Luminary 15 maximum laptop size? Will the padded pocket fit a Thinkpad T480s?

[epeterson]

Hi everybody, looking to get my first Tom Bihn bag

The Luminary 15 page says:

The Luminary 15 is designed to carry a slightly larger device in the back pocket than the Luminary 12 can accommodate: the 13” MacBook Pro and the 13” Air will squeeze in, though you may find you’ll need to do a two-point turn to get either in position (note: that’s without any protective sleeve – add a sleeve and these laptops will not fit). Slightly larger laptops in their respective Cache sleeves (or other minimalist sleeve/case) will fit loose in the main compartment of the Luminary (note that the bag itself does not have rail loops for the Cache). How about a 15” MacBookPro? Pfft – no way.

In my case, my work laptop is a Thinkpad T480s, and it's sized between the MacBook Pro 13" and 15" models. The dimensions on the T480s are 13.03" x 8.92" x 0.72" (or in metric: 331 x 226.8 x 18.45 mm).

Has anybody been able to fit a similar-sized laptop in the padded back pocket of the Luminary 15? Happy to hear any advice

[G42]

Welcome to the Forums epeterson

[G42]

Hi everybody, looking to get my first Tom Bihn bag

The Luminary 15 page says:



In my case, my work laptop is a Thinkpad T480s, and it's sized between the MacBook Pro 13" and 15" models. The dimensions on the T480s are 13.03" x 8.92" x 0.72" (or in metric: 331 x 226.8 x 18.45 mm).

Has anybody been able to fit a similar-sized laptop in the padded back pocket of the Luminary 15? Happy to hear any advice

I have an HP Elitebook for work that looks like it's pretty much the same size and it's just a bit too long to make the turn to fit into the back padded pocket. You can always check with the folks in Customer Service too.

It does fit (without a case) almost perfectly between the back wall seams in the main compartment... and would still fit with a reasonable case.

[epeterson]

Thank you very much, ok. I may need to consider the Paragon or the Synapse 19!

[cazique]

Hi everybody, looking to get my first Tom Bihn bag

The Luminary 15 page says:



In my case, my work laptop is a Thinkpad T480s, and it's sized between the MacBook Pro 13" and 15" models. The dimensions on the T480s are 13.03" x 8.92" x 0.72" (or in metric: 331 x 226.8 x 18.45 mm).

Has anybody been able to fit a similar-sized laptop in the padded back pocket of the Luminary 15? Happy to hear any advice

I have not. I've had several in the Thinkpad T4x0 series, and the L15's back pocket is just a teeny bit too small. You can jam it in there, but it's harder to get it out.

I have found that the Paragon is exactly the bag I wanted the L15 to be - a little bigger, more flexibility on what device(s) it holds. L15 and S19 are great bags, but the Paragon really fills the gap of the next size up. Worth a look.

[epeterson]

I have not. I've had several in the Thinkpad T4x0 series, and the L15's back pocket is just a teeny bit too small. You can jam it in there, but it's harder to get it out.

I have found that the Paragon is exactly the bag I wanted the L15 to be - a little bigger, more flexibility on what device(s) it holds. L15 and S19 are great bags, but the Paragon really fills the gap of the next size up. Worth a look.

Thanks for this. I am seriously considering the Paragon, yeah. I have to say I find the Luminary more aesthetically pleasing, and I could always carry my work laptop in the main compartment -- but it might bug me to have that padded laptop compartment there if I'm not using it for anything.

[G42]

Thanks for this. I am seriously considering the Paragon, yeah. I have to say I find the Luminary more aesthetically pleasing, and I could always carry my work laptop in the main compartment -- but it might bug me to have that padded laptop compartment there if I'm not using it for anything.

It's actually a good compartment for a Kindle or iPad or anything you want to keep relatively flat and separated, like papers
And if you don't use it, you don't notice it's there

[epeterson]

It's actually a good compartment for a Kindle or iPad or anything you want to keep relatively flat and separated, like papers
And if you don't use it, you don't notice it's there

Oh good point, you're right, it could be useful for folders for example. Hmmmm. Well I have a week to figure it out, before I buy. I've never seen one in person but from the photos it's a beautiful bag. :-D

[G42]

Oh good point, you're right, it could be useful for folders for example. Hmmmm. Well I have a week to figure it out, before I buy. I've never seen one in person but from the photos it's a beautiful bag. :-D

I have both sizes - its my favorite pack for urban wandering

[moriond]

Thank you very much, ok. I may need to consider the Paragon or the Synapse 19!

Hi epeterson These are all pretty different bags in terms of how I use them (Luminary 15, Paragon, and Synapse 19). I’d say that with the Synapse 19 (which I’ve used in some form since it’s original release date when it was the only Synapse), I’m using the great organization in the side pockets , water bottle pocket, and front bottom pocket. This is the general purpose backpack I’d start with. The Luminary 15 is for carrying less, and with a sleek profile and minimalist profile. While I do use the side laptop pocket if I’m carrying a laptop or tablet, I also carried laptops inside, and switched over to using the back compartment for folders or notebooks, my Kindle, tablets, etc. as G42 suggested (this is sometimes even though my laptop fit into the back pocket). Slim notebooks like the Rhodia soft cover books (A4 size, so longer than US letter), papers in poly pocket folders, and similar items will fit, as will combinations of smaller items (Kindle, iPad Mini, A5 notebooks). You can take a look at reviews like @bartleby's On the bright side: Luminary 12 & 15 meet the Daylight Backpack where he discusses using both modes (laptop inside main compartment and in laptop compartment) in different packups.

https://forums.tombihn.com/forum/tom-bihn-forums/photos-videos-and-reviews/14736-on-the-bright-side-luminary-12-15-meet-the-daylight-backpack

You can also take a look at @anna2222's thread THE LUMINARY 15 BACKPACK: A Star Is Born! to see pictures of where different size laptops (up through the 2018 MacBook Pro 15") fall inside the main compartment.

https://forums.tombihn.com/forum/tom-bihn-forums/photos-videos-and-reviews/14733-the-luminary-15-backpack-a-star-is-born

If you look at my post (#18 dated 8-14-2020) in that thread, you'll see that I talk about using smaller packing cubes holding A5 notebooks or Moleskine notebooks and smaller pen/pencil pouches) in the back pocket
(This is a retired packing cube, but I'm using it to show size -- just one photo excerpted from the linked post).The post goes on to discuss how these could be fit into the back pocket of both the Luminary 12 and the Luminary 15, but the pictures were linked to posts in the Discussion of New Colors and Designs thread that we can no longer access, so I'll upload a picture here:

These show two of these (retired) Aether Packing Cubes (from the Stowaway) against the back of my Aubergine/Cloud Luminary 15. You may be able to see from the picture on top, that these cubes are fairly slim, and all have handle loops at the top that make them easy to pull out from the side opening. You can also color code them (wasabi, charcoal, and violet), although they're slightly translucent so you can see the notebook in the bottom cube. While these are a convenient way of using the back pocket of the Luminary 15 (and the Luminary 12, into which they also fit), you don't need the cubes to use the back pocket, especially if you will mainly use this for notebooks and folders.

The Paragon can carry much larger laptops, and also has a larger open volume that makes it easy to carry all sorts of objects. If you wanted to use it for a grocery side-trip, you could do it, or if you wanted to carry a separate bag of camera gear inside it would be well-suited.

Your selection really depends on what you want to use the bag for, how much space you need, and also how comfortable the fit is for you. Like G42, I find both the Luminary 12 and Luminary 15 very comfortable to wear, But this really is a bag for more minimal backpack carry.

Hope this helps,

moriond

[epeterson]

Thank you very much, moriond -- the photos of the bag alongside contents that fit (and the links to the posts with photos of it packed) were just what I needed. I typically don't carry much to and from work -- in fact my current work bag has a slightly smaller volume than the L15 and the size is fine, I just dislike the pocket/compartment layout in my current bag. And I'm now convinced that I can make good use of that back pocket -- I typically carry an A5 Rhodia pad, and sometimes also a few papers in a folder, which will fit nicely.

[puffin]

I have a Thinkpad X250 and am able to get it in and out of the L15 padded pocket with a bit of maneuvering. I have also been able to slip an iPad air and an iPad mini in there with it. The T480 is slightly larger than the X250, so I suspect it will be a bit challenging. That said, if you are only pulling it out and putting it back in 1-2x/day, you might not mind needing to wiggle it in and out.