I’ve described one of Waterfield’s earlier backpacks as a mini-Tardis, as it carries way more inside than you’d ever expect from the compact form factor, and that’s even more true of the latest Shinjuku Backpack.
It looks like a slim backpack suitable for a MacBook, charger, and a few other bits and pieces, but the beautifully-organized layout means it’s surprisingly capacious …
Look & feel
The bag is made from waxed canvas, a tough and highly water-resistant fabric, with leather side-panels and accents. It’s available in a choice of brown or navy, alongside unwaxed canvas options in black or green.
Waxed canvas seems to be one of those materials that has somehow transitioned from the purely utilitarian to the fashionable in the past few years. While leather is always my first love when it comes to bags, this mix of the two materials works really well, giving it a ruggedly stylish appearance.
As with the Tuck Backpack, this is a bag I’d happily take to an important meeting or upmarket restaurant, though I see it as better suited to a leather jacket than a suit.
I’ll get to the specifics, but it has all of the small touches and quality feel I’ve come to expect of the San Francisco-based company.
Dimensions, capacity, and layout
The bag is 17 inches high by 10 inches wide by 5 inches deep, and has a total capacity of 16 liters.
Inside, there’s a rear padded laptop section, which holds anything up to the 16-inch MacBook Pro, and a separate padded iPad slot, which comfortably accommodates a 13-inch iPad with Magic Keyboard.
There’s an internal elasticated water bottle holder, which is flexible enough to accommodate anything from a travel mug to a 1-liter thermos. If you’re not using this, it’s easily pushed to the side, taking up no space.
Also on the interior is a zipped security pocket suitable for a passport, wallet, and cash.
The rest of the interior has enough space for a sweater and books, or pretty much anything else you might carry around when using it as a day bag – and could also serve as a weekend bag if you travel light. If you don’t, then there’s a rear luggage strap to slide it over the handle of a roller-bag (please, all bag makers, do this as standard – it’s such a small thing that makes such a big difference).
Moving to the outside, there are two zipped pockets, the top one with two expanding slots, the bottom with one accessory slot and two pen slots. Either pocket comfortably accommodates an iPhone 16 Pro Max, while the pockets are ideal for things like charging bricks, portable SSDs, and powerbanks.
There are also two slimline side pockets. These aren’t big enough for an insulated coffee cup – that needs to go in the interior slot – but you can carry a small umbrella on one side and a small water bottle on the other. When not in use, they fold flat, so don’t get in the way.
In use
For me the biggest benefit of this bag is the fact that you can carry a lot while maintaining a slim profile. Backpacks can be a liability on public transit, and if you take them off they can be awkward to hold while also keeping a hand free for a grab-rail. But at five inches deep, it doesn’t get in anyone’s way.
That’s not coincidence: the company says the name was “inspired by the world’s busiest transit hub in Tokyo’s Shinjuku district.”
The laptop padding is reassuring, and the fact that both MacBook and iPad are on the inside, closest to your back, means I never had to be concerned about either device getting bashed by anyone around me.
The interior is lined with a very reflective gold-colored material, which is now pretty much a standard feature of premium bags. It’s intended to bounce ambient light around the interior to make it as easy as possible to see the contents of the bag, and it never ceases to amaze me what a huge difference this makes.
All zippers are YKK ones. This is a Japanese company renowned for long-lasting, reliable, waterproof zippers, and in all the many years I’ve been using bags fitted with these I’ve never once had one catch or fail. The zippers have dual pulls for the main section, letting you choose between them meeting in the middle for the most convenient access, or bringing them down to one side for maximum security in crowded places.
Pricing and conclusions
As I’ve noted before, Waterfield’s bags aren’t cheap, and the Shinjuku Backpack is no exception, coming in at $329. But as I’ve also said previously, the materials, workmanship, and designs all live up to the standards you’d expect of a premium US-made bag in this kind of price bracket.
As a self-confessed bagaholic, I’ve been using several of the company’s bags for five or six years now, and they have all stood the test of time. If you’re looking for a compact backpack that doubles as a second cabin bag and combines surprising capacity with rugged good looks, this could be the one for you.
The Waterfield Shinjuku Backpack is available from the company’s website in four finishes, each priced at $329.
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