The Bellroy Campus Backpack
Bellroy products have featured a number of times on Leader of the Pack. I’ve been a long time admirer of their range and it’s been really interesting to chart their move from the items we put in bags to the bags themselves.
To date, Bellroy products have tended to be on the high end of the price spectrum so when I received an email touting their latest offerings as their “most affordable bags yet” I had to learn more.
The new range is called the Campus Collection and features six brand new products:
In this review, I’m going to look at the new Campus Backpack but their other new releases are well worth investigating too.
Not Just for Students!
As the name would suggest these packs look ideal for college students, or anyone with daily carry needs which includes a laptop.
As with many Bellroy products it comes in a range of colours and for once I might even be tempted to steer away from black — the ink blue version is catching my eye!
- Manufacturer: Bellroy
- Colours: Black, Olive, Red Ochre, Ash, and Ink Blue
- Price: £85GBP + shipping
- Available From: Bellroy
- Materials: Sustainable woven fabrics and leather
- Size: 50cm x 37cm x 8cm
- Capacity: 16 litres
- Weight: 650g
- Features: 15” laptop sleeve, quick access valuables pocket, key clip, comfort straps, back padding
- Warranty: 3 years
With a capacity of 16 litres it should be big enough for your daily carry needs but not much more — which is its intention.
Bellroy consistently does a great job of the “contents flat plan” (above) which is the perfect aid to working out if the bag fits your needs without being able to see it in person.
Internal Features
Inside you’ll find a padded laptop sleeve as well as just enough room for items such as a water bottle, your notebook, and a pencil case. The front panel also has an interior zipped pocket which looks ideal for small items — the photo below depicts it holding a mouse and headphones.
You’ll also notice that the colour of the interior varies with exterior colour which is a nice touch.
External Features
The outside of the pack has, what’s billed as, a “quick-access valuables pocket with Aquaguard zip”. I personally find these external pockets useful for things like travel passes, keys (there’s an included key clip for security) and other everyday items I’d normally stuff into my jeans pocket.
The back of the pack is padded for comfort, as are the straps. There are also some leather additions including the zipper pulls and the Bellroy logo on one of the straps.
Overall this looks like a very attractive and well-designed daypack. At £85 it’s almost half the price of the Classic Backpack Plus with many of the same features.
You can purchase all items in the Campus Collection directly from the Bellroy website.
Originally published at leaderofthepack.blog on October 19, 2018.
