Customer Reviews

Targus CityGear Netbook Case for up to 10.2 Inch Netbooks- Black and Grey TSM097CA

5 star:		(43)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I purchased this bag for my Asus 1002HA netbook. I looked at several other bags including the neoprene cases popular on Amazon and elsewhere. This bag fit my needs best - an all purpose netbook bag that can be used for business travel and storage.

The bag is well designed and the construction quality is superb. Padding is fine throughout and it features a divided sleeve compartment for the netbook and external DVD or hard drive, as well as a spacious front pocket area for a few accessories. There are also a couple of zippered pockets for flat items. Unlike many of the neoprene cases, which tend to be very tight, my netbook fits inside the Citygear bag perfectly. The computer is easily accessed, slides in an out without fear of scratching, but is also held securely.

The bag is very compact and lightweight. It's hard to complain about space in a bag designed for a netbook, but I wish it provided a little more room for the power brick and cord. I can get it in the front pocket, but it fills it up. Adding an external DVD drive for travel presents a bit of a problem. You can do it, but the bag really feels overfilled at that point, and I would fear something might get crushed. With all this gear, throwing in a couple of other things like an ipod and camera is out of the question.

Bottom line: I'd give it 4.5 stars if I could. It's as good as it gets for its size and I would buy it again, even with the space constrictions. If you frequently travel with external drives or lots of accessories you might want to consider something larger. But for traveling with just the netbook, mouse, and power supply, this bag is outstanding.

I had been looking for a small messenger bag that could fit both my iPad and the wireless Apple bluetooth keyboard for a while now. Everything I had seen previously was too small to fit both (even with the iPad with no case), or was just too big or way too wide. I had been eying this bag for a while, and decided to give it a try. It's perfect! It is a well constructed, attractive bag. It is definitely big enough for the iPad AND the Apple wireless bluetooth keyboard, even with my iPad in a leather folio case. There's even enough extra space for accessories, without the bag feeling like its become cumbersome or "bulky".

Overall, I would highly recommend this case to anyone looking for a great messenger bag for their iPad.

While I have a case for my iPad 2, I wanted a satchel or bag to carry it around while I'm not using it. My requirements were as follows:

* It must protect the iPad from drops and impact.
* It must have a latching top or zipper.
* It must have padded separators so I can carry my Apple Wireless Keyboard alongside the iPad.
* It must be wide enough to handle the Apple Wireless Keyboard (11.2").
* It must be smaller than a standard laptop bag.
* It must have a shoulder strap AND a handle to make carrying the bag easier (i.e. no "sleeves")
* It must look nondescript, and not advertise "Hey! I've got expensive gadgets! Come mug me!"
* It must NOT look like a purse, or compromise my manhood in any way.
* It must be lightweight.
* It can't be from Belkin (I have had way too many problems with Belkin merchandise).
* I'm not paying over $30 for it, either.

I looked around for a while, and tried a few different bags and carrying cases. I finally settled on the Targus CityGear, which fulfilled almost all of my requirements. SwissGear had a nice case, but they didn't have a shoulder strap or handle on it. Most other companies seemed to focus on padded sleeves, or jumped right up to cases for 15" laptops.

The CityGear fits my iPad snugly (even with the Targus 360 case on it), provides ample protection, doesn't add a lot of weight, gives me an adjustable shoulder strap, and is just wide enough to fit an Apple Wireless Keyboard. The build quality is quite acceptable, and the price was right.

It turns out that at this price point, there was nothing else that fit my requirements so well. The closest contenders were all built without shoulder straps, unless I wanted to get a pretty purple thing that looked like a purse for a teenage girl. Targus once again fits the bill for the men who want to carry what is essentially a purse, but don't want it to *look* like it.

Hey, it's a changing world! How else am I going to carry around my gadgets? I can cope with carrying the CityGear. It's more "satchel" than "purse" and has all the features an iPad or netbook owner might need.

I bought my Samsung NC10-14GB 10.2-Inch Blue Netbook - Up to 8 Hours of Battery Life with a neoprene sleeve (also a Targus) to protect it. I felt initially that I could keep it in my backpack which has a padded section for a laptop. This worked quite well for a few days, then I began to worry that my rather heavy nursing books might put too much pressure on the Netbook. I looked at and bought this case for several reasons:

- It fits the NC10 VERY well - even the sleeve had a bit of wiggle room, but the fit with this case is snug, but not too binding.

- The case feels like its quality - the handle and shoulder strap feel durable and able to put up with some abuse. THe bag is also nicely padded.

- The case, unlike the sleeve, has compartments for the AC power brick, cable, USB Flash drives, and miscellaneous papers. I can also put my Logitech V220 Cordless Optical Mouse for Notebooks (Scarlet Red) in the mesh pouch nicely.

- It looks nice - It's dark gray and black with some yellow highlights. Very tasteful, and works well on a casual as well as a professional level.

I may play with this case for a bit to see if I like carrying it with my backpack to and from school. One thing I DISLIKE about the case is that the shoulder strap is not removable. I would prefer to carry it like a suitcase while wearing my backpack. The strap gets in the way in tight quarters, but in some situations, you can hang it on a chair back to keep it out of the way.

Overall - high quality and very functional messenger bag for my Samsung netbook. Not perfect for everyone, but it does a lot right. Recommended.

I have been looking around to find a good mean to carry my ASUS Eee Pad Transformer tablet around and its Keyboard/Docking Station but not necessarily always docked. Most netbook carrying bag only have one padded compartment to put the netbook. I was looking for one which had two sections so that I can leave them undocked to quickly pull the tablet alone quickly (as opposed to pull the docked tablet, undock and then put the keyboard back in the bag).

Last weekend, I brought my Transformer and the keyboard dock and went shopping around for that perfect bag. I found the Targus CityGear Mini (TSM148US) and tried it. The form factor was definitively what I was looking for but one of sub-sections was a little tight. I still decided that it would work for me and that it might strech a little over time. Then, when I looked on Amazon, I saw that there was this model, the Targus CityGear Netbook Case for up to 10.2 Inch Netbooks (TSM097US), which had pretty much the same specs but was cheaper (always a good thing). So, I decided to try it.

I received today and quickly opened it. It is pretty much the same as the one I tried last weekend but the two sub-compartments are bigger. So, no need to strech them and they work out of the box. It is a great way to carry my tablet docked or not to the keyboard. The side pockets of the bag also offer enouch space to carry the charger (it is pretty small anyway) and also my Arkon Portable Fold-Up Stand (great stand for this tablet BTW).

So, all-in-all, I highly recommend this tablet. I had been searching for recommendations for the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer and did not find anything that stroke me. This is why I thought of writting this detailed review (and I will post pictures) for my fellow Transformer owners!

This is a perfect bag w/shoulder strap for my iPad and a number of iPad accessories, which I will list.

I can fit my (1st generation) iPad into the Targus case while my iPad is in a Simplism Silicone Case Set for iPad. I can fit it when it's in a PRIMA Car Seat Mountable and Flip Stand Lux Case for the Apple iPad. And I can fit my iPad into the Targus case when my iPad is in the aluminum Joby Gorillamobile Ori for iPad. And when my iPad is in either of these three cases and/or sleeves (the Simplism is more of a sleeve), sliding it into the rear inner section of the Targus case is easy.

When my iPad is in any of the cases/sleeves just mentioned, I can also fit my Apple Wireless Keyboard in the Targus case. And I can even fit the keyboard into the Targus case (when there's also an iPad in a case/sleeve in the Targus) when the keyboard is in a WaterField Designs/SF Bags "Keyboard Socket," which is made specifically for the Apple bluetooth keyboard, and which, as far as I know, is only available directly from WaterField Designs/SF Bags (easy to find via Google). I considered making a video to show this but it's easier to type, so I'll try to describe what I'd show in a video: The iPad in a case/sleeve is in place in the compartment in the inside rear of the case. (I specify "inside" because there is a mesh compartment with a Velcro opening on the outer rear side of the case.) I then slide the keyboard, naked or in the aforementioned Keyboard Socket, battery end up with the keypad facing the front of the case, into the Targus case. It slides in smoothly but the fit is on the tight side, but even with the keyboard in the Keyboard Socket, the fit is not so tight that I have to use any force. I don't know if the Targus case was designed with just this type of use in mind (and I doubt it was given that the tag attached to the one I bought from Amazon doesn't even mention the iPad, whereas the same bags at my local WalMart have presumably newer tags that do mention the iPad), but it's as if it was, because it's a perfect fit. But before I put both the iPad and Apple bluetooth keyboard into the Targus case, I go into the iPad's settings and turn the bluetooth function to OFF, for otherwise, even if the keyboard has been turned off, it is bound to get activated and turn the iPad on when the iPad is in the Targus case. (I don't care if the keyboard itself gets turned on, for the only way to prevent that would be to remove the batteries or at least loosen the part that holds the batteries in place, and that would be too much hassle.)

Okay, so I have the iPad in a case/sleeve in the Targus case, and I have the Apple bluetooth keyboard naked or in the WaterField Designs/SF Bags Keyboard Socket in the Targus case. What other iPad accessories, etc., can I fit without turning the Targus case into a lumpy looking thing?

At the risk of sounding like the Ronco guy ("I can fit this! And this! And you also get these knives!"), I can fit a lot more in the Targus. For purposes of this review I have my iPad in the Simplism sleeve (which is not the thinnest sleeve because of four hard raised silicone areas on the back of it) in the Targus, and I have the keyboard in the Keyboard Socket in there as well. And I can still fit the incredibly handy Arkon Portable Fold-Up Stand for Apple iPad in the front section of the Targus, as well as either the charger and charge/sync cable that comes with the iPad or the Griffin Technology PowerBlock for iPad and the Griffin Technology 3 Meter USB to Dock Cable (that's 9 feet of fairly thick cable, a lot thicker than the cable that comes with the iPad, and BTW it doesn't have to be used with a dock as it plugs right into the iPad, and the current price at the linked to listing is at least twice what you should pay), and there's still room for a capacitive stylus and a regular pen and a cloth to wipe the screen with. With all that in the Targus case it's still not lumpy. It's getting thick, but not lumpy. And even with all that in the Targus case, I can fit my reading glasses case in the zippered front outer compartment on the lid of the Targus case. And with all that in the case there's room for a cell phone and/or a Flip type camera. You could fit a few envelopes or papers in the mesh compartment on the rear of the Targus case without crossing the boundary into lumpy-looking-case territory. With all this stuff in the case the case is thick (reminds me of lunch boxes I had when I was a school kid) but not lumpy-looking (or lumpy-feeling, though with all of the above in it - including a cell phone, a Flip camera, and the 3-meter long cable - it weighs around 5 lbs.).

I've never owned anything with a shoulder strap that didn't keep sliding off my shoulder, but even though I'm a 6' tall big guy, the shoulder strap on the Targus case can be extended to a length that enables me to comfortably carry it with the strap on the shoulder opposite the side of my body that the case rests against. On me, with the strap extended as far as it will go, that leaves the Targus case resting against my hip below my waist with just the top of it above my waist, and for me that's an ideal carrying position. In this position I can also slide the case around so that it's halfway behind me.

While the shoulder strap is not removable (unless you cut it off because you never want to use it), it is easily tucked inside the case, even with all the stuff in the case that I list above, and the case can then be carried by its handle.

You can see sharp, clear, zoomable images of the Targus case at the Targus site (go to the site and search for the model number TSM097US; it says "download" below each of two icon-sized images, but when I click on those in the Firefox browser, it opens another window with a zoomable image; one of the images gives you a clear picture of the front-most section that I am about to comment on). The only thing about the Targus case that I think could be improved upon is the staying capacity of the zippers on either side of the front-most compartment. On the one hand it's nice that in order to access that compartment you don't even need to pull the zippers down but can just pull at the edge of the flap and the zippers will come right down, giving you total visual and physical access to the contents of that compartment, but I wish the zippers were tighter when in the up position. They haven't slid down on me, but with enough jostling (e.g., in crowded to the point of standing room only public transportation), I imagine that they could slide down, leaving the sides of that compartment exposed with the possibility of something falling out.

I'm very pleased with this case, for I finally have one convenient place to carry all my iPad related stuff in. (If anyone doubts that I can comfortably fit all the stuff I list above in the case, say the word and I'll post a short video to show that I can.)

Like the reviewer before me has stated, this bag is perfect for the iPad AND the Apple wireless keyboard. The other Targus mini netbook case model #TSM148US (found currently at Walmart/Best Buy) will only fit iPad and keyboard if you have the iPad in a very thin case or Smartcover, because the interior padded compartments are not equally sized as they are in this Amazon version (#TSM097US). I currently have my iPad 2 in the Targus 360 degree rotating case/stand, and it fits perfectly! The bag is made of good quality materials and seems lightweight/durable. I highly recommend this product! Amazon offers it at a price that can't be beat. Fast shipping too...I ordered mine on Weds, and it arrived on Fri.

I bought this bag to use with my IPad. I have the basic book style case I bought from Apple and I wanted a bag that was big enough to fit the IPad in the case. This fits perfectly, it does have a little extra room in case you have a slightly larger case on your IPad I would say maybe a half inch more in length. There is also room for me to carry my husband's Ipod and my MyFi device and the chargers for everything which is what I was after. I was looking for a bag to use when we went on trips that was small, yet would hold these three devices. This bag fits the bill and the price was right.

Case is very well made and fits the ASUS Transformer 101 and keyboard, albeit a bit snug. There is also room for a cell phone, some pens, two power cords, keys, and a boarding pass, etc. I use it for travel and sometimes to work. No complaints and it works better than my other netbook bag.

I spent a lot of time looking for the perfect "man bag" to carry my iPad 3g. Here's what I was looking for:

1. Small bag that is large enough for the ipad and a few other accessories.
2. Good protection/padding for my ipad
3. Inexpensive
4. Can be slung over one shoulder or on the diagonal across my body
5. Comfortable
6. Doesn't look like a female purse.

This bag meets my six criteria in spades. I carry it literally everywhere I go and I would give the bag six stars if I could. There are only two downsides I can think of. First, the two Apple keyboards for the ipad won't fit in this bag. (I use and recommend the discontinued Stowaway Sierra Bluetooth folding keyboard) Second, the bag is not waterproof. (I carry a ziplock bag in case of rain) If you have an iPad that you carry around outside your home this is the bag for you.