of the best bags I have seen reviewed. If I was in the market for a bag, I'd seriously consider coughing up the green to get one of them.

 

Weight: 6.05 lbs - 15", 7.7 lbs - 17"

 

Lol. Nice review.

Although I would wonder in what circumstance would we need a fire resistant case. If you have left your lappy in a buring building/car, it would definately be longer than 1 minute before flames can be put out. I doubt it and the contents would have survived that.

Now, the question everyone isn't asking. Would it keep a burning laptop without flames spreading outsite? That would be a more relavent application given the recent spat of self combusting batteries........

2nd test perhaps?

 

I see you have 4 laptops, want to lend us one for the test

 

I have a dead compaq you can use....

 

Ryanair. LOL! Its a terrible airliner...

Hmm. That just reminded me. Maybe I should ride Ryanair and send my Apple MacBook Pro which I barely use (and that I hate) in that case just for the kicks. ^_^

 

This is one very impressive company! I ordered a Hardbody Pro case today online, and used the "notebookreview" coupon to receive the 15% discount. Soon thereafter, I received an e-mail from the company offering a free Slappa notebook sleeve, a $39.99 value, to be shipped with my order.

Not only was the offer of the free sleeve impressive and unexpected, their customer service and courtesy on the phone was excellent. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend patronizing this company.

If their Hardbody Pro case is as good as the way they treat their customers, this case should be a real winner!

 

Just one question:

How much can you fit into the case in addition to the laptop? Its kinda hard to judge from the photos. For Instance, it looks like theres a large pocket... would it be big enough for a notebook cooler?

Thanks, and great review. I kinda like the charred look.

 

A few comments after receiving my 15.4" Hardbody Pro Case -

I certainly like the build-quality, and quality of materials used - it's a high-quality notebook case, and it's obvious care went into the manufacturing process.

Storage Options include a long Velcro-sealed pouch on the inside of the top of the case. This can hold such items as the notebook's power supply/charger and AC line cord, Ethernet cable, and other ancillary items. There's another Velcro pouch (smaller, and vertically-formatted), I believe possibly designed for a cellphone, but it could be used for other notebook accessories, including PC (PCMCIA) cards. A business card storage section is included for quite a few business cards, and a couple of elastic band loops for pens, pencils, or USB thumb drives. And, a quick release hook for car keys, etc. This is all beneath the top or lid of the case.

Another storage area is on top of the lower-section's zippered separator. This storage area is apparently designed for file folders, as it's covered by a large Velcro-secured flap, but I'm sure could be used for other storage as well.

The area designed for the notebook storage is very well padded, and the notebook is secured by a wide Velcro strap. If your notebook is smaller than 15.4" with this case, you could use the extra side room to store a mouse, etc.

The shoulder strap is excellent with very strong metal attachments to the case, and a well-padded shoulder pad.

Now the potential carps, especially for those who are experienced "road warriors," or "airport/airplane warriors" -

There are no outside pockets, or file folder sleeves, for flight itinerary info, etc. on the back of the case - or the front which is by design.

The case does not stand up by itself on its feet with the notebook in the case - it will quickly fall over. It's very unstable, and you really must lay it flat or lean it against something. In fact, without anything in the case, the case is still rather unstable when resting on its feet on a flat concrete floor.

There is no strap on the back side of the case to slip it over the pull handle of a roller-board carry on. IMO, this is an design oversight, but I'm not sure how they would implement this on a hardbody case. I suppose it could be done.

The zipper pulls for the zipper access to the top of the case are made of metal (which is good), but too long (2 inches). The zipper pulls interfere with access to the carry handle, and may just meet their demise in an airplane's overhead bin. I would have preferred a much shorter zipper pull. Of course, this is just my opinion, as are all of the aforementioned observations.

This is a quality well-built hardbody notebook case, backed by a company who really appears to care for its customers. It's my opinion that they'll listen to their customers' comments and make the ergonomic improvements in this case.

 

Guys

About 2 months after this and one other product review came out, we were bombarded with orders and were quickly out of stock on both the 15.4" and 17" models. Well, we're now back in stock and as a way to say "thank you" to all you guys I'm going to do something I've never offered to do before. Only for notebook review.com visitors/readers I'm going to offer a very special discount code.

If you are interested just send me a mail ([email protected]) and I will set up a discount code for you (I'm not publishing the code or amount here because I want to keep it so it's really only for those in this forum).

I really appreciate all the great feedback I've received from many of you (including Jerry). It's a giant help when we hear back from users!!!

One other thing to note (if you take the time to mail me)....we're now developing a new version of the HardBody PRO laptop case so if you have ideas/upgrades you would like to see in the V2 model, let me know.

Thanks!

Dominick

 

Does it offer any advantages over the pelican hardcases, eg., the pelican 1495 ?

 

Yes curious as this seems to get suggested as a Pelican alternative...

Next question - why are your bags extremely hard and/or expensive to get in Australia? lol Thats the biggest reason for not buying one (I like your backpacks), even the CD/DVD cases are expensive and they are available at a couple of Aussie retailers