Peak Design Everyday Messenger Review: Old is Gold
Retail Price: $153.97
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees and support our channel by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
The Basics
Now that generation two of Peak Design’s backpacks are front and center, we’re seeing quite a hefty discount on generation one products. During the beginning of the year, I purchased the Everyday Messenger Bag V1 for $99 brand new on Adorama. Since then, the bag has gone on sale numerous times thus warranting us to re-evaluate the product in it’s new market. At the MSRP of $220, I immediately bypassed the Messenger Bag V1 on my shortlist of work backpacks to consider even though it was an extremely handsome product. Now that the bag is routinely around half the price, this bag has quickly become a value steal.
Signature Features
Unlike other sectors of consumer tech that revolve around the continued evolution of chipsets, backpacks solely rely on fashion and material. They don’t become outdated based on the components inside like phones and computers. So when a new version of a product comes out, the old one is purely an aesthetic (sometimes ergonomic) upgrade.
My Peak Design bag is the 13 inch model in the signature Charcoal color. One signature feature of these first generation Peak Design is what they call the MagLatch. It’s this magnetic clasp that locks onto a 4 ladder lock plate. You simply guide the latch onto one of ladder steps and the magnetic pull will grab it. All you have to do after is pull the latch down slightly for it to lock into place. It’s that simple. The whole philosophy behind this is that you don’t have to look at the bag to secure it. This patented MagLatch is an instinctive one handed gesture that is by feel. I wouldn’t say this is a must have feature that dramatically trumps over a magnetic hole lock, but I have come to enjoy the simplicity of it.
The best feeling of a Peak Design bag is actually the feeling of the bag. I never worry about wear and tear because they’re just so darn well constructed. I won’t jump into all the marketing phrases they use, but this Messenger Bag and all other Peak Design products I’ve owned have warranted praise. They’re very durable and sturdy for a daily commuter bag. This bag is weatherproofed and without a doubt gives off a luxury bag aura.
Spacious in Size
As with most 13 inch messenger bags, you have a very compacted amount of space inside to transport your belongings. Whether it’s your camera equipment or miscellaneous office items, the way you tetris them into this bag is purely up to you. Camera bags are known for this, but Peak Design’s multi-panel origami dividers really do keep the bag shaped properly. What I mean by that is I’ve encountered many dividers that give way due to the content it’s withholding applying too much pressure against it. Peak Design dividers feel quite sturdy and hold their shape properly. I just feel more confident with these dividers performing their job. Interestingly, they’re quite flexible in how you adjust them despite how firm they are constructed.
I use this as a commuter bag with a b-roll roll camera housed alongside my on-the-go editing bag. Those two things take up the entire capacity. On the inside of the flap side, there is a zipper compartment that stretches all the way across length wise. It’s a shallow compartment that can fit a few cables or loose parts.
On the outside ceiling of the nylon canvas is a quick access zipper that lets you jump straight into the contents housed inside the bag. This allows for quick lens drops or camera swaps. The slit doesn’t stretch too wide so this ironically isn’t something I actually use much. I prefer to open the latch.
Inside the ladder flap is a secondary compartment wrapped by a zipper mechanism. This is where Peak Design has color coded charged and depleted battery storage. The green slots let you know those batteries are ready to go while the red slots let you know not to waste your time on them. As someone who does carry batteries around, this is something I’ve grown accustomed to and will miss on other bags that don’t color code slots.
On the outer side facing the user’s body, there is a zipper protected slot for laptop and tablets. It’s divided by a Velcro cloth divider. I personally use one side for my 13 inch Macbook Pro and the other side for paperwork, letters and documents. I find that this combination is perfect as the firmness of the laptop body keeps the papers from folding or crinkling.
An Attractive Buy
Without even going into detail regarding the proprietary benefits of being incorporated into the Peak Design ecosystem such as their camera anchor attachments, this bag already is a high level workhorse briefcase. I haven’t used a messenger bag as my main bag since college ten years ago, yet I found myself pleasantly surprised at how comfortable I felt going back to one. Everything about Peak Design bags scream business professional and I appreciate that every year I get older. For $100, I absolutely would buy this bag again in a heartbeat. The problem now is because of this bag, I’m tempted to buy Peak Design’s V2 bags at full MSRP!
Alex
Caught in between the conundrum of his fascination with retro and the future, Alex has a very unique taste in technology. Never one to follow trends like his millennial peers yet constantly desiring to get ahead of the curve, he sees technology like he does his other love: comic books. Always looking for the best value or a hidden gem, his collector mindset reflects on some of his favorite gadgets: the Moto X (2015), HTC U11 and the Google Pixelbook. If there’s a good tech deal out there, Alex is on the hunt!