VSGO Camera Backpack Review: What a Cool Looking Bag!
Purchase Price: $143
CES Companion
I haven’t shot in the field since Covid-19 and I wanted a more versatile camera bag for the Sypnotix’s coverage of CES 2024. I scoured Amazon until I came across a really clean looking backpack that intrigued me. With an eye-catching magnetic buckle that is just as much for aesthetic design language as it is for functionality, was the VSGO camera backpack able to provide what I needed for the chaos that resided in Sin City?
This backpack is offered in three sizes by VSGO. I purchased the most compact version which is the 16L bag for $143. I find the VSGO bag to have a bit of a cyberpunk look to it. The clean black look throughout the bag highlights the matte shimmer of the aluminum alloy magnetic buckle. The thick composite fabric sheds off water relatively well. It’s quite easy to clean and the TPU canvas should be able to keep your gear from getting wet if you happen to get caught out in the rain.
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The magnetic buckle easily opens and closes the bag
Magnetic Buckle
As for the magnetic buckle, twisting it will unlock the cover for the overhead compartment entrance of the bag. The top compartment can be partitioned a couple of ways as the company advertises this to be ideal for storing gimbal stabilizers or drones. I kept my charging cables, portable batteries, and battery packs here so that I was easily able to charge my camera batteries while I was moving. There are elastic straps to organize cables as well as stretchable pouches that are perfect for portable hard drives and SSDs. It’s not a whole lot of space, but there is enough if you keep things nice and organized.
This 16L model does not open up all the way down from the center compartment. The lower storage area of the bag can be opened up from the left and right sides. Two built-in partitions can be modified to house camera gear and lenses. My configuration allowed for a DSLR and a zoom lens to fit on one side, with a mirrorless body and lighting accessories occupying the remaining allotted space on the opposite end. There are different ways to lay out this space, but realistically, this bag can hold the equivalent of one full sized DSLR camera and probably 3 lenses. There are elastic pouches that are quite deep along the window of the opening. While they do stretch, I found the pouch to be too loose as thinner pieces of equipment would slide out from here when I opened the compartment.
What DId I Haul?
Packing my gear up to film interviews at CES, I was able to bring just about everything I wanted. The only vital piece of equipment I left behind at the studio was my external camera monitor and the mounting arm. I couldn’t manage to include that and the batteries it uses into the bag with everything else that I needed.
I had an easy time loading and unloading equipment on the fly as I transitioned from one hall to another. When I review camera bags, the ease and efficiency of moving things in and out is something I care about tremendously. The VSGO performed well due to the rather simple layout scheme. There’s not much extra room to play around with. Everything is concise and straight to the point. There’s only one external hidden pouch on the front of the bag that I would say could be used for random things. Every other compartment has a dedicated purpose; like the two side cup pockets. I used one of them to house a reusable water bottle, while the other one stretched out to house my monopod. When buckled into the pocket, the monopod was rocksteady in place as I walked miles across the Vegas strip. There’s one last rear pocket that unzips to feature a large felt-padded storage area for a laptop. For a 16L backpack, you should be able to comfortably fit a 15-inch MacBook inside.
Lost On The Maiden Trip
The padding on the rear of the backpack offers decent support for the spine. I was able to keep this on my back for 5-8 hours in a row without feeling too worn out wearing it. My back was relatively cool too. My only gripe was with the shoulder straps that house the chest buckle. I rarely buckle my backpack across my chest as I find it restricting certain movements. Still, VSGO’s implementation of the straps were too easy to disconnect. You simply slide the buckles up and down the strap and they can shoot straight off the latch. There isn’t a locking mechanic or a lodging point at the end to keep it from coming off. Constantly taking your backpack on and off can put that strap in strenuous positions. I found myself noticing the buckle riding up when I would pick the backpack up off the ground. When I got off my flight, I realized I lost one half of the buckle. It didn’t even last through the maiden trip.
Who Should Buy This?
This isn’t the safest bag as anyone can discreetly rotate the magnetic buckle like a dial from behind you to open up to the compartment.
Aside from that shoulder strap design choice, I found a lot to like here on the VSGO backpack. They’ve even added beneficial things like a clip-on doohickey that was extremely convenient for me to tighten ball head mounts while in the field. This isn’t the safest bag as anyone can discreetly rotate the magnetic buckle like a dial from behind you to open up to the compartment. But if you can overlook the potential dangers based on your work environment that you would be using this at, the VSGO backpack actually provides great value. It’s a compact camera bag that looks aesthetically pleasing while also offering multi-functional storage in a concise format. I like the bag a lot and I’ll be using this as my main camera bag for the foreseeable future.
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!