Advent 4211 ( MSI Wind ) Shoulder Bag Review

Introduction It's been 15 years since I first started work in IT Support and over this period almost every role I've taken has included some out of hours support with a laptop, and bag provided. Believe me when I say that some of the bags, no, make that most of the bags I've had have been rubbish (and a few of the laptops too actually). So when Craig at Ultimate Netbooks sent along his latest laptop bag, this one for the Advent 4211 (MSI Wind), I wasn't expecting much. All the Ultimate Netbooks kit I've to date has been excellent but could the Advent 4211 Shoulder Bag do the business too? Read on to find out.........

For your delectation photographs are thumbnails which may be clicked on to load a larger image.
Thanks go out to Craig at Ultimate-Netbook.com for providing us with a review sample.
For more information on the MSI Wind (Advent 4211) Shoulder Bag go to the Ultimate Netbook website

Specifications 30 Day no quibble return 12 months warranty Colour: Green/Orange/Black Fits all 8.9" - 10.2" Netbooks Velcro Securing strap inside Durable and lightweight All seams finished with top-quality binding for strength and durability Outer material 1000D Nylon Inner Material 420D Adjustable and cushioned shoulder strap Handcrafted Reinforced Panels to protect netbook Soft Interior padding with cushioned netbook compartment Magnetic closure 1 x netbook extra padded compartment with strap 2 x pouch pockets (approx 12cm x 6.5cm - 12cm x 9.5cm) 2 x mesh pouch pockets (approx 11cm x 12.5cm) 3 x pen spaces 3 x card slots External dimension approx: ( L= 11.2" x H= 11" W= 3.1") (L= 28.5cm x H= 25cm x W= 8cm) Interior dimension approx: ( L= 11" x H= 9.1" W= 2") (L= 28cm x H= 23cm x W= 5cm) Interior Diagonal Dimensions approx: (33cm or 13")

Aesthetics In this day and age it’s an unfortunate state of affairs but I think one of the most important characteristics of a laptop bag is that it doesn’t look like a laptop bag. It’s sad to say but there are too many miscreants out there to advertise the fact you’re carrying around some valuable hardware. Thankfully the Advent 4211 Shoulder Bag would be more at home in the fashion racks than in the electronics section if you were judging by looks alone. I really like it. It looks like a standard shoulder bag you’d carry your essentials in if you were going on holiday or on a trip. I like the Olive colouring and the orange flashes too, although I’m not sure how looking into the bag with a hang over would feel. If I had one complaint about the design of the bag it would be the length of the strap. Personally I like to wear my Shoulder Bags like my guitar and have the bag on my thigh. I find the current strap is a touch too short for this and it sits at max length on the old gluteus maximus. If the strap was about 6 inches to a foot longer it would be more to my liking. If the Olive and Orange combination is a bit feisty for you, Ultimate Netbooks also offer the same bag in black and grey too.

Security One of the most important aspects to consider when purchasing a laptop bag is how safe your little bundle of joy will be kept when you’re out and about. The Shoulder bag from Ultimate Netbooks offers a high level of protection to your machine due to the mm or so of padding that surrounds it when you put it in the Netbook compartment. There’s a decent Velcro strap to stop the device from going too far should the ride get a bit bumpy too. Another important security measure is the strap and again the Advent 4211 Shoulder Bag measures up to the mark. The material the strap is made from seems very sturdy and the stitching holding it to the bag very strong. I feel the padding and strap offered sufficient protection that I wouldn’t think twice about carrying my machine around in the bag where it would be likely to get knocked about a bit like in an airport or supermarket or riding a bike. The only issue with security I had was with the connector on the front flap. I found that when the bag was quite full you could no longer close the connectors so the flap would, well, flap around. I know it’s a big if, but if the flap opened and your bag tipped up the obviously it’s likely some of your contents could spill out. It’s only a minor issue, but worth considering if you’re planning on filling the bag to the brim.

Size/Capacity As I said earlier in the review, much of my work revolves around supporting networks. To this end, my current laptop bag contains what I call my network survival kit. The ultimate test of capacity for me is if I can transfer my network survival kit from my £60 Ogio full size messenger bag into the Advent 4211 Shoulder bag. The photo on the right here shows my current network survival kit and as you can see, there’s a fair amount to it. The overall size of this Shoulder bag is about 50% that of a traditional laptop bag, just like the Netbook itself and although there is a nice array of pockets inside for pens, pads, drives etc I don’t think there will be much space for this little lot! My network survival kit that I’ll be attempting to cram into the Advent 4211 Shoulder bag consists of the following “essentials”:

Advent 4211 (Obviously) 6600mAh high capacity battery Power adapter Power cable USB cable Crossover Ethernet cable Standard Ethernet cable USB – PS2 cable/mouse adapter USB – Serial adapter USB HD drive (80GB) 8GB USB pen drive 8GB MicroSD card with SD adapter USB SD/MicroSD/MiniSD etc adapter Headset with microphone (for VOIP) Blue pen Red pen Black pen Carrier bag Phew! As you can see there’s a fair amount of kit there and this is a small bag! After a fair bit of squeezing and a little gentle persuasion I managed to get all the contents of my network kit into the Advent 4211 shoulder bag. As you can see, it is bulging a bit and the front flap won’t fasten, but other than my voip headset everything else has fit in.

Value With the Advent 4211 (MSI Wind) itself being a low priced netbook, it wouldn’t really make sense to spend a fortune on a bag to carry it round in. Fortunately Ultimate Netbooks have the 4211 Shoulder Bag retailing for just £19.99. With the style and quality of the bag I think this represents excellent value for money. I’ve personally spent twice this amount on a bag of poorer quality.

Pros & Cons

Nice looking.
Well padded.
Nice array of pockets and compartments.
Strong strap.


Connectors don’t fit when bag is full.
Strap could be a touch longer.

Conclusion Much of the attraction of the sub £300 Netbooks is the price itself. That said, after the price and general spec a lot of people will choose their device based on the way it looks. There are some good looking machines out there and they deserve to be carried in something equally as aesthetically pleasing. At £19.99 the Advent 4211 Shoulder Bag matches the Netbook itself for excellent value and allows you to carry said Netbook both safely and in style. If you have a Netbook you should buy this bag. It’s that simple.