Okay, so you've got gadgets: a laptop, digicam, MP3 player, phone, portable gaming system, portable hard drive, kitchen sink, etc. And of course, it's all gotta go with you wherever you go. After all, you never know when you'll feel the call of the mobile multimedia blogger. And you have to be prepared!

Thankfully, there's a plethora of bags, backpacks and man-purses out there to keep your essential gear by your side. Today we'll look at three of them, all solid options, whether you need a small secure bag, or a backpack big enough to fit a big-screen laptop and an SLR digital camera, complete with a telephoto lens.

Metrosafe 3000

This pacsafe bag is the itty bitty baby of our bunch, although it still packs enough room for most of your gear, so long as you don't have a big laptop or a large digital camera. Thirteen-inch lappies are a fine fit, leaving plenty of room for other flattish gadgets, like phones, game systems, or even--gasp--a magazine or book. There are also plenty of pouches on the front for small things, and two side pockets for water bottles or umbrellas.

Security is the key feature on this bag: It has a three-digit combo lock on one side of the strap and a wrench-tightening carabiner on the other; wrench is included. There's also a slashproof shoulder strap, as well as eXomesh slashgaurd on the front and bottom panels. Just hope that thieves don't read Gearlog, because pacsafe skimped on the back and sides.

While this is primarily a shoulder bag, it can be carried as a backpack, if you take the concealed straps out of the zippered back compartment. Unfortunately the back straps feel like a flimsy afterthought. The connections are plastic, where the shoulder strap's connectors are metal. And the back straps don't seem to sport the same slashproof material as the shoulder strap. If you were hoping to coordinate your bag with your new Dell colorful laptop, be advised that this bag only comes in black and "Choco Brown." It retails for about $90, and is available now.

Daysafe 200

A much bigger sibling of the metrosafe 300, the Daysafe 200 (also from pacsafe) takes the security features to another level. And it has so many compartments, you're sure to spend some time trying to remember where you put your gadget. The bag has about 15 pockets in total, so you might have to buy more gear to fill this thing up.

The insides are pretty modular: The padded laptop sleeve can be removed, as can the whole inner eXomesh pocket that the sleeve fits in. This way, you can leave your laptop somewhere, and take the rest of the bag with you for some non-laptop fun. And you won't exactly have to leave your laptop in a safe, either. That removable slashproof laptop pouch also has a secure steel-wire drawstring, with an included padlock. If there's a bolted pole around, you could conceivably leave your laptop locked to it in a pinch, as pacsafe's documentation seems to suggest. But I wouldn't recommend going too far, because bolted poles can always be unbolted. Unfortunately, this bag offers even less color options, coming only in black. And it may offer more space than you'll ever need, unless you plan to spend the summer backpacking across country. You'll pay for all that space and security too. The Daysafe bag is available now, for a hefty $179.99. And with all that security hardware, it weighs in at over three pounds before you even put anything in it.

Lowepro CompuDaypack

This bag is the cheapest of the three, at $50 to $80 (shop around!), but also has a ton of space. Its design is comparatively sparse, with fewer pockets and none of the security features of the packsafe bags. It does look nice and solid, though. And the semi-rigid modular compartment at the bottom-front is meant to carry an SLR digital camera, with a telephoto lens still attached. That's a nice feature, if you're the quick-shot type with a quality camera. If you don't have an SLR, the front compartment's still a good place to store lunch.

The inside compartments are huge in this bag. The press info says it's good for 17-inch laptops, but if you're one of the few people on this side of the Pacific with a 19-incher, it'd probably fit that as well--though I'm not sure your chiropractor would like you to lug it around. The compartment in front of that has pockets aplenty and enough extra space for another large item, like a bowling ball or a small pile of bricks. There's that much room in this bag. If you get tired carrying it around, you could crawl inside. Well, a toddler could. Thankfully, the bag doesn't seem to be airtight.

There you have it folks; three solid bags for all you gadget gear. I don't think you could go wrong with any of them. Just get the one that best fits your needs and your wallet. And if none of these do, keep looking. We'll keep our eye out too. There's almost as many good bags out there as there are gotta-have gadgets to put in them. So until you complete your quest for that ultimate bag of holding, keep an ear to the ground and an eye on Gearlog for more ways to commute with your digital loot.

Post by Matt Safford