SwissGear - Commander USB ScanSmart Laptop Backpack - Black

I had purchased the SWISSGEAR 5358 USB ScanSmart Laptop Backpack - Gray Heather backpack months ago. And it was a solid backpack. One side strap was starting to tear and I wasn't thrilled with the inside pockets. While I appreciated the organization I didn't feel like it was in the right spot. As a result I purchased the Ballistic Stingray last month. The layout for cords on the interior is just a little different but makes all the difference for creating more interior space. I feel like I can pack more into the main compartment and I can stash cords and a battery charger in the laptop compartment without it bulging out. I was nervous about the color because I tend to stick to all or nearly all black. The online photos to me show a different gray than what was delivered. I was very happy with the gray that showed up. It's more of a steal or gray compared to what I thought might have a hint of purple/maroon. This is a solid backpack and I'm eager to travel more with it. So far it's been awesome for what I need. I've always liked this brand and style but this backpack so far is the best I've had.

Bought 2 bags for myself and my wife. Overall I like it just fine however the reasons it got 3 stars are:1. Its' stitching on a shoulder strap came apart and I had to get a replacement. It made me jump through many hoops contacting customer service having to cut labels which are sewn so deeply inside the bag you cant actually take a photo of the serial number easily. Then they send you a coupon to get a replacement. This took me over 2 months because I was travelling yet I had to mail in the labels ( which they could have asked me to cut and send them a photo of a cut out label)2. It does not have enough zippered pockets inside. . . most are with velcro but do not keep items inside only 1 zippered inside pocket. 3. Most annoying was that zippers on the laptop last compartment are soo loose that if you have them on top and are running ( which happened to me on several occasions) it opens up flat as if you are going through security at the airport and everything that is in that compartment falls out onto the ground! The on;y solution is to have both zipper handles to move to the bottom all the way which makes it annoying when you need to go into it quickly.

This backpack has everything I'm looking for plenty of pockets and features and the quality is nice also the only downside of this is the USB port does not work. I've tried two separate chargers with it and no luck. Was really looking forward to using that feature.

This is my 3rd Swissgear pack over the past 16+ years. I've had the Ibex the Synergy Pro and now this. I came back to the same brand b/c the others have held up great. I really like the way this pack looks which is why I chose it - but I am disappointed in the limited space. I don't understand how the website lists the volume of the Ibex & Synergy as 26 & 27. 5 but the volume of this one at 31. 4 - is that a typo? That was a factor in my purchase and there is absolutely no way this bag has more volume than those two. I transferred everything from my Synergy to this one and the Synergy had so much more space - I feel as though I am using every available spot in this one. The Synergy also had several more zippered pockets than this one. My biggest complaint after 2 weeks of use is that the front compartment zippers both regularly get stuck on the small piece of expansion fabric for the front pocket - It's a bad design. I wish the eyeglass compartment was bigger (I don't use it for glasses) I do like the way this one looks but giving 3 stars b/c this bag costs more than the others and I'm not seeing any reason for the higher price so far.

I bought this backpack for my middle schooler (5'5 130 lbs) and was very disappointed. The shoulder straps are quite wide and they rubbed on both his neck and his upper arms when his arms moved as he walked. The adults in the house also tried it on with a couple books inside and also found it very uncomfortable in the same areas as he did. This is not a nice fitting ergonomic comfortable backback. Also the zipper to one of the big compartments was really hard to open and close. We returned it. The return process was easy.