Manhattan Portage Wallstreeter Messenger Bag

For years I've been using a Tumi bag designed to fit a large laptop as my daily work bag + carry on. It's great for longer trips and provides excellent protection for your laptop, but it's overly bulky/heavy for daily use. I realized I could get by with a smaller bag, but wanted one that would still offer enough pockets and some expandability for travel. After doing quite a bit of research, I settled on this bag. A couple of weeks after purchase, I took it on a trip to the UK and Jerusalem. Upon return, I'm thrilled with the overall quality, storage options, and expandability. This bag not only has an expandable center section, but it also offers multiple zippered pockets on the outside and interior as well as two large snap-closure pockets on the front which will hold a kindle, phone, etc. It also has a secret feature which proved very useful: a zipper pocket on the rear opens to reveal two minimalist straps that transform the messenger bag into a backpack! Very handy under certain conditions. This was not only able to hold all of my carry-on items, but was big enough for two people's things on an overnight trip that included hiking and swimming. It also swallowed a lot of gifts on the return trip without complaint. Zip up the center expander and it returns to a nice daily use messenger bag. Build quality is very good overall. I highly recommend it! Read more

Well...it didn't come with anything cool inside of it but that's my only gripe. I mean, if I owned a bag company I'd put a mystery prize in every bag...a deck of cards, a scarf, whatever. Anyway, I thoroughly review EVERY product that I purchase. Its really a bad habit cause I spend way to much time shopping for stuff like socks. That being said, this was no different. I spent a few hours researching and looking at every shoulder bag I could find on Amazon and various other sites and in stores. I settled on this bag cause I liked the style, size, and the reviews were overwhelmingly positive and useful. Been using this for about 4 weeks and its very stylish, well-made, and it has a lot of pockets with zippers, buttons, etc. You can't go wrong with this bag and I'd be surprised if it didn't last me 10+ years. Read more

I originally purchased this bag in 1989! Before you could make it into a backpack. I loved it I used it loyally for almost 10 years ! Then it was stolen. So I decided to try other makers & bag styles. After another 10 years I went back to Manhattan Portage. Sorry to say that the bag has gone down hill. Minuses The 2 pockets under the flap are smaller and taper in at the bottom. The zippers are all not as "butch" which worries me but only time will tell. I'm glad that the expansion fixture is unchanged it was why I bought the bag 20 years ago and why I bought it again. The webbing underneath the expansion zipper was wider which gave the bag better shape both expanded and un-expanded. Pluses The new small pocket at the top of the bag is great for phone or mp3 player. I wish it was lined with a softer fabric. The strap seams stronger and better padded and the plastic clips have been replaced with metal (the plastic clips are the only thing that ever failed on my old version). I did the inflation calculation and the bag I got in 1989 would be about $160 now which I would pay if it was of the same quality. This bag is about right at $115. Read more

I bought this bag because I was looking for something that looked professional but also had the option to carry it as a backpack. I often walk long distances and I've found that carrying a shoulder bag quickly becomes uncomfortable, but once I get to my destination I don't want to be wearing a backpack, I want to look more professional. I searched high and low and this bag was one of the few that offer this option. The backpack straps are pretty simple and they are not padded, but I've carried it around quite a bit and it's surprisingly comfortable. The bag has quite a few different pockets, which has allowed me to create a good system for carrying my stuff, more organized than my previous bags. I also really like the expandable aspect of the bag. I've only expanded it once, but I like the fact that I can keep the bag nice and trim most of the time and only expand it when I need it. Other bags I've had have been too roomy and floppy when not completely full. While they have made a laptop version of this bag in the past, the bag is currently not designed specifically for laptops. There is a small divided area in the main compartment, though, that I've found fits my 13" MacBook Air perfectly. It could accomodate a thicker laptop, but probably not a significantly longer one. This compartment seems relatively protected and I don't worry about my laptop in there, but I suppose it may not be as padded as others might want for a laptop. There's also a large zipped compartment under the flap in front of the main compartment that I've found is great for carrying my iPad when I need it. And then there are two roomy pockets under the flap that are great for holding my power cord and other odds and ends. The open pocket at the back is especially useful for storing things for temporary and quick access like boarding passes at the airport. There are a couple of things, though, that keep this bag from being perfect. The first is that although I appreciate that the bag is made of very durable cordura, I really wish that they had added some smoother fabric to the side of the bag that goes against the body. It's made out of very rough fabric and has therefore caused some damage to my clothing. A brand new pair of pants showed some pilling along the outer leg from rubbing against the bag after just one weekend at a conference! As someone else noted, the two pockets under the flap (that I use for power cords, etc) close with a snap, which doesn't make too much sense since if you've got a number of items in there the snap often doesn't have something to push back against and is hard to close. I often just leave them unsnapped since the flap is over them and therefore they are unlikely to open. Some other closure mechanism would be better, though. Finally, although the bag has a generous number of pockets and compartments there are a couple of features that are surprisingly missing. I really wish there was one of those strings with a hook at the end for holding keys. All of my most recent bags have had this and it's really useful for keeping track of my keys and pulling them out quickly. Even more surprising, there doesn't seem to be a place for storing pens! I've figured out a work-around for this: there are two small zipped pockets in the divider in main compartment, so I leave one of them unzipped and put my pens in there with them hooked over the unzipped opening. But I'm really surprised that there isn't a dedicated pen location. In the end I'm keeping the bag and I've been mostly quite pleased with it. I just wish it was perfect. Read more

I bought this bag to replace the same bag I bought under the John Peters label in 1989. I was glad to see the bag was still made. I have used it as my standard "personal item" when flying for over 20 years and did not like the idea of getting used to another bag. This bag is bullet proof. Even though it was designed before laptops, it will carry a laptop just fine. Fits under the airline seat in front of you, even when full. The new style also has shoulder straps converting it to a backpack, which the old style did not have. Highly recommended. Read more