What is the best way to carry a Laptop ?

[HLaB]

It looks like I'll have to take my laptop a few times in to uni (roughly 5 miles uphill). In people experience what is the best way to carry it without damaging it, in a Pannier or in a Rucksack ? and are there any other relevant tips. I'm a little concerned that the faster speeds on the downhill and the poor state of the potholed roads will do damage. On an aside I prefer not to go slow in traffic as I can be more assertive, I'm worried about the forces I'd subject it to too

 

[Bollo]

These days I'm all about dropbox and virtual machines, but if I do have to carry my laptop, a weighty Dell, then it goes in an Ortlieb Office (the waterproof softshell) with a padded laptop insert. This has taken a swim down the River Alre without damage after a failed ford crossing, plus regular journeys along marginal roads/farm tracks. Anecdote I know - your laptop will probably catch fire on the first trip.

 

[TwickenhamCyclist]

I use a Lowepro Fastpack 350 backpack - the laptop slides in the back, it’s snug and well protected. The bag is for a Digital SLR and lenses as well as a pc (I use it for the camera and a laptop) but the camera dividers can be removed which would leave you with two well padded compartments. It’s a fantastic bag.



The 250 (15.4” notebook) is on sale at Amazon at the moment: £40 down from £80

The 350 (17” notebook) is an extra tenner




http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lowepro-Fas...9?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1283136856&sr=1-9

 

[ComedyPilot]

Bungee'd to a skateboard and pulled along with luminous green cord.

 

[hackbike 666]

How big is the laptop?

Is it a 15 inch screen or smaller.I woud normally carry mine in my rucksack as it has a 10 inch screen.

 

[HLaB]

How big is the laptop?

Is it a 15 inch screen or smaller.I woud normally carry mine in my rucksack as it has a 10 inch screen.

Its a 17 inch.

 

[upsidedown]

I carry mine in a dry bag inside a 20 year old Carradice pannier, no problems yet.

 

[Maizie]

Halfords laptop pannier bag for me (here). The back of the bag unzips and it has pannier attachments.
Very rarely have to take it home, usually just leave it at work, but it works for the times I do have to use it. Good from my point of view as if I do have to travel to another site, I have it as a 'normal' laptop bag and don't have to carry it around in something else (either using a 'not laptop bag' for both cycling and walking about; or having to own a separate laptop bag if I use a 'not laptop bag' for cycling. I know I am not making sense!)

 

[mgarl10024]

Hi HLab,

I have to commute with the laptop occasionally and have been carrying it in a rucksack - no ill effects except that it's annoying cause it's so heavy.
I've been weighing up panniers for a while now - mainly to shift the weight from my back. I'd rather the bike carried the weight rather than me! I was wondering whether panniers would offer less suspension that a rucksack resting on me (my body acting as a shock absorber), but many people here would suggest that this isn't an issue.

Finally, I have the same concerns, but after comparitively few commutes have found that my Dell is pretty rugged. As long as they are shut down and no drives are spinning (like you'd have drives spinning whilst commuting!), then most drives would intelligently park harddisk heads out of harm's way. I think where they struggle is massive deceleration (so if you dropped it and it hit a solid ground hard), but the occasional bump in a pannier shouldn't be much worse than an average train ride?

Hope that helps,

MG

 

[Origamist]

I had a pannier, neoprene sleeve and would pad clothes around my lap top to limit its movement within the pannier.

A colleague kept the original polystyrene packing that came with the computer and swore by that - I'm heavy-handed and break/tear all packaging when I open something.

 

[Sheffield_Tiger]

The absolute best way to prevent transit damage to your laptop?


Get a trailer and take your desktop instead

 

[HLaB]

Thanks folk, I think it'll be transported in my Ortlieb Briefcase pannier and I'll have to moderate my cycling. I can't justify the cost of the insert just now but I should find something. The Lap top bag (padded) is almost ideal but fits snuggley inside unfortunately its about 2 inches to high. :-)

 

[DrSquirrel]

As long as the hard drive is mounted perpendicular to the ground rather than parallel it should be fine. Topeak do a laptop bag for their clip system that sits FLAT on top of the rack... not the best position imo.

A 17" slip case can be had for £6.

 

[Lizban]

Move mine pretty much every day. In rucksack wrapped in my towel.

 

[Howard]

The Large Rapha Fixed Backpack is water proof and has a well padded laptop sleeve. Problem is, your laptop is too big...