National Geographic NG 5162 Earth Explorer Medium Backpack

by National Geographic

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 7 x 17 x 4 inches ; 4 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 4 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000FJ2OSM
• Item model number: NG 5162
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (52 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: June 17, 2003

Product Description

The Earth Explorer Medium Backpack (5162) will hold hiking equipment, personal items, and photographic/video gear. Its intricate design provides an optimal solution for photographic equipment storage without compromising space for hiking gear. 1. Lower photo padded compartment holds a camera/camcorder and accessories such as lens, flash unit, batteries, cables, charger, etc. This compartment features a set of modular dividers that will allow you to customize the bag to your gear. 2. Upper personal storage compartment opens with a large pull-tight flap and will hold all of your personal necessities such as food, clothes, books, etc. If necessary, the division between upper and lower compartments can be removed to create one large storage space. 3. Rear padded compartment will hold a laptop and accessories. These items are accessible through the main compartment or via a side zipper. 4. Multiple external pockets and pouches will accommodate many items such as stationery, wallet, binoculars, cell phone, etc. 5. Special connecting points and included straps allow you to tie on more gear such as a walking stick or tripod. 6. Advanced harness system is designed to allow ultimate adjustment of its padded, ergonomic shoulder straps, ensuring the perfect fit for each individual carrier. 7. Two designated pull out side pouches for water bottles can also be used as anchored supports for a tripod or a monopod. 8. Quick-snap buckle for easy access to your equipment. 9. Rain cover to protect the entire bag and its contents.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great bag for 13" Laptop and Small DSLR Kit, July 27, 2007

By 

J. Boutilier "Jim Boutilier" (Thornton, CO United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: National Geographic NG 5162 Earth Explorer Medium Backpack (Electronics)

The manufacturers description of this bag is pretty accurate EXCEPT for the comment about being suitable for a 17" laptop. Maybe their LARGE version of this bag would be, but this MEDIUM version is only suitable for 12-13" laptops.

For those curious about dimensions:

- The exterior dimensions of the bag are about 19"h x 14"w x 8"d. This is a soft bag so depending on how full you pack it, it can be a bit (several inches) smaller or bigger in all dimensions. The dimensions I gave are with the bag packed reasonably full but not stuffed. So for you frequent fliers, this can usually fit under the seat in front of you if packed correctly and will fit in the overheads of even small aircraft.

- The laptop compartment is accessed through a 13" zipper opening so if your laptop is very thick or over 13"w, beware. My 13" MacBook barely fits through the opening. Inside the compartment itself is about 15"h x 10"w x 1.5"d and it seems reasonably padded.

- The camera compartment is about 8"h x 11"w x 3.5"d and has enough room for a small DSLR with lens, a couple extra lenses, a flash, and a few small accessories. Again this is a soft bag so depending on how you pack this section and other sections this section can be a bit bigger or smaller. It is well padded and reasonably versatile with velcro on padded strips that can form up to 6 compartments of various shapes and sizes. I have a large section for Oly D-510 w 18-180, two med compartments for 14-42 and 45-150 lenses, one long compartment for FL36 flash and all cables and stuff, and one small compartment for charger and batteries and memory cards.

- The Main compartment is about 9"h x 12"w x 5"d with a drawstring and flap closure that allows it to be considerably shorter or taller.

- There are also seven external pockets. Two are hidden pouches on the sides that when folded out serve as bottle or tripod holders then there are five others in various sizes that hold a lot of little odds and ends. The bag also feature various tie down points and a pretty good harness system. It even includes a couple straps for the under-bag tie-downs that could be used for a larger tripod, small sleeping bag etc.

All in all I am very happy with this bag. Seems compact, good quality, fits all my stuff, and looks good.

49 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good Camera Travel Pack, Misleading "Laptop Compartment", October 18, 2006

By 

KRM (Bangkok) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: National Geographic NG 5162 Earth Explorer Medium Backpack (Electronics)

First, I'd like to say that this seems to be a pretty quality bag and has a lot of little touches that are nice. Personally, I was looking for a decent laptop bag with a design that fit me. So, when I saw that this bag could hold a 17" laptop as well as camera stuff and accessories I jumped on it. The market for 17" laptop bags is pretty shallow if you're looking for something that isn't styled for the business set or the college set. The chink in the armor is that while every other manufacturer seems to have understood "holds 17" laptop" to mean that a bag holds a laptop with a 17" screen, BOGEN apparently thought that the phrase meant that the bag must hold a 17" long laptop. This is a problem as my laptops (Inspiron 9300 & e1705) don't fit in the laptop compartment on the back and neither will other 17" laptops.

The bag is quite attractive though, as mentioned, and with the camera folded section removed, the laptop fits in the main compartment, so I am considering hanging onto it. It does a great job of holding my digital camera gear and other various little electronic travel items (power adapters, iPod, earphones, etc). I very much wanted to post this review to warn others that the marketing here doesn't match the reality when it comes to the laptop part of the literature. If this isn't an issue for you then, by all means, seriously consider this bag.

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great bag, little pricy, July 14, 2008

By 

Gregory Rodgers "www.gregoryrodgers.com" (China) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: National Geographic NG 5162 Earth Explorer Medium Backpack (Electronics)

The Good:

I am a travel writer/photographer and this bag is one of my favorites - it is tough, the canvas material feels rugged, and it has an appeal (especially for travel) above the standard brightly colored, nylon bags. It looks and feels old-school, as if you should throw it on and take it to a safari or something. In fact, it has metal rings and straps for customizing your own "gypsy" pack if you want to clip on carabiners or such. Also, there is a strip on each side of the pack that accepts locking US Army ALICE clips (you can get at any surplus store) so that you could clip on extra pockets, first aid, or even a canteen.

The contents inside are well padded and protected. Unfortunately protection = a little extra weight over other systems. I like the fact that it comes with a nice pack cover to protect everything in case of rain. The shoulder straps are extra wide, which seems annoying at first, but it does help make it more comfortable when it is heavily loaded with laptop and SLR goodies. There are loads of small pockets and places to tuck things which is a blessing for carrying spare batteries, cards, etc.

Now for the bad:

This bag isn't perfect. For starters, it is huge! Way bigger than I thought that it was based on the pictures. Unfortunately a lot of the bulk comes from the material and protection, because you really don't have that much room inside. My 4LB travel notebook fits very tightly inside and you barely have room for a sandwich in the top of the thing. The canvas will make your back sweat through on a hot day for sure, not good when you are doing event photography! The SLR compartment has velcro but the customization is limited to only a few options, the velcro does not completely pull free. My D40, SB600, 18-200, and 70-300 pretty much fill it up.

I get lots of response from this bag because of the nice logo on the back. People ask if I am shooting for NG when I am backpacking.

My advice is to use this bag for its intended use. If you do nature photography, hiking, travel writing, etc - buy it! If you just do events, are a student, or pretty much just do urban photography - pick a lighter option made out of more modern materials that won't make you sweat!