Customer Reviews

National Geographic NG 5162 Earth Explorer Medium Backpack

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

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.

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.

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!

I agree with other reviewers regarding the 17 inch computer sleeve claim made by the company. If you have a 17 inch screen laptop, this bag may not be for you. The company's ad is misleading on this subject. In my case I have a 13 inch macintosh laptop and it fits just fine. Other than this one flaw, I think this is a great bag.

Length:: 2:06 Mins

I bought the medium 5162 for my trip to Africa this summer. It says that it can hold a 17'' laptop-- it could, once it's in there. Unfortunately jamming my 15'' MacBook Pro in was a problem. I took the pack to a tailor and she was able to make a cut on the inside of the bag. This way, I can slip my laptop in from the inside of the bag or actually unzip it and use the side opening. It's hard to explain, but it is possible to do it without damaging the bag. When she was done, I could easily get my laptop in and out with no problems, it didn't look damaged in any way and it just cost me five dollars.

I've gotten a lot of compliments on it. It's a great backpack, it held two of my cameras, my laptop and books just fine. I even could stuff in all the little pockets, extra batteries and my plane tickets and documents. I loved the look and durability of the back so much, I even bought a smaller camera bag just for lighter trips.

Other than the issue with the laptop, it is a great laptop/camera bag by far! Like I said, it's easy to get the bag altered without damaging the canvas outside. It's an inside seam and it's really not expensive to do.

I bought this backpack for a European trip I had in the fall in order to combine my camera gear, laptop, and a medical machine (CPAP) all in one carry on bag to comply with the airline regulations. I had previously gotten the National Geographic NG-2475 medium shoulder bag, and use it as my primary camera bag. I really like the canvas styling of that bag instead of neoprene, and I thought the price was reasonable.

However, I was disappointed with the NG-5162, and ultimately had to leave it home and make do with the NG-2475 because my laptop (Acer Ferrari 3400) would not fit in the laptop sleeve, which I measured to be a little less than 13x9.5". I could put the laptop in the bag itself if I removed the dividers, but that kind of defeats the point of getting the NG-5162. The laptop in question has a 15" LCD, and I feel the specs lied about 17" laptops. Be sure to measure your laptop before buying this bag.

In addition to the major flaw, there were several minor design flaws that I might have been willing to live with if I could have fitted the laptop in:
1) There is no velcro except on one spot for the side divider which means it is inflexible for holding lenses, etc.
2) The top closes with a drawstring, and would likely let water in. In comparison the NG-2475 has a zippered enclosure to keep water out.
3) There should be velcro straps to keep the camera/lenses in the bottom compartment.

I have just received this bag, and after loading it, these are my first impressions:
The exterior is made of rough canvas and has a lot of small pockets, compartments, buckles and the like, so carrying extra personal gear is really easy, and it comes with two additional straps that can hold a large tripod to the bag's side. The padded harness is comfortable, but the straps are too many and too long, and can be a little messy.

The padded interior is spatious enough to accommodate two SLR camera bodies and some 2-3 lenses, and the velcro divisions, although not very customizable, are arrangeable to meet the height and width of most standard photographic accessories. The upper compartment can be merged with the camera section, and the divisions removed, becoming a pretty big compartment.

As many other reviews here state, the laptop compartment is NOT big enough to fit a 17" computer. I have a 14" iBook that barely made it through the side opening. Bigger computers may need to be loaded through the main compartment opening, that communicates with the laptop compartment.

A minor issue is weight (loaded with a laptop, two bodies, two lenses, a small table tripod and a small notebook weighed around twenty pounds), and a nice thing about it is that it does not look like the usual camera or laptop bag, so it won't draw as much attention from thieves (but please don't leave a bag full of expensive photographic equipment unattended).

This backpack is terrific at what it does. It will probably not hold every piece of equipment you own in it's lower section designed for holding such items, but if you wish, there are enough pockets to but in an extra lens or flash without any problem. The lower section is padded very well, and though there is of course movable Velcro walls, they seemed to be less mobile that I would like. Never the less, it works out well. My main problem with the lower compartment is how difficult it is to get to without stopping and placing the backpack on the ground, but I suppose must backpacks are this way.

As I mentioned before, there are a lot of spare pockets on this pack, six I believe, give or take. There is also a good size upper compartment, but it is by far not as large as the description makes it sound. It will hold a wind breaker and lunch, maybe a few other items, but if you plan on carrying a heavy jacket, that's about all you're carrying. There are straps all around the pack to put on tripods, monopods, hiking staffs, or whatever you need. There are also two retractable water bottle holders, that of course can be used for other items if need be.

The laptop compartment is, as everyone is saying, smaller than is to be expected. For me, this is not a problem as I use a 13" MacBook. If you are getting this assuming it will fit a larger notebook, stop. I can imagine a 15" fitting inside if you load it from the upper compartment instead of the side zipper, but any larger will definitely be pushing it.

Overall, the backpack is really good quality and very comfortable to wear around for the day, even with the laptop inside. I use it with about three lenses, and one on the camera (100 - 300mm, 50mm on camera, 18 - 50mm, and 55 - 200mm). I also have a flash in there and a digital camcorder in one of the pockets, plus filters, cleaners, and all that in other pockets. I also have a monopod strapped to the side, water bottle on the other, MacBook in the back, and it still feels great, with room left to spare.

Great backpack, worth the money, will last for years and years.

If you are like me, one of the most important questions you have when selecting a bag is, "How does it work on a plane?"

I have travelled with this bag stuffed to the limit a few times now and can happily report that it fits well both in overhead storage, as well as under the seat ahead of you. Security has never even batted an eye when I run this bag through. The last time I travelled I had the following in my bag:

* Dell 15.4" laptop with extended battery (Inspiron 1525)
* Canon 5D Mark II
* Canon 70-200mm 2.8L
* Canon 14-70mm 3.5L
* Canon 50mm 1.8
* Canon 28mm 2.8
* Speedlite 430 EX II
* Various filters
* Kata rain jacket
* Various other small accessories
* A Terrible Towel
* A Bogen carbon fiber tripod attached to the side with the loops *
* A Bogen pan head in the big knapsack compartment

I can't tell you how much I love the all of the pockets and rings. I have a Crumpler Karachi Outpost, but hardly ever use it because this bag makes getting to your gear so easy. The folds out pockets on the side are awesome for your water bottles as you spend the day hiking or site-seeing. I have hiked around NYC, Washington D.C., and Pittsburgh with this bag and wouldn't have changed a thing about the bag.

I will also add that the included rain cover is slick and easy to throw over the bag, buying you some time to get out of the rain. I would depend on it for an all day deluge, but most of us don't spend all day outdoors in the rain with this type of equipment.

Many people have commented about not having enough room for a 15" laptop. I usually put my laptop in the bag form inside the bag through the knapsack pocket versus the outside zipper pocket. Even with the extended battery, it fits nicely.

I am running out of space in this bag and have been considering the larger bag, but the reviews aren't so great about it. I might get it and modify the Velcro in the photo compartment.

* I usually detach the tripod once I get on the plane for ease of storage under the seat. I think you could easily leave it attached in overhead storage.

Some other reviewers have complained about not being able to fit their 17" (diagonal measurement) laptop into this bag. I can tell you that my 17" Acer laptop (which weighs an ungodly 9lbs) does fit, albeit barely. 17" laptops will fit, but I think the bag was intended for 15.4" or smaller.

Those who claim their laptop will not fit may not be aware of the top, inside laptop opening. This bag provides two access points to the laptop, one on the side and one in the top under a velcro flap.

I did manage to get all my camera gear into this, without using any of the top compartments. My gear includes a Canon Rebel XT w/ 18-55 lens, a 55-250 IS lens, a 50mm portrait lens, one flash, various filters and extra batteries+charger. The bag has straps on the bottom for a tripod as well as extra pouches on each side (which I'm currently not using).

The top flap snaps into place on the front. I had a concern with this thinking that lifting the bag by the handle (which feels very secure, by the way) would cause the snaps to come undone, but the bag is designed well. The handle is more attached to the back of the bag than to the front flap, so lifting by the handle feels just as secure as lifting by the shoulder straps.

I recently took this bag on a trip to Boston and aside from my camera gear, also packed my ipod, laptop + accessories, and a full-size hard-back book. It kept my camera gear safe during the flight while still providing plenty of room for my on-board entertainment.

Other reviewers have complained about the straps used on this bag (double-ring tension), but I have to say I like the straps on this better. These straps won't break where a plastic buckle would.

I wouldn't call it the perfect camera bag, but it's certainly a great bag for me.