Being fashion-conscious, I was excited to try the PortPack from Speck. It has a brown, black and cream plaid design or a black pinstripe and was made to hold notebooks of up to 15 inches. This bag is the cutest one I've tested! But it's also lightweight and sleek.

The 11.75- by 16.25- by 3.5-inch bag comes with a plush micro-fleece padding to protect and secure your notebook. A quilted nylon inner lining protects your accessories. The bag has so many components to keep you organized, including a detachable key ring and various storage pockets. Store your water bottle in the mesh zipped pocket and your iPod in the media player pocket with headphone cord passthrough. Also included are a padded shoulder strap and a tuck-away handle.

I carried this bag around for a week and found it to be extremely comfortable. I used both strap and handle, but found the shoulder strap more comfortable; the handle just felt awkward.

One great feature of this bag: It doesn't look bulky, even when you stuff it. I carried my iPod in the media player pocket, and it did the job--my player was secure, so I didn't have to worry about it falling out or cords getting tangled. I also added magazines, a book, cell phone, and a laptop to the bag, and the PortPack definitely passed my test. It's a compact bag with plenty of room.

The Speck PortPack Shoulder Bag can be yours for $79.95 directly from Speck. It would be a great addition to a student's list of accessories as well as a fashionista's.

Post by Iman Edwards