I was looking to replace a circa 2000 soft briefcase bag that wasn't up to the task of carrying all the things I’d like on hand while I’m schlepping kids around. I wanted something classier than a backpack with a briefcase layout. Although I wanted to hate it because of the weird straps, the Baggallini Women's 3-in-1 Convertible Backpack, Portobello Shimmer, One Size was the winner. I’m copying this comparison review to all four of the bags I auditioned: Baggallini Avenue Tote Bag, Pewter Leaves Baggallini Any Day Tote with RFID Phone Wristlet, Eggplant Baggallini New Classic Heritage Anywhere Large Hobo with RFID Phone Wristlet Baggallini Women's 3-in-1 Convertible Backpack, Portobello Shimmer, One Size Tested to fit: Bullet journal Hardcover bestseller Kindle Chromebook Discbound binder, letter-size (also tried 3-ring binder) 20oz. Stainless Contigo autospout water bottle 12 oz. Kleen Kanteen TK Wide The Convertible Backpack was the clear winner. Everything fit. The bottles fit in the side pouches easily and securely, but steal slightly from the interior width, so the laptop and the binder don’t fit casually in the middle of the back but need to be more carefully positioned at the very front and very back. Despite this fiddliness, everything was easy to get in and out, even if the water bottles were loaded. The zipper allows the bag to open fully. It has a deep hidden phone pocket in the front behind the zipper pocket; my Pixel 3A in a slim case has ample room. The main compartment has two pouches (no credit card or pen slots) and 1 zipper pocket running the length of the back of the bag. Downsides: The back of the bag is a bit of a jumble and I doubt the crossbody/backpack straps, so I’m docking a star. The luggage sleeve is a loose 4” strap across instead of the double-zipper pockets on some other models. There is a snap pocket along the back, but it’s hard to access in the backpack configuration. The straps are only 1.25” wide, and wouldn’t be comfortable for carring a loaded bag. The D-rings at the top for crossbody configuration are only on the back of the bag; I fear it will hang poorly. Since a briefcase is my primary purpose for the bag, I will overlook this and plan to use the tote handles. The portobello shimmer is a lovely taupe -- much less brown that my old portobello everyday bagg (or something like it), as you can see in the picture. The Avenue Tote Bag couldn’t handle it. I could fit my office things in, but it would not stand up and the travel bottles did not fit at all in the front pockets. The Any Day Tote fit everything. There was a padded zipper pouch that fit the laptop. The water bottle and TK Wide fit in the front pockets but at the cost of interior space, and the distortion across the front of the bag would have made the two front-most pockets difficult to use. The Large Hobo was adorable, but failed. The zipper does not run the full length of the bag and made it too fussy to get even small things like my Kindle Fire HD 8 in and out. For example, there was enough room to put the hardcover — or the chromebook — in vertically and then maneuver it horizontally, but not while the water bottle and/or TK Wide were in the end pouches, and not while anything else was in the bag. The binder would not fit at all. Both bottles fit in those drink pouches at the sides of the bag, but they were a little snug at these sizes, probably because they were not gusseted. I loved the hidden phone pocket at the top of the bag. The champagne shimmer color was subtle — the leather ties had some shine, but I would not describe the bag itself as sparkly.
