The Patagonia Half Mass is a poor performing messenger bag that’s neither waterproof nor durable, has poor storage for smaller items, and a clunky removable laptop case. We don’t recommend this bag. Instead, get the Rickshaw Commuter 2.0 ($160), our top rated office oriented messenger bag, or the Mission Workshop Rummy ($175), a fully featured and luxuriously comfortable bag for biking. Those on a budget will find the Timbuk2 Classic Messenger ($90) a much better bag than the Half Mass.
Get a backpack if you don’t need near instant access to the contents of your bag. Timbuk2 makes the Swig ($90), an excellent, comfortable, affordable, and versatile backpack that has great storage options and fits a variety of people. Those on the taller side or those who want more storage should opt for the Cilo Gear City Pack ($175), our favorite backpack for biking, grocery shopping, and everyday life on the go. Business types who want great laptop and documents storage and the comfort of a backpack can’t go wrong with the Arcteryx Blade 24 ($175).
Hands-on Gear Review |
Street Price:
Varies from $45 - $99 | Compare prices at 6 resellers
Pros: Comfortable when biking and walking, useful side pocket, great zippered pocket on front flap, reflective strip. Cons: Not waterproof, not durable, laptop sleeve is bulky and awkward, poor storage for small and medium items. Best Uses: Not recommended.
Overview
OutdoorGearLab Editors' Hands-on Review
Likes
The Patagonia Half Mass’ best attribute is its shoulder strap, which is comfortable for both biking and walking. Next up is the zippered pocket on the front flap and the reflective strip, both of which our testers found to be useful. Beyond that, the bag is quite poor . Dislikes The Half Mass is water resistant but not waterproof. Most other messengers offer much more storm protection. The bag is also much less durable than others. It has only one zippered pocket, three slots for pens, and no interior slot for a phone or wallet. The front bellowed pockets are partially divided by velcro, but we found that small items easily migrate from one side to the other. The removable laptop case attaches with very strong plastic clips that should be on the outside of a backpack not inside of a messenger bag. Patagonia attempted to create a case that can be removed and carried by itself (with a low-profile grab handle) but none of our testers found this to be useful. The Rickshaw Commuter 2.0 has a significantly better removable laptop sleeve. Finally, the rear document sleeve is totally useless because the bag doesn’t have enough support to prevent papers from wrinkling. This sleeve should be moved inside the bag like on the Rickshaw and Osprey messengers. We love most of Patagonia’s outerwear line and appreciate and respect what the company stands for, but the Half Mass is simply a poor performing messenger bag. The Rickshaw Commuter 2.0 and Mission Workshop Rummy are much better. Value Poor. — Max Neale
OutdoorGearLab Member Reviews of Patagonia Half MassMost recent review: October 9, 2011
|
 |
 Patagonia Half Mass Credit: Patagonia
Where's the Best Price?
*Help support OutdoorGearLab. If you click on one of the seller links and make a purchase, a portion of the sale helps support this site
Related Best-in-Class Review
Helpful Buying Tips
Get More OutdoorGearLab
Follow us on Twitter, be a fan on Facebook!
Related Gear Reviews
Other Gear by Patagonia
Recent Best-in-Class Reviews
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
