Ristretto: Lighter Than Air

[Editor's Note: This post was written on Oct. 5 but posted the next day.]

I'm writing this from a field where high school girls are playing soccer. Sunday is taxi day, where I miserably haul around my daughter and her friends. I love her but look forward to the day when she's old enough to drive a car and can do for herself what sucks up so much of my time. Today's destination: Soccer game where two of her friends are teammates.

GOT A TIP OR RUMOR?

The day is less miserable because I can carry along a portable office—MacBook Air and Sierra Wireless Compass 597 EVDO modem. The setup, including power supply and messenger bag, weighs slightly more than a half kilogram less than the MacBook Pro. Did you get that? Even with the laptop bag.

I'm using the Ristretto Messenger by Tom Bihn. It's simply the best laptop bag I've ever carried. If you own a MacBook Air or Lenovo ThinkPad X300, buy this bag. It's worth the 90 bucks. If you've got or are getting a small Sony VAIO or a netbook, consider this bag as the carryall. While designed for notebooks as thin as Air, Ristretto should accommodate pretty much any ultra-thin notebook with 13.3-inch display or less.

At a time when Americans worry about the economy or jobs moving overseas, Ristretto and its sibling products are refreshing reminders that innovation and manufacturing still thrive on these shores. Tom designs the bags, which are produced at a factory in Seattle.

There's a European feel to Ristretto's design. I vacillate from understanding my wife's experience carrying a purse to feeling like I'm boarding the Eurail for the Netherlands. There's something not American about this very American-made bag. The Ristretto's vertical design, over-the-shoulder strap and asymmetrical flap contribute to the distinctive appearance, which wonderfully complements MacBook Air's subtle contours.

The exterior is "durable 500 denier Cordura," according to the Ristretto Messenger product page. My bag is green outside, and the nylon-lined interior is orange. Tom Bihn offers four other two-color combinations. Cell foam protects the laptop compartment.

Heft and weight are my two biggest gripes about laptop bags. Many of them add at least several pounds to a notebook's carrying weight. Not the Ristretto, which measures 26.67 x 31.75 x 7.62 centimeters (10.5 x 12.5 x 3 inches) and weighs a light 396 grams (14 ounces). The bag's total volume is about 8 liters (480 cubic inches).

With power supply, the Ristretto and MacBook Air weigh about 2 kilograms (4.4 pounds), which feels like carrying nothing. So light is the load, sometimes I panic about having set down and forgotten the bag even when it's snug round my shoulder. The Ristretto literally is lighter than Air, which weighs in at 1.36 kilograms (3 pounds). Many Air bags sold at Apple stores weigh about as much as the ultra-thin portable or even more. Please, somebody tell me why anyone would buy a thin, lightweight computer only to carry it in a bulky bag?

The Ristretto's two front pouches are surprisingly roomy, but I rarely fill them up. The point of a bag like this is mobility. When I traveled to San Francisco for the iPhone 3G launch in June, Ristretto was the only bag carried. I was one of the most unencumbered journalists at the event.

I hadn't realized the physical and psychological burden of carrying a heavy laptop until traveling with MacBook Air packed in Ristretto. Because the bag's flap opens so easily, the laptop slips out of the cell padding smoothly and Air wakes up so quickly, I could be instantly productive. I found myself pulling out the laptop more often than others I have carried. Lightness isn't the only reason. Simplicity of design is another. Many laptop bags require the user to work through several layers of padding, zippers or Velcro latches to get out the computer. Ristretto has one latch for the outer flap.

I used the Ristretto over the summer, and I was glad to have it. I carried a laptop more often, which proved hugely beneficial for my work. Even after buying an iPhone 3G on July 11, the Air and Ristretto were common companions on weekends; more so after I ditched iPhone 3G.

This review has been more than two months coming, and it should have been written sooner. I kept waiting for a slow enough Apple news period to post. But Apple news has been going non-stop for months. So here it is. Finally. Please expect more reviews like this one on Apple Watch. By the way, another Tom Bihn bag review will come in a few weeks. For Ristretto, my recommendation is simple: Buy it.

[Please send your tips or rumors to watchtips at live.com.]

Posted by Joe Wilcox on October 6, 2008 1:54 AM