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Looking for a great bag for a netbook? Or something for your full-sized laptop? Look no further. I have had the Targus 14” Unofficial Messenger Bag and the 16” Crave Backpack for a little while, and I have written my full impressions below. Interested? Keep reading!

Targus Unofficial 14” Messenger Bag

The Targus 14” Unofficial Messenger Bag is a medium sized messenger bag, and it’s great for holding a netbook or a smaller laptop. The dimensions are 13.3” x .1.1” x 9.4, and according to Targus it can hold a 14” laptop. The exterior of the bag uses nylon material, and it feels great and it’s easy to clean. The front flap of the bag has two really, really strong magnets holding it in place. It’s a great design choice, it looks sleek and refined, and it’s still strong enough so the front flap doesn’t go flying around. After you get over the magnets, you’ll see two “quick access” pockets. It’s generously sized, and you could put a passport or a camera comfortably in there. The next part of the bag is what I call the “cables” compartment. Seriously, once you pull the two zippers apart, you’ll notice a whole load of small compartments. You have everything there, pencil holders, two bigger slots with a velcro cover, and a large zippered pocket for papers or cables. It’s generously sized, and if you like pockets and slots — you’ll love it. And the last compartment is where you put your netbook/laptop/iPad. It’s seriously padded and I wouldn’t worry too much about the protection your laptop is going to get.

So what are my personal thoughts on the Messenger Bag? It’s great for holding a netbook and accessories, or a smaller laptop and accessories. If you were planning to use this as a messenger bag to carry books or something, look somewhere else. Now that I got my point across, if you’re looking for a small and light messenger bag, this is definitely the way to go.

Targus Crave 16″ Backpack

So this is completely different from the bag above. This is a full sized, carry-it-all style backpack. It’s has a great water/dust/dirt resistant exterior finish which worked very well, and a water resistant bottom piece for peace of mind when traveling. On the official specs sheet, Targus claimed that it can fit up to a 16” laptop. Well, they lied and it fits my 17” laptop just fine. Along the sides of the backpack, there’s two small zippered pockets that can hold things like pencils or candy, but it didn’t fit a normal water bottle, which was disappointing. The Crave has two main compartments: One for the laptop, and one for accessories. The laptop compartment is seriously padded; it’s sort of like foam. A huge piece of foam. The accessories compartment is the biggest compartment in this bag, and it’s so big I put a medium-sized package in there. This is where you would be putting cables, and hard drives, and power supplies, but there’s aren’t enough separate pockets/slots for cables and accessories.

Thoughts on this one? Besides the small cable management issue with the “accessories” compartment, it’s great. It fits pretty much all laptop sizes, it’s big enough to carry everything you could ever need with you when you go out, and it’s rugged but manages to have a great look at the same time.

Conclusion

If you’re looking for something to carry your laptop in, this is definitely the way to go. They look great, and they perform exceptionally well, and it’s a quality product from Targus. The Unofficial Messenger Bag 14” retails for $49.99 at Targus.com, and the Crave 16” Backpack retails also for $49.99 at Targus.com. Did you pick up one of these bags? Let us know in the comments!

[Photo credit: Targus]