First Look: Think Tank Photo’s “My 2nd Brain” Briefcase (laptop bag)
Above: Look how much smaller the new bag is, yet it holds all my junk. Ahemâ¦I mean my essential gear for travel. ;-)
If you’re like me, you’re never really happy with your laptop bag. That was me for most of my life (well, most of my laptop toting life anyway), until about 5 years ago when I fell deeply and hopeless in love with Thank Tank Photo’s laptop bag. It was prefect. A pocket for everything â” I could even fit my Wacom tablet in it â” it was justâ¦perfect! Especially for someone who carries a lot of stuff (see below).
Here’s what’s in my bag (as seen above):
- 15″ MacBook Pro (this is my main computer day in, day out)
- A bunch of plastic cards (gift cards, Delta club card, Hilton Honors card, etc.)
- USB drive with backup stuff
- One-Tb Back-up hard drive of my entire MacBook, plus USB 3 cable
- iPad Charger and cable
- iPhone charger and cable
- Lexar USB 3 CF and SD card reader
- Wacom Wireless Pen and Pen Holder
- Backup Wacom Pen
- Wacom USB Cable
- Bendable Laptop LED light (I use it to light my outline during a seminar)
- Love Book (That’s what my daughter called it when she gave it to me. It’s always with me).
- Two sets of business cards (I know, that’s probably one too many)
- MacBook Charger and Cable
- Five Sharpie pens (for signing books and stuff)
- Bose headphone adapter
- Another USB Flash backup (for paranoid presenters)
- Guitar Pick. Hey, ya never know.
- OK, I’m carrying more USB drives than I need.
- Two DVI adapters to connect MacBook to projectors (one and a backup)
- Copy of Photoshop User magazine, outlines for my tour, notes, fan mail from some flounder
- Wacom Intuos Pro tablet “Small”
- Collapsible iPad stand
- AAA batteries just in case my headphone’s batteries go dead. I know, I don’t need three â” just one.
- Bose Quiet Comfort Headphones (I so love these things, but I hate their bulky carrying case).
- A tin of Altoids (Curiously strong mints)
- Screen and Lens wipes
- Lens cleaning cloth
- Logitech Wireless Slide controller (for slide presentations).
- iPad Air
- Small bag of marijuana.
- Made ya look! ;-)
About a year or so ago I saw Think Tank Photo’s booth at a tradeshow (I think it was Photo Plus in NYC), and I thought I’d go pick up another one just like it to replace mine …until I heard the sad newsâ¦.they had discontinued it. I was stunned. It was the best, ever, hands-down and now it’s gone.
It was at that moment that I knew I would have to hold on to my old bag until it literally disintegrated, but luckily that day never came because Wednesday I got something even better than my old Think Tank laptop bag. A brand new, smaller, lighter, better-designed (like they made it just for me) laptop bag. It’s the “My 2nd Brain” Briefcase 15 and it is my new laptop bag dream come true. My world finally makes sense again (Not really).
Above: I did a little iPhone video tour of the bag (iPhone video work by the amazing bearded Brad Moore) to show you how it does it’s thing. It has a perfect pocket for my Wacom tablet, and a separate just for your iPad (In my old bag, I just tossed mine in where I kept my papers and magazines).
I had pretty much given up on Think Tank Photo ever making another Laptop Bag, and I just cannot tell you excited I was when I found out that not only where they making them again â” that the new one was that much better, smaller and lighter than the old one, but it still held all my gear â” now it’s all just more organized. You’ll have to check out the video to see all the compartments, pockets, sleeves and clever stuff this bag has inside and out. Very well designed, and built like a tank. Super Mclovin’ it!
It sells for $144 over at B&H Photo (that’s where I buy all my stuff). Worth every penny!
Hope this First Look helped you find the bag of your dreams, and here’s wishing you fantastic weekend filled with lots of amazing images. See ya back here on Monday.
Best,
-Scott