W3J Sleeve help.

I am now the proud owner of a W3J and would like to protect it from scratches.

I am curious to see what is suggested for these applications.
School back pack.
Travel Wenger Epoch.
I need a sleeve that is able to be used in these two situations.

Choices that I know of

Waterfield Laptop Sleeve, Tom Bihn Brain Cell, Booq Viper XM, and Sumdex impact guard
REI though does not look like it works well with my situation they do however make good equipment.

I would just like a snug fit and some protection. Any help and knowledge of an item would be great. Any others I might not be aware of please tell me more.

Thank You

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/search.php?searchid=415791

 

If your putting it in a backpack, check out REI's sleeve at REI.com... I love mine!

 

Do you think the handles will get in the way on the REI Aryding? I saw it but it looked like either in the case or the back pack it might cause a problem.

 

heh, I got my cousin to send me one from Hong Kong...its a no name brand black neoprene sleeve that fits 14.1" widescreen notebooks...fits his A8Ja perfectly...so I'd expect it to fit my A8Jm the same All for $14CAD or $12USD.

 

Where can I get one for $12 USD?
;-(
Does any one know if the W3J was supposed to come with a bag or was that a special at some point?

Are the Shinzas good?

 

No, they don't come with a bag. For $12 your getting a really cheap bag that won't protect your laptop very well. You might as well put a pillow case (or something like that) around it. It's worth spending $30 to get a good sleeve.

Again I will mention the REI bag. It has a front pocket that I can fit my AC adapter and bluetooth mouse in (and there's still room). And there's alot more protection then just a neoprene bag.

It doesn't have a problem in my bag, the handles are made out of the same fabric so they are quite plyable. The thing with the backpack is if you just want to get your laptop out all you have to do is unvelcro one of the ends and slide it out. I use a backpack with mine (actually I have two hydration backpacks, which are smaller then your normal school/day pack) and I have no problem with taking the sleeve in and out. If that's your problem then take the sleeve to the store with you when you go to buy a bag. Or if you already have one, post what it is on the forum and I'll try and tell you if it will fit fine.

I think that's what you wanted right?

 

Also the sleeve is great for adding a shoulder strap if all you want to lug around is your laptop!

 

Yes and I unfortunately live in a very small town no REI. For that matter not much of anything. I have a Wenger back Pack and the Wenger computer bag is for a 15/15.4 W notebook. I got it a little large for this reason that and I did not have much to choose from. In my pack I now carry a tablet and a huge battery the size of the tablet I think the room is there but just barely.
Yes I am getting the second battery for that reason so just the notebook goes at times.

 

Oops is the material soft on the inside and tough on the outside? I ask because sometimes I like to hiking and take pictures. I would also like it if it were water proof or resistant.

 

I don't know about waterproof but I'd bet it'd be water resistant. It's a tougher material on the outside, but not rigid.

It's nylon. So it's not waterproof, but I'm sure for what you need it's water resistant. Or you could get a waterproof bag like me. It's Ultimate Direction's Zoom Race Bag.

Too bad you don't have a local REI. Ordering from their website is just as good and has the same prices that are in the store. Plus you have the 100% satisfaction gurantee.

 

I think if I do not get just a slip cover that I may go with sumdex. But if the REI is really not bulky which it looks I may try it. It was not the handles that looked bad it was the silver strap clips. It also looks like it sticks out on the side? If they have a good return policy that might be just the ticket.

 

The clips are black and it's not "bulky" at all. The clips don't stick out either, they're hinges are sitting loose in the nylon so that they don't stick out like a sore thumb. If you want something that fits like a glove then go for it. I'd post pics, but I don't have my digital camera with me. Give me till next tuesday (?) when I get back to take pictures for you if you want.


Ohh hell, I think I might just do a review while I'm at it. Since I have been talking the sleeve up a lot.

 

I personally got mine from sfbags.com (waterfield). Its more expensive than other choices but it fits the w3j perfectly and is of very high quality. I definitely recommend them if you have a little more money to spend. I paid a total of 40(sleeve)+3(cali tax)+6(shipping) = $50.

 

I have to give the REI one thing I did not click on the open image. That does look pretty nice. I think it is an optical illusion. I thought it stuck up but that is nice that it opens on two sides. One for top or one for side. Looks like it should slide in and out pretty nicely. I think the sfbags is in the running as well. This is getting tougher instead of easier.

 

sfbags don't have shoulder strap clips and vertical and horizontal openings. Plus it's more expensive. I think the choice is easy

 

I forgot to mention that the sleeve will be placed in my Jansport backpack....so I just needed something to protect from scratches because the bag will take care of the rest.

 

I beg to differ. Sfbags allow you to customize the laptop sleeve in many ways.

Shoulder strap: http://www.sfbags.com/products/sleevecases/images/prod_sleevecase_detail_7_lg.jpg

Vertical/Horizontal Orientation:
http://www.sfbags.com/products/sleevecases/images/prod_sleevecase_orient_lg.jpg


You are right about the fact that its more expensive. However, you get what you pay for. Excellent quality. Perfect fit for your laptop (since they customize each sleeve to fit your laptop perfectly). And many other customization options to suit your needs. For example, if youre not using the sleeve as a standalone bag, why would you need shoulder straps?

I guess the choice might not be as easy as you put it. If you are on a tight budget, sfbags is not for you. But if you dont mind paying a little more for quality, I would highly recommend them.

 

Well the REI sleeve has both vertical and horizontal Orientation. Other than that I agree with you. It all just depends on what you want. Either get something customized from Sfbags or the REI sleeve. Either choice they are all good sleeves.

:decision:

 

OK now I was not trying to start a war. But if it helps I am down to sfbags & REI how do the dings and bumps handle in these bags? Basically what is the inside protection seem to be made of? Plastic paper rubber neoprene? The insulator layer. Money is a consideration. But tell me more please. Ouch like I want in the sfbags it is 95 smackers!!!!
This may sound rediculous but how much does the sfbags weigh? The REI weighs just 9oz. I ask because I have a shoulder with a problem and the less weight the better.

 

REI Sleeve is softer nylon (more resistant to be soaked from water). As for the insulating layer I have no clue (from the feel I'd guess a thick foam surrounded in thin plastic layer). Over all you'll have plenty of protection from both of these bags. Over all both bags are probably going to serve the same protection when or if you drop your notebook while it's in the sleeve.

 

The REI looks at his point the best!! I just wish I knew a little more about the sfbags. Aryding you are a pretty good sales person. The sumdex is very light but in turn seems not to be as protective the Tom Bihn seems great but too much extra weight. So battlemage whats in your corner? I will spend the money but water resistance and weight I can not find any information on sfbags. Found material but not weight.

 

One more thing, the REI bag fits the W3J like a glove vertically but has a little bit of room (2cm at most) horizontally. This really wasn't a big deal to me. I guess there is a perk to the custom bags, but at a price.

The extra space does help it slide in and out easier Hahaha... This is true

 

Well Battlemage never came back to finish the story??? I will more than likely have it in a bag of some sort. But for those times when just carrying the power supply and notebook maybe loose is ok if it doesn't pop out!!

 

Haha, no where close to that.

If you want to wait I'll post pics and a review on it next week. But my favorite thing is just carrying the laptop with my shoulder strap and sleeve. No extra crap to lug around!

 

That is actually a great thing when I have to go on the road now it is one big bag and sometimes another even larger one. The W3J and this smaller set up could allow for less than 1/3 the weight I normally carry. I think all the stuff I was carrying caused me to have an AC joint problem in my shoulder. But that was one heck of a heavy laptop. Dell XPS first Gen. Then I moved to an E1705 now I am down to the versatile W3J. I may wait but unless I can find some extra wonderful thing about the sfbags REI here I come. You really do not think it is loose enough to open when not in another case?

 

The velcro is very strong. Plus the strap clips and the little handles don't anker (spelling?) on the opening hinges. I feel perfectly safe toting around my W3J in the REI sleeve with the should strap. Just make sure you closed both sides before going somewhere.

 

That is now my only concern but if it is industrial strength velcro it will probably be fine. That is the only one like it I have seen. In the picture it looks thick but I think it is the way the lines run. I was looking at so many at the time that I passed it by for that very reason. REI usually has the best at what they carry so I am comfortable with that.

 

I put 20 pounds of weight in it a couple hours ago and the velco didn't even makes sounds when I toted it around

 

Haha. Sorry ive been away from my computer all day. Im not a sfbags salesperson (just a happy customer) so im not going to be upset if you dont get a bag from them The case weighs about 1-1.2 pounds. Its made of nylon and neoprene. It fits the w3j perfectly. If you can wait till next week, I can post some screenshots. (I dont have my laptop with me right now, using my old laptop temporarily) Here is a decent review i found:

http://macs.about.com/od/productreviews/fr/wf_sleevecase.htm

My issue with this debate is that ive never owned a REI bag nor do I know anyone who owns it so i feel like im missing a lot of information to make a real informed suggestion concerning both bags. On the other hand, not a lot of people own waterfield bags since they take one look at the price and run the other direction. All i can say is that im really happy with my purchase. Im sure that Ayrding will agree that whatever sleeve you decide to get, we'll both be happy as long as your satisfied with what you get. Afterall, thats the whole purpose of this "debate" isnt it?

 

Right now I am using a Sumdex inner sleeve 14.1'' which is a perfect fitexcept for that it is a bit taller than the W3j i am ordering a Zeroshock case from shinza.com. A lot of people have recommened it that.

 

What he said, we're not salesmen, we just love what we have. So I guess if you want screenshots and all that jazz you can wait till next week.

 

Thanks all for helping. I did decide to go REI but I may go with sfbags for my Dell E1705 if I can quit disliking it so much. sfbags would be perfect for that computer. The problem with my W3J is that it is going from back pack to bag and vice versa. How much that keeps going I do not know but at this time it happens quite a bit. So I hope it works out. It had handles in both directions. My big gripe now is they say it will be two weeks before it gets here. Or pay quite a bit more for it to be here a lot sooner. That bothered me but I will see when it gets here. The sfbags really might work out well though for the Dell if I can get it to stop giving me problems I will try to get the sfbags. It is larger and more bulky but the case swallows it. I was hoping you were users not sales people. Sales people are alright but users have exposure every day.

To the sumdex I did find one that looked ok but I was afraid moving it from one case to another It might slip. The two I was looking at had no handle or only one handle.

 

Too long to ship?! Where's the nearest REI in your town? Sounds like you paid for the standard 4-14 day shipping (I'm guessing here). It shouldn't take two weeks.

 

Yeah well I was not paying double to get it here 2 day. That was my next option. It seemed too high for shipping and too long for me. So I just took the reasonable rate. It was going to cost almost as much to ship two as it was to buy it. Oh the nearest is about 300 miles!!!!

 

Ouch, ohh well it should get their fairly quickly. I've got bets on next friday (if it's already hit the street).

 

I just sent them an e-mail. The difference was 6 bucks vs. 20? and up. So I chose obviously the lesser cost not thinking 14 days. I have seen very little take 14 days to travel the whole width of the country even by postal service. I do not think that they let me know it would be 14 days until after I clicked to pay. As you can see though the closest store is not so close. When I lived on the west coast I went there a lot but that was a 60 mile drive.

 

Hmm, $20 bucks is a little too much. They must include sand bags with that.

 

Well that was my thought maybe a brick or two to justify such steep shipping.

 

I hate the shipping/taxes part of any online checkout process, especially when (combined) they eclipse the price of the item(s) you are getting. I paid 6 dollars for ground shipping for my waterfield bag, and it arrived the next day. Then again.. i live close to SF so i lucked out. Let us know what you think of the REI bag once you get it.

 

Ok I just got it and it is terrible!!!! Just kiddng it seems great the only thing is on the end the bag itself is just a bit short but it latches with the velcro and seems fine. I got it the first day after the holiday. So excellent shipping for USPS. I ordered other stuff before this that still is not here THANKS UPS!!! It looks nice it is very tight fitting. I have no problem with the end being a little short the velcro locks it in. So does it fit the bag yes the back pack???? HMMM let me check. YES YES YES IT does. Aryding you are the man!! Excellent right color and everything. Aryding I got the smallest one which should have been the right size, should I have gotten a medium?

 

You could have, but it would have been a little big. Post your comment on the review please.

 

Maybe you could show the shortness side to side problem. I am ok with it but then others could see for themselves. A picture would help of the velcro only half gripping. But you did fine I think. I really like it I am still a little skeptical about the fit but it does not move so far.

 

I just bought a STM Rebound Sleeve from Microcenter for $30. It fits my W3j snuggly, its made from the same high resistance polyeurathane that the Zeroshock and the Impact Guard. Here's a link to the actualy company site, http://www.stmbags.com.au/rebound

 

Does anybody know how well the Incase Nylon Sleeve for MacBook Pro works for the W3J? It says it's "Compatible with 15-in. MacBook Pro, 15-in. PowerBook and 14-in. iBook models." They have them in a store here (at least for now) so once I get the laptop I suppose I could just run over there and see if it fits. I like the protection it offers, the "fur" on the inside which I imagine would do an awesome job of preventing scratches, the nylon exterior material and the fact that it has a shoulder strap (which is important). Plus it can be found elsewhere online for $39 so the price is right.

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Thanks!
~ Brett

 

Gidday mate

I too have a W3J, and searched everywhere for a sleeve. I hate carrying a carry-on bag and a computer bag when I fly, so wanted something I could put my machine in, then throw the whole thing in my carry-on to prevent scratches and dings. Eventually I found a Targus (Mod # TBS004-10) that is PERFECT. When I looked at it on the shelf it looked to small, but actually fits like a glove. $30 AUS. Money well spent.

 

Hey Aryding. did you see a big difference when you upgrated your ram to 2gb? im about to buy a 1gb dimm

thanks to answer me

 

Hello all,

I just got the REI sleeve...am I closing my W3J up in it right? The velcro barely closes.

I got the REI because it was highly recommended, but it just seems like it barely closes, and the corner of the notebook is exposed.

Thanks.