Marmot Slate Tote Travel Bag

Secret pockets are excellent Read more

I spent a lot of time looking for the right bag. I wanted a shoulder bag that wasn’t leather that would be slim and protect my laptop. I take this between office and home. Sometimes to client visits. It’s not sloppy, but also not overly formal. And if it’s not waterproof, it’s water resistant enough to keep papers and my laptop safe through occasional rain or snow when I’m walking. Read more

There are some things to really appreciate about this bag. It's deep, with many pockets, zippers and otherwise. I can slip my whole arm through the padded handles (although it is a fairly small looking clearance) and wear it on my shoulder (I can't speak for meaty arms) and it is lightweight and enclosed with the zipper top. You can fit a lot in there and protect your goods from the elements. For work, where I will be leaving it in a somewhat cluttered and small room, it won't hurt the bag if something spills or the Marmot itself falls. It looks pretty rugged. I am a nurse and have to wear scrubs, but I could fit a change of clothes like jeans and a tee in there if I want to change before I leave. But there are features which I don't like, which, day by day, now convince me that it is a 3.75 star product. First, my pet peeve is inferior zippers. I thought Marmot had a good rep, but I may be confusing it with another company. Any product (with a zipper) worthy of praise should have a quality zipper that doesn't snag or fail half the time by ceasing to zip. Here, the hardware just isn't sleek, and that is a big no-no. It is probably stable, because once it zips it feels and looks fairly firm, not about to rip at the seams. But the zipper isn't smooth--it's a metal that feels half-rusty, and too small. At least there is a pull tab. The bag is black on the outside and grey on the inside I wish it were even a lighter color, as it is so deep. It makes it harder to find my stuff. I would prefer if the interior is a lighter shade, like sand or beige. However, this may not be a problem for others. The well part is deep and will widen if I manually do that, but when it is filled and you are looking inside, it is more like a bottle than a bucket. There's nice design with the different size compartments and padding and even a place for your pens. An iPad would easily fit on the inside or in the exterior large slot. My other complaint is that the exterior canvas-y material is a lint magnet. I put my wool sweater next to it and the next time I picked it uptake Marmot bag looked ratty. And it isn't easy to brush off. I will have to get some tape out or a lint brush of some kind. But it's obvious it will happen as soon as you can say that four letter works, lint. If the material was less like a sponge for dust and dirt that would improve it immensely. So, I took off 1.25 stars for the lint and especially the zipper. As far as the interior color, that is just my preference and I won't fault Marmot. But please, get a nicer zipper and a lint-repellant exterior! Read more

Great size, top zip. Perfect for traveling! Read more

Great !! Work bag. Holds huge clutch wallet, laptop, notebooks, pens, makeup pouch, water bottle. It's fantastic. Sooo many compartments. Yet not bulky at all! Padded straps, marmot quality. Excellent bag. Read more

- See my pix for pocket measurements - Made in Indonesia - Hand wash cold, mild powdered detergent, do not bleach, rinse thoroughly. Line dry. Do not iron or dry clean. - Outside is all polyester, inside is nylon - Handles about 8.5" long and padded all the way around - Inside the small zipper compartment is a 5" nylon ribbon lanyard with plastic clip - Main compartment zipper goes full across, just a pinky-sized hole at the tail end I might be in love. This is almost perfectly me. If it was cobalt or crimson, maybe a royal purple, it would be perfect. Note that the inside is lined in a lighter olive-ish color. I have a pet peeve about black linings because you simply can't see things well inside, especially the deeper it is. I don't like to swap purses. I really only use one. So when we travel, I put extra stuff we may need on the trip in little canvas tote bags. That could get a little annoying, trying to remember what was in which bag when needed, but I really didn't want to use a duffel or such since it would just be a pile of stuff inside to sort through. This is fantastic for me. Plenty of pockets to put smaller things in, enough pockets I can sort of categorize which items go in what pocket. A larger main area for well larger things. By good timing, I did another wildlife transport a couple of days ago, and this fit right in. It's about a 4 hr drive, way out in the boonies, so I like to be prepared. Just totally perfect for me. I won't ever be transporting a laptop or tablet in it, but the pocket layout would accommodate that (though I would include your own padded sleeve). Great expansion, looks low-key cool, good handles, good pocket layout - the cheap plastic clip on the lanyard does detract some, but I'm still going 5 stars. I take the handles to be handles, not shoulder straps, but they're long enough I think most people could use them over the shoulder. Don't forget to use the Smile.Amazon.com address - It's an Amazon program where many things you buy every day will generate a small donation from Amazon to the charity of your choice. Info here: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/chpf/about/ref=smi_se_rspo_laas_aas Read more