hthr

Hello
Please can anyone recommend a pannier bag that would fit a 17" (diagonal) macbook pro? I have struggled to find one as all my internet searches on things like Ortlieb bags seem to say they fit only a 15" laptop. Though the measurements sound as if my laptop might just fit in one, I wondered if anyone has experience of whether it actually does or not? I would prefer an Ortlieb bag as they seem to get very good reviews quality-wise and I had another brand of bag which the laptop did fit in but the bag has broken twice now within a year and once it fell off my bike with laptop in! (luckily laptop was ok) so I need a more reliable bag.
Many thanks in advance for any advice

AusTexMurf

Recent thread, similar question......
G'luck.

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...look-need-help

jowilson

You might do better with a messenger bag instead.

hthr

Yes I saw that other thread, thanks, but I'm specifically talking about a 17" macbook and it doesn't seem to answer that question.
Thanks, but I don't want a messenger bag (if that's one that you carry on your back) as I have a bad back, not good for me!
Anyone else?

PennyTheDog

I use banjo brothers waterproof panniers, and they would definitely fit a large laptop. They're pretty flexible, so you can fit about any shape of cargo (I've carried watermelons for example). I've been amazed how much they can carry. They're $50 for each pannier.

Boudicca

I am a great fan of the Arkel commuter bag, which fits my regular sized lap top with plenty of room to spare. I'm not sure if it would work for a 17-incher, but they have a helpful "will my laptop fit" guide on their page.

It's really well constructed, and it has all the bells and whistles I am looking for in a commuter bag -- separate pocket for cellphone, clips for lights, little zip pocket in the top where I can put my building pass and entry card for the office. And they even offer a custom pouch for different sized laptops.

bigbenaugust 

The correct answer is to leave the 17" lappy at home (does anyone have a lap that big?) and then get a MacBook Air for commuting with.

AusTexMurf

I would think that it might be possible to fit a 17" laptop in the Ortlieb Office or the Racktime Workit Pro. Both of these have room to spare w/ my 15.5" laptop. It is worth a trip for you and your laptop to your LBS that caters to commuters/tourers with some of these in stock. Or inquire at the Bike Bag Shop.com, they vend both of these, plus the vaude and arkel brands.

ajmstilt

I used Arkel's briefcase pannier for my 17 inch pro. The sleeve was tight around the MacBook, but fit. The bag is big, and heavy, but near indestructible.

https://www.arkel-od.com/us/all-categ...-bike-bag.html

urbanescapee

I don't have the Macbook Pro but I do have an Ultrabook (Samsung Series 9 15" for any who are curious), which measures 17" diagonally and I put it into a sleeve that measures 18.5" diagonally. However, for our purposes here, the standard figure you often see for sizing a laptop is not very useful. As you probably well know, laptops are sized by their diagonal screen size not the actual exterior dimensions, which are obviously are a bit larger. Not to mention that you'll undoubtedly be using a laptop sleeve of dimensions not yet accounted for. If the 17" you are referring to is the exterior diagonal dimension, I can personally recommend the Ortleib Vario. It's a waterproof pannier that converts to a backpack. It's a bit pricey if you don't care for the backpack option which is detachable (around $160). But if the backpack feature is valuable to you, I believe it is the best incarnation of the convertible pannier that I have seen. And that's why I bought it and have been using it happily for a couple years now. My laptop in it's sleeve fits perfectly and there's still room for a textbook and folder together about 2" thick or so (I'm a student).