Customer Reviews

Samsonite Silhouette 11 20" Spinner

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I love this luggage. I have it in several sizes.

A great surprise is the wheels. I had no idea how nice it would be to have wheels that turn completely around. It makes it 100 times easier to navigate--which is very essential for large pieces.

Another great thing is that this suitcase is made with lighter materials than most. Even in smaller sizes such as this, any reduction in weight matters as it makes it easier to handle. Especially if you are lifting it into an overhead bin.

The telescoping handle works smoothly and is very convenient and easy to use. The smaller handles help you when you are lifting it.

I would highly recommend this to everyone.

I would really encourage you to buy luggage with spinner wheels. Once you try them I don't think you will settle for less.

There is an inner pocket that is plastic to hold things that are wet. It comes with the quart size plastic container that the airlines approve for putting your liquids in. Another great feature that was a surprise is that the rear wheels are larger than the front wheels--the larger wheels aid in the ability to maneuver it as you are tilting it back and pulling it. That is not written in the description anywhere but it should be--again it is one of those features that sets this luggage apart from the competition so they should be advertising it. But I guess it is nice to get surprises to.

there is also a handle on the bottom of the luggage in between the wheels--it seems like an odd place for a handle--but when you are lifting something into the overhead bins, it comes in very handy as you can have one hand on that handle and the other hand on the top handle. Another nice surprise.

The Silhouette 11 Boston Bag and the Silhouette 11 Shoulder bag have a slip in their material allowing them to snuggly slip over the handle of this carry on so that you can easily make your way through the airport with 2 bags. Since most airlines allow two carry ons, but require the second one to it under the seat, these smaller bags make perfect accessories to maximize your ability to take things on the plan but also not have to deal with 2 bags--or those bags that go over the handle but somehow twist around and don't seem to stay in one spot--making it harder to maneuver. Amazons description of the Shoulder bag does not mention this--however, i have one, after doing extensive research, and it does have the slip just like the boston bag.

This luggage is worth every penny.

I purchased the silhoutte 10 (the previous model to this) about 3 years ago and it hasn't really shown any wear and looks and works great. In preparation for an upcoming vacation, i went to purchase the silhouette 10 again and discovered that it was no longer available and it has been replaced with this model. the biggest difference (other than the available colors) that i have figured out between the two models is that this newer one has the dupont nanotechnology that is suppose to make it more stain resistant. i haven't had this newer one long enough to comment as to if that is true, but my older one has never gotten a stain. The material used in these suitcases (and the previous model) is much stronger and durable than the material used in most suitcases.

As for the 22" and the 20"--supposedly the 22" is carry on luggage--however, it does not meet the carry on guidelines of all airlines so you could get stuck having to check it at the last minute and paying the extra charge to check it. Also, if you expand the 22" to put extra stuff in it, it will not fit as a carry on. The 20", on the other hand, should always be safe as a carry on with the current guidelines--even if you expand it with extra stuff. And, the capacity when expanded is just about the same as the capacity for the 22" non expanded. That is why I chose the 20" over the 22"--I want to be safe that I can carry-on the luggage on all carriers. (You can't rely on the dimensions given for the luggage as it doesn't seem to take into account the wheels--but airlines would add on for the wheels--which is one reason the 22" does not conform to all airlines. My 20" measures 43 linear inches (how airlines determine whether it qualifies) when it is not expanded or stuffed. When expanded, it measures 45 linear inches....still enough to work as a carry on.


Also, just to note that with the other sizes in this series--between the 29 and 26 there is much more flexibilty with the 29 as you can put a lot more stuff in it and yet it is sill very manageable. If i had to choose just one of those sizes, i would choose the 29. I have the 26 as well and it is fine for shorter trips, but i find that i use the 29 much more often than the 26. Most of my trips are 9-16 days long. But even with a 7 day trip, i prefer the 29. Now, the difficulty comes if you have a smaller car trunk. In a nissan maximum, i could fit 2 of the 29" along with 1 26" but pretty much nothing else in the trunk. Many people have smaller trunks than that when it comes to cars. It is nice to have the 26 available to me if i am going on trips of 7 days or less, but i personally wouldn't be upset if i had to use the 29" for those trips.

UPDATE 4/4/10: just to add another comment about this (or the 22 inch)--the spinner wheels are awesome--but it is also awesome to have 4 wheels. I hadn't really paid attention but we just went on a long trip and i had this and the boston bag packed very heavily. I started wheeling it through the airport like normal (where you lean it on the back two wheels). But it was really heavy (we put the heaviest stuff in the carry ons so that the large luggage would weigh less). So after my arm went numb i realized i could just stand it up, keep the handle pulled out, and wheel it along beside me on all 4 wheels--way easier than two wheels. And as i strolled through the airport watching everyone else pulling their carry ons, i was very glad i figured it out. To use it like this, you would have to have spinner wheels--but i think that all carry ons that have 4 wheels are spinner wheels (although i could be wrong).

I was concerned that the 20" Silhouette 11 might be too small, so I bought both the 20" and the 22". My fears were baseless, and it took me little time to realize that the 20" is what fits the bill of a true carry-on. I returned the 22", the only reason being size. The build quality and features on both models are almost exactly the same. The only real difference is the removable suiter that comes with the 22".

If you have never used a spinner before and are wondering how useful the four wheels are - all you need to do is spend 10 minutes with one. I have been using spinners for over 6 years now, and do not even consider buying an upright anymore. 4 wheels = fun + comfort. Period. Very recently I had to literally run across some corridors at Heathrow else I would have missed my flight. This 20" was running beside me and all I had was a gentle hand on it. Simply not possible without the four wheels. Also, the wheels on this differentially sized, with rear wheels larger than front wheels (2.4" vs 2.0" dia). That provides for easy maneuvering. Finally, all wheels have a double construction (see my images) that gives them a wider tread, which results in increased stability.

The build quality on this is very good. Clean, uncluttered look with enough but not too many pockets. The material has a rich black feel and it looks better in real than in pictures. The zippers are heavy duty and I had no issues stressing them with a tightly packed, bulging situation. The inner lining is high quality. The TSA lock provided handy. The top handle and side handles are very comfortable. I use the top handle often when I have to carry the luggage over a long flight of stairs or anytime when strolling is not possible. I had another Samsonite model purchased with the 20" and 22" (yes, I wanted to be sure since good luggage is essential to my travel comfort). The handle on that looked good. But when I put some weight in both, the Silhouette simply left the other model in the dust. It took less than 30 seconds of lifting to tell me that the handles on the Silhouette are a league above the other model.

Some reviewers have complained about (1) the 20" being tiny and (2) tipping over. Both claims are unfounded and born out of the reviewer's shortcomings on how to pack efficiently. The 20" was my ONLY piece of luggage on a 5-day trip to UK. Here is what I packed into the 20":
- 6 pairs of underwear
- 3 pairs of undershirts
- 6 pairs of thick socks
- 2 jeans
- 4 full sleeve shirts + 1 t-shirt
- 1 quart toiletries bag packed fully
- 1 14" laptop with power adapter
- 1 16 fl oz coffee mug
- a bunch of documents, say 40 letter pages (I was hoping to get work done, but it turned out to be wishful thinking!)
- 2 leather belts
- 1 wool full sleeve sweater
- 2 US to UK plug converters
- some odd ends

And my 20" did not tip once. On my return I had to use the 2" expander and my luggage tipped over once (or was it twice). But I could have avoided that very easily had I not needed to keep my laptop at the top of the main compartment. I wanted easy and repeated access to my laptop, else I would have placed it towards the bottom. Tipping over is nothing but weight distribution and center of gravity issue. If you pack such that the heaviest stuff is at the bottom, there is absolutely no chance of this thing tipping over.

The 20" very comfortably fit into the overhead bin of my AA flight. I noticed that other people had larger carry-ons and they had no issues with size. BUT, I have a hunch they might run into problems with smaller jets or some European airlines, whereas the 20" will almost certainly sail through.

Overall, very satisfied with build, size, and attention to detail. I would not hesitate to buy this again.

I have used this now for 3 trips to Europe in the last 6 weeks and it is great! It fits most overheads vertically, and if not no problem horizontally. The upright spinner makes moving through the plane isles a breeze and throught the airport quick and painless. Very well constructed. One draw back is that you can not fit a folded suit bag in this size, but I knew this when I bought it, I just fold or roll the suit or sport coat to fit. Thus far the ease of movment has enabled me to easily catch earlier connecting flights with in a 50 minute time frame upon landing. Very happy thus far with the purchase.

This suitcase may be well made, but it is quite small. It is a fair amount smaller than the other suitcases people are wheeling around as carry-ons in domestic airports (US airports allow larger carry-ons than European ones). The space inside gave me enough room for a weekend, but it was a warm weather weekend where I took mostly flip flops and swimsuits.

A big drawback is that it falls forward easily. If you expand the suitcase, good luck getting it to stand upright without falling over. The front pocket adds quite a bit of capacity, but adds to the distribution of weight in front of the wheels, making it less stable.

I really enjoyed how easily the wheels roll until I was not on a level surface and the suitcase rolled away from me, then fell over.

This bag looks great, and the spinner wheels look good too but it's just too big for its carrying capacity.

Website says this bag is 7.8x20x15. Measured internally it is 7x17x14 (and that's ignoring the rounded corners and the space taken up by the tubes for the extendable handle). By bundling I was able to fit in enough stuff for a 4-5 day trip (2 pairs of squishy shoes, 5 shirts, 5 tee shirts, 2 pairs of jeans etc).

More importantly, externally, when not overpacked and nothing in front pockets, it is 10.5x21x15. The extra width comes from the expandable zip which adds an inch (when not expanded) and the front pockets. The extra height comes from the wheels (not really a big concern since it is still comfortably below 22").

I bought this bag expecting something that was small but would easily and reliably work for carry-on in the states and in Europe. That means no wider than 9". Listing 7.8" when it is 10.5" wide is just lame.

The bulging front also means that the bag falls forward if the wheels aren't pointing in the right direction (ie so they are spun out towards the front, and since they spin in 360° that's hard to guarantee).

Ive used this a dozen times this year and its holding up just fine. The spinners are amazing you hardly feel like you are moving any weight at all. It is quite small, be prepared to pack light!

I love my spinner. Perfect for the heavy traveler. Holds a lot of clothes, and eases through airports. Never had an issue with it fitting in an overhead bin. The only issue I have is that when I put my laptop/carry case on top, it can get top heavy and easily tip--but that's more of the weight of my carry case, which often has 2 laptops in it. Highly recommended!

The 20" suitcase is well made and a good size for weekend travel. I recently took a 5-day trip and packed clothes and 2 pairs of sandels without having to expand the suitcase. Granted, I'm talking summer clothing, but it has ample space for a weekend trip. The spinner wheels are great and make it much easier to maneuver. Just beware of a slope--the bag will roll away from you.

A major complaint is that it tips over VERY easily--particularly annoying in airport lines. I only had a lightweight raincoat in the front pocket so it wasn't like it was overloaded in the front.

Bottom line, the 20" suitcase would be great for short trips if it just stayed upright.

Great carry on bag wheels fantastic, just the right size. Great bargin compared to other bags.

The photos on this page show the 22" model, not the 20". I looked in the product line packet they attach to the luggage, and there are the same two photos as on here, but they are labeled as the 22" not the 20".

I guess it's my fault for not doing the calculations, but I was expecting this to be the standard sized carry-on. This is much shorter, more of a square shape instead of rectangular. This size would be good for an overnight business trip, but it's definitely not big enough to take for a weekend getaway. I purchased this for my boyfriend, who is a very light packer, and this is not even big enough for him. I think I could fit the same amount of stuff in my messenger bag for carrying-on.

It's still a great quality bag, so I'll be returning this and buying the 22" model.