Lowepro Stealth Reporter AW Soft Case
Lowepro Stealth Reporter AW Soft Case
USER REVIEWS
[Mar 27, 2006]
thebund
Expert
Strength:
The top handle attached to the side... NO SPILLS
Weakness:
The only weakness I'd paoint out is actually "user" error... You can load it so much that you'll hate to carry it.
This is a review of the 300 stealth reporter NOT the D300 stealth reporter. There is a BIG difference. I was looking for a good shoulder bag for my backpack around italy and I choose the 300 S.R. In short, it performed WAY above my expectations. It was small enough to carry anywear and big enough to hold ALL the gear I needed. I took my Canon 20d with the BG-E2 grip. Canon 70-200 2.8L, Canon 28-70 2.8L, Canon 17-40 4.0L, Canon 50mm 1.4, Canon extender EF 2X II, Canon 550 EX flash, I also threw in there my memory cards, ipod, filters, a pen, small journal, sunglasses, and a passport. SO needless to say I was ready to go. Lowepro made the top handle connect at the side... Brilliant!! There were an number of times I grabbed my gear by that strap without buckling or zipping the bag and I NEVER had my gear spill out. (think top handle connected to top of bad = SPILL). I got caught in the rain and pulled out the heavy duty all weather cover... perfect. I got caught in a light drizzle and used the a.w. quick cover... perfect. If I wanted MORE room I can attach extra pouches of all sorts to the sides of the bag. I honestly could not be more happy with a bag.
Customer Service Have not used them.... The bag is so indestructable the customer service guys must be bored out of thier minds at lowepro. Similar Products Used: I also use a Lowepro Mini Trekker backpack. Another good product if you paln on having nothing else on you back (not so good for backpacking around europe) |
[Oct 20, 2003]
thegrinchd
Professional
Strength:
- Can hold a full "road warrior" photog setup. - Well Padded - Lots of nooks and crannies for all the misc stuff (pens, mini-tripod, CF wallet, batteries, Advil, small radio. -Well Built -Weather resistant -Small enough (barely) to walk into most stadia/arenas
Weakness:
- It is SO big, you can overload it and kill yourself - Loose items can slide out of accessory pcokets if the bag tips in a car trunk. - You can't easily attach it to a roller bag, like my old smaller Tamrac. This is a well built bag that can hold ALOT, I keep two D-SLR Bodies in it D30/1D a speedlight, 80-200, a wide angle zoom, as well several smaller lenses and TCs. It can accomodate a full-size laptop, if your should can take the weight, which mine can't for long, as well as manuals, paperwork, a small radio, monopod or tripod on the bottom. The build quality is good, better then the smaller Tamrac I replaced with it. The only complaint I have is when I load it up, the shoulder strap, though nice, big and padded, still kills me. If you need to haul this much stuff, it may be a good idea to look into a backpack. Customer Service I contacted Lowepro about replacing some partitions, they responded quickly and politely via email, excellent. Similar Products Used: I tried the comparable Tamrac before I bought this, it seemed flimsy. |
[May 16, 2003]
Russell Dean
Intermediate
Strength:
Build quality, tons of room.
Weakness:
Knowing how large this bag is and for what equipment it is designed for, Lowepro should have included the deluxe waist belt with this item. Given how much this bag cost, it should have came with it. Heavy bag fully loaded. One star deducted for value due to belt not being included. This is an extremly large bag. This bag was designed to carry pro digital slrs big lenses and a notebook computer. I have not gone digital yet, but this bag will carry my Nikon F5, 80-200 2.8, 28-70 2.8, ( 28-70 or 80-200 attached) and my 300 f4 lenses and still have room for the flash and other necessities. With all of the gear inside, this bag borders on the acceptable limits of how big a shoulder bag should be. But if you want to carry big lenses and everything else, it is going to be big anyway. Obviously this monster is going to weigh a lot. If you carry this bag around for any length of time, with this much gear, I would recomend the deluxe belt to take some of the weight off of your shoulder. (optional item at Lowepro) Build quality is great. I would like to see more paded velcro partions so you can design the interior in the event you are not carrying one of your large lenses. There is a big bottomless pit of space without one of the lenses in that slot. The bag looks more like a large gym bag then a camera bag. Hence the word Stealth. Customer Service Never needed. Similar Products Used: Lowepro Nature Trekker |
[Aug 25, 2002]
jdbrandtmd
Expert
Strength:
- build quality - subtle styling (not outwardly obvious that it is a camera or computer bag) - Heavily padded shoulder strap - good protection in the laptop section - very configurable to accommodate different lenses & accessories - top zipper allows easy access to retrieve computer when going through security checkin at the airport without revealing all the camera equipment - Reasonably priced (almost $40 less than comparable Tamrac product, with better build quality, IMO)
Weakness:
- One feature on the Tamrac that I liked was the slot on the back to mount the bag on the handles of rolling luggage; I would like to see this on the LowePro product - No easily accessible holder for a cell phone on the strap or end I was looking for a bag that could accommodate both my PowerBook G4 along with my new Nikon D100 and several lenses. I was down to the Tamrac Photo Messenger (469) or the LowePro Stealth Reporter 600. I chose the LowePro because I felt the build quality of the LowePro product was better than the Tamrac, and the bag is more 'subtle', not screaming 'steal me' in an airport or out in public. The bag itself is remarkably light; fully loaded with my G4, a power adapter, a D100 and several lenses and a flash, it's quite heavy; nonetheless, all the equipment seems well protected. Customer Service Not needed Similar Products Used: Numerous other camera bags (Tamrac, Tenba, LowePro) |