Customer Reviews

MobileEdge Mobile Edge - 17.3-Inch Alienware Orion Backpack - for Notebooks (ME-AWBP2.0)

5 star:		(40)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Dimensions:

20.25 Inches Tall

15.5 Inches Wide

7.5 Inches Thick

Colors:

Black mesh all over

Front compartment is a black matte plastic finish.

Alien Head logo is a solid metal button almost. Clearly very easily scratched.

Weight:

2.92 pounds

I'm extremely critical when it comes to comfort, so I'm going all out here

Outside

The Front compartment of the backpack is protetected by a very durable shield. It feels a lot like a softer, but still quite hard, cellphone case. On the outside, their are two side pockets which open out to the side of the back. They are slim, but still usable. They fit a normal plastic water bottle great, with a slight bulge visible in the shield. I would plan on using these pockets to hold my graphing calculator, one water bottle, and headphone earbuds.

The zippers all over are made of solid, lightweight, metal, accented with the alienhead logo. They all slide nice and easy. The main compartment zipper goes all away around the bag, almost 275 degrees around. The bottom has too strong but flexible grips/standy thingers.

The padding that comes into contact with your back could definitely be called orthopedic. minimal near the spine for breathability, and pillowy cushioned around the lowerback, shoulder blade, and hip areas. The straps are lack luster in terms of cushion though. They are not however uncomfortable, just a little thin.

The phone compartment in the front holds an EnV2 and Blackberry Storm snugly.

The handle at the top is quite annoying. If you lean too far forward it bumps into your neck like someone tapping you quite hard to get your attention.

First Compartment

The first compartment is protected by the plastic shield. On that same side their are ten thin compartments meant for holding CD's. Not many people carry around 10 CD's barenaked like that though, so I'm going to put a one hundred dollar bill in each of them as placeholders.The top has a keyring.

On the opposite side, there is an MP3 holder, mouse holder, three loops for writing utensils, a backpack-wide mesh compartment at the bottom, and a padded zippered chamber hanging at the top. The MP3 hole is also at the top of this compartment.

Second Compartment

The second compartment is very simple. The side closer to the shield has a space wide enough for two Asus EEpc notebooks, or five college-ruled notepads.

On the otherside of the compartment, there is a mesh pocket wide and tall enough to hold two magazines without bulging.

Main Compartment

The main compartment is HUGE! The size of the entire backpack. It has a single mesh, plastic filmed pocket, that reads: "Checkpoint Friendly". It's for frequent flyers whos bags are inspected often, it opens easily. The sides of this pocket are lined with a fleece feeling fabric.

This backpack has space for two laptops and provides plenty of cushion. It includes a barrier to prevent cell phones or other wireless devices from transmissions, which can be a plus in certain situations. It also works well with the HP HDX18 laptops. There are better deals out there if you have a smaller laptop, but for larger laptops, I'd say this is the way to go. It's not excessively large or bulky, which is a plus. Some people might be worried about the gaming logo attracting attention at airports, etc. That might be the main drawback.

So far I've owned about three different types and styles of laptop bags. I've gone through a Targus messenger bag, a Belkin sling backpack, and now this beautiful piece of craftsmanship and comfort. I do have to admit I was a little skeptical about this bag and because it is a little pricey. I'm glad to say this bag has lived up to all my expectations. I own a Alienware Area-51 7700 which I retired a few years ago but was impressed on just how much room I still had when I put that monster laptop inside this bag. Even though the bag isn't for the Alienware but for my new HP dv7-2185dx which is not as big as the Alienware laptop but you will definitely have a lot of room to spare. This bag comes with all the bells and whistles, many pockets for all your needs. This bag is also sturdy and well padded in all the areas to keep your baby nice and comfortable as you travel or go to school. I do agree with one of the previous reviews about the back pack smelling but its not bad and will go away with use. It smells like its been inside a plastic bag but it will go away. I did look at a lot of different sized bags that would accommodate 17.3" sized laptops and this one is the only one that had the look and style I was looking for. All the other bags looked cheesy in comparison. After packing this laptop with my laptop, external drives, mouse, power cable, pens, pencils, sunglasses, and sketch pad I still had room enough to put a couple of books inside the bag. If you're looking for an awesome bag and are willing to spend a little more to get a little more, you should definitely buy this bag. I hope this helps!

Fits my new Dell AlienWare M17x system with plenty of room to spare for my other goodies. Very comfortable and cool. Easy to tote. You wont be disappointed.

I love Alienware's computers and this backpack reflects the quality that goes into the making of their laptops and desk tops.

Alienware is for serious gamers and computer geeks and this backpack reflects that mission. The pack fits two 15" or 17" notebooks. It contains lots of pockets for your MP3 players, a shield protected pocket for your cellphone and pockets to hold CD's, pens and more. There are also outside pockets to hold water bottles and other items you want to quickly access. The padding is high quality and will most likely protect your laptop through most normal adverse conditions!

Dimensions:

Exterior Dimensions 20.25" x 15.5" x 7.5"

Device Compatibility 19.1" x 13.25" x 3.0"

Weight 2.92 lbs.

And of course that cute little Alienware logo of the alien head on the front is the crowning touch.

I like a some of the advertised features of this bag - fold-flat, lots of room for the laptop and accessories. My main complaint is the way the straps are set up. There is no center strap to connect the shoulder straps to provide stress relief. The shoulder straps themselves are relatively narrow and not very padded. When fully loaded with gear (and mine always is) this backpack is painful to carry. I have had many other backpacks designed for the college / high school crowd (DaKine, etc.) that are far more comfortable. I also felt the front pockets were organized a bit oddly.

This bag looks great and can be zipped open for airport screening. For me, those are its only two positives.

I bought this to carry around my oversized ASUS G73jh. I have had it for about 6 months now and I love it. It made the trip back to Germany from the states no problem. It could easily fit another laptop in it as well. In fact it did. I brought my 15.4" laptop back with me in it as well. The styling is very nice and subtle. The pockets are secure and roomy. I couldn't be happier with this bag. Especially with how often I lug my beast of a laptop around. I am very satisfied with this laptop backpack and would recommend it to anyone who owns a G73jh. I have so much room now I don't know what to use it for. Construction is sturdy and laptop pocket really feels secure. Don't hesitate to buy this bag. Truly top notch.

I actually bought this backpack through Dell after searching around for a bag that would hold my M17x Alienware notebook which in size skews a bit larger and is quite heavy (but that's another review). I'm also a tech packrat, carrying random bits of work gear, books, gadgets and tools. I've given up on purses for day to day work and school, dumped my old laptop backpack, and the Orion is now my carry all for everything. Yes, it fits neatly into even the stingiest overhead airplane bins.

- Construction -

Well, made overall, out of 860 denier black nylon - tough and heavyweight enough to resist abrasions and everyday damage. As is the case normally with this kind of nylon, the most fraying you are likely to see is at the seams, if they are poorly done. I do have one damaged seam on a shoulder strap. The front panel is a rigid black material that has some give, but offers impact protection for gadgets in the front compartments. A black metallic Alienware emblem is embedded on the front. Mine is a tad battlescarred, but wearing well after almost a year of use. There is a heavy duty padded carrying handle on the top of the backpack, and the shoulder straps are padded and reinforced. The reinforcing straps are barely noticeable, but sometimes provide me with a spare place to attach things that clip on.

-Storage -

I'll work my way back to front. The heavily padded rear compartment is ideal for my oversized laptop, and a large plastic pocket with a Velcro strap keeps it in place. The bag is from Mobile Edge's ScanFast series: this compartment opens up completely, so all I ever do at the airport security line is unzip the bag and lay it flat to pass through the x-ray machine. Much better than having to pull out the laptop to place in a separate bin. The middle compartment is roomy enough to carry a second laptop (or the ginormous Alienware power supply), or lots of books, depending on how much your back can stand. There is a nylon pouch here with good padding, and a zippable mesh panel for corralling smaller items that might get lost on their own in the bag.

The front compartment is pretty busy with pockets and small item storage. The inside front has 10 nylon pockets suitable for tucking CD/DVD square cases. The inside back of the front compartment has a padded zippable pouch near the top suitable for keeping an MP3 player (there is a rubber headphone access right at above this to push your earphone cable through). Another Velcro secured pouch has a wireless security RF-shield liner for storage of another cell phone. I've not used it, to be honest, to know how well it shields RF. I just turn off my second phone. There's also a generic pocket for another small item and another area holds pens or large markers, and finally a mesh zippered area goes across the bottom of the compartment. Nice touch - a keyring is hung from the top of this compartment where I clip my keyring carabiner so it doesn't get lost at the bottom.

But wait... there's more! Outside of the bag, there are two zippered areas hidden in the curve of the rigid front panel, large enough to hold a small umbrella, pens or more small gadgets. On the side of the bag, near the bottom, a smaller zipper opens to reveal a mesh pouch pop-out. For a water bottle, I suppose, but more often than not, this is where my umbrella usually goes. My bag also came with a removeable cell phone holster of the same nylon (with embroidered Alienware logo) which attaches nicely to a shoulder strap and makes my phone handy rather than keeping it in the bag itself.

= Overall =

I've carried two notebooks/laptops, school books, two phones, a spare mouse, my wallet, makeup, umbrella, spare cables and a toolkit in this thing for about a year. The only problem so far was the seam on one shoulder strap that I intend to mend with heavy duty nylon thread. I'm very fond of this backpack, and find it comfortable to wear, even fully loaded and one one shoulder. It's a great investment for a large laptop.

This bag has all the bells and whistles you could ask for but seems not to hold up very well under constant use. I have had three of these bags for my M17xr2 in the last 8 months. The first bag failed by tearing at the bottom of one of the shoulder straps where it attaches to the bag itself. The second bag began tearing at the zipper for the main compartment and the tabs for some of the pulls for the zippers broke off. These seem to be made of cheap pot metal and are easily snapped off if you are not extremely careful. The third replacement is now coming apart at the seams for the secondary compartment along with three (so far) of the zipper tabs snapping off. Admittedly the Alienware M17xR2 is a hefty computer weighing in at about 13lbs. for the computer itself. But I would expect a 17" capable bag made with the Alienware logo to have higher quality and be able to handle their top of the line products with no problems. I have resorted to buying a Pelican hard case for this computer that has worked great so far and also provides a lifetime no questions asked warranty.

I bought this bag like two mouth ago. When I was using yesterday, i found the band of the backpack was broken.

I use this bag to bring my Alienware everyday. Now is done, i have to find another bag cause this is in bad quality.