Toffee have a good track record with us, every one of their products we’ve reviewed has been stylish and hard wearing. And the Toffee Fitzroy satchel looks to continue this trend.

Design

Toffee offer the bag in a variety of sizes (11”/13”/15” notebooks) and two colours, a khaki green and solid black. Our Fitzroy satchel is the black one, and being black it stays clean from its journeys out and about. Smooth brown real leather is used on the exterior push locks and this also accents the pockets inside, leaving the bag with an appealing vintage look, which the rectangular design emphasises. When worn over the shoulder, it sparks a smart casual look, highly suitable for work and school. 

Quality

So we can’t fault the aesthetic design, it feels great and looks it too. The reason for this is because the exterior of the bag is made from hard wearing cotton canvas and will age nicely as it’s used, infusing the vintage flare it already possesses. Combined with the pinstripe quilted lining featured on the interior of the bag, it’s substantially thick and not at all flimsy like many cheaper satchels. We were also impressed with the impeccable stitching, and the dense padding that lines the interior dividers and back of the Fitzroy. For this quality there is an associated premium price tag of £105 in the UK and $149 in the USA. We feel it’s justified, as a tough bag is essential if you’re like us and plan on carrying expensive products like a MacBook Pro, iPhone and iPad.

Day to Day Usage

Day to day routine usage of the Fitzroy was interesting, we didn’t get annoyed with the push locks, because they’re fairly loose in action, taking around four seconds to undo. They also make sure the bag is closed at all times when expected. We really liked the fact that sliding in belongings such as a MacBook Pro or iPad is painless and accomplished with one hand, because the Toffee Fitzroy is so rigid and the base is square so it can stand resting against objects too. The carrying strap is adjustable but can’t be removed, but is fairly comfortable with its accompanying velcro strap for resting on either shoulder to avoid irritation.

When we first took this bag out in the rain we were a little stumbled as to why it didn’t get wet. Being canvas it has the property to naturally resist water to some degree, but we were cautious not to get our expensive belongings water damaged in any way, and we also didn’t want the bag to get damp either. However, from the details given on the swing tag that came with the the Fitzroy, it would appear Toffee haven’t cut corners with water resistance, the canvas used is waxed and it turned out to resist heavy downpours really well.

Storage

The storage facilities the Toffee Fitzroy boasts were sufficient to hold our most needed/used possessions whilst on the move. Instead of providing lots of little pockets and sections, like we found on the Rickshaw iPad Messenger Bag, Toffee just have a simplified four sections  here, more similar to another satchel styled bag we’ve reviewed called the Bluelounge Messenger Bag.

The first pocket is zipped and independent from the others, all found underneath the flap of the satchel. It’s a spacious enough area for us to store our MacBook Pro charger and USB cables in.

Behind this is the main part of the bag where all the other sections are contained. At the front we have a section that is the length of the Toffee Fitzroy, spacious enough for a pair of headphones, some snacks, makeup, some documents and other nicknacks. Behind this (only on 13” & 15” models) is a pocket for tablets, it’s the perfect size for the non mini iPad, and then behind this is another compartment for a notebook. Our Fitzroy is designed for the MacBook Pro with Retina, it’s a tailored fit and one that is well protected by padding and a leather buckle that locks the notebook in place. 

Featured on the back of the Fitzroy, Toffee have included a pocket to keep a smartphone in; it will fit any phone up to the size of an iPhone 5/5s with a case equipped. It’s a novelty, but a highly practical one that makes using other satchels without it appear slightly more cumbersome: Taking phone calls quickly and having generally zippy access is very easy to become accustomed to.

Overall

We were most impressed with the Toffee Fitzroy satchel. Its prepossessing vintage image is the highlight of the bag, but that doesn’t mean we overlook the substantial build quality allowing for tough everyday usage, and the ample storage also provided so you can have a digital lifestyle on the go.