REVIEW – For the past few years, I’ve relied on backpacks to carry my laptop and tablet when traveling. However, there have been moments when I found myself wishing for a quality laptop bag as an alternative. The Waterfield Designs Shinjuku Laptop Brief immediately caught my eye as something likely to last for a long time and that would look good in the random meetings and travel that I do from time to time. What I did not anticipate was a bag that was not only well-made and well-designed but looked as impressive in person as it does in the marketing materials.
⬇︎ Jump to summary (pros/cons)
Price: $379-399 (depending on size)
Where to buy: Waterfield
What is it?
The Waterfield Designs Shinjuku Laptop Brief is a lightweight-but-sturdy bag designed to carry a laptop, tablet, water bottle, and other various essentials for the modern worker. Available in multiple colorways, sizes, and materials, I was sent the large brown waxed canvas and chocolate leather version capable of carrying up to 16-inch laptops. The pockets and flaps are all magnetically clasped, the bottom and sides have additional hard foam padding, and soft fleece lining throughout keeps things from scratching inside. The water-resistant zipper and materials provide peace of mind for expensive electronics as well in case of rain.
What’s included?
- Waterfield Designs Shinjuku Laptop Brief
- Leather care card
- Detachable padded shoulder strap
Tech specs
Materials: 15 oz. Waxed canvas (or VX-11 Canvas X-Pac® on some colorways), Full-grain leather accents
Dimensions (on the large size reviewed): 17″ long x 11.5″ high x 4″ thick
Weight (on the large size reviewed): 2.45 lbs
Volume: 12.8 liters
Design and features
The Waterfield Designs Shinjuku Laptop Brief looks like a pretty standard briefcase from the outside, with some great styling flair to set it apart from the crowd.
The two large side pockets have leather accents that came with distressed marks (which you can reduce with a simple hair dryer, their included card has instructions on if you want a cleaner look, but I love the distressed leather vibe).
The rest of the bag (at least the version they sent me) is mostly made of “15 Oz. Waxed Canvas”, which is water resistant and stain-repellant. It can be re-waxed if needed, so it should last quite a while even with heavy use. Other colorways use “X-Pac® Canvas”, a lightweight soft canvas feeling material that is also water resistant and durable.
The other side of the bag (pictured above) has a slim pocket that’s great for documents, passports, wallets, or small electronics like your phone and/or earbuds. The only thing I’d worry about here is that it’s just magnetically clasped, so while it keeps things securely in place, it would probably be easier for pickpockets to access (though the pickpockets in Rome had no problem getting through zippers to my digital camera the last time I was there). There’s also an 8-inch slot to slide the bag onto a suitcase handle.
Speaking of handles, the nylon with canvas handles on top are comfortable and seem very sturdy.
Pictured above is one of the two outer compartments. All of the pockets have bright, soft cloth lining, and the stitching was good throughout the entire bag, except for the one loose thread pictured above. I pulled on it to make sure it wouldn’t unravel a seam, and it did not. It was easy to snip off, but when you’re spending this much on a bag it’s something you wouldn’t expect to make it through quality control.
The YKK zipper is high quality, and I love the zipper pull designs and shapes.
Opening up the bag, you have a large laptop slot, smaller tablet slot, large main compartment, water bottle holder, and three open pockets opposite the laptop holder. These pockets are a good size for smaller laptop chargers (like Macbook chargers), computer mice, and portable power banks. There’s a lanyard with a clip as well. The laptop slot has firm foam cushioning around the external side and all the way across the bottom. It does rest the laptop on the bottom of the bag, so you don’t want to throw this down on hard concrete with the laptop inside it, but for everyday use, it keeps it pretty safe. The water bottle slot accommodates up to a 3.5″ diameter bottle on the largest size (2.5″ on the small version, 3″ on medium). The water bottle can be about 9 inches tall, so my bike water bottles fit perfectly.
A padded shoulder strap is included and is quite nice. Carabiner swivel clips attach to the bag, and it can be adjusted larger and smaller.
The shoulder strap is nicely padded, so even with a heavy load, it rests nicely on your shoulder.
For testing, I loaded the Waterfield Designs Shinjuku Laptop Brief with what I usually travel with: a 14″ gaming laptop, 11″ tablet (similar in size to an 11″ iPad Pro, 13 inch tablets would also fit well), a water bottle, laptop power cable and brick, a travel power bank, and other bits and bobs. I had room to spare, and everything is so easily accessible and well organized that I genuinely look forward to traveling with this in the future. I have historically usually taken laptop backpacks when I fly, but going through airport security with a brief bag like this would be so much easier! If I was using public transport in a city, I’d also appreciate the carry capacity and form factor over a backpack.
Final thoughts
The Waterfield Designs Shinjuku Laptop Brief was even better than I expected from the website description and pictures. This bag feels like a premium item that not only looks great will last for decades. Every bit of it feels well-made and thoughtfully planned, and things just fit in and are easy to grab when needed. I love that the external compartments are magnetically sealed, it makes it so quick to grab and store things, while the internal compartment layout is great for everyday basics and travel needs.
What I like about the Waterfield Designs Shinjuku Laptop Brief
- Quality materials and premium feel
- Looks great
- Well-organized with useful compartments
What needs to be improved?
- Loose thread on one seam is disappointing at this price point
- Laptop storage rests the laptop on the bottom of the bag, and even though it’s padded it seems like a hard drop could damage the laptop. I prefer the laptop compartment to be an inch or so from the bottom with even more cushioning to prevent accidental drop damage.
Price: $379-399 (depending on size)
Where to buy: Waterfield
Source: The sample of this product was provided for free by Waterfield. Waterfield did not have a final say on the review and did not preview the review before it was published.
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