​This is what an $850 laptop bag looks like: Slaint Arroe Briefcase 15 review

Slaint calls itself a technology-enhanced luxury brand and to be fair, we instantly saw why. The Black Arroe briefcase may look unremarkably blocky at the first glance, but a double take and some hands on time shows you there’s more going on.

It partly resembles a briefcase but the two handles on the sides say otherwise. There’s also a shoulder strap loop so you’ve a rigid briefcase with different carrying accoutrements.

It’s hand-made from premium saddle leather and, we’re told, takes 50 hours to construct. It’s very solid on all sides and the top consists of two solid magnetized flaps – you can’t lock it as there’s no clasp, but it feels secure for travelling. That said, we turned it upside-down and gave it a shake and our laptop crashed out onto the floor. So don’t do that. There are three metal strips on the base to protect the leather there.

Despite the leather-clad-boxy nature, the quality of the leather, stitching and construction is there. While some unkind jibes said it looked like an expandable file storage box, that’s inevitable with many statement pieces – though some people will be able to pull it off more successfully than others.

It’s very solid but weighs just 2.9KG on its own.

Our model also came with a substantial 12,000mAh external battery (via its own popper-sealed compartment at the base) which lets you charge your devices.

We’re not beyond criticising it, though. The three internal compartment flaps (phone, tablet and laptop-sized) aren't snug and don’t secure the devices inside. Furthermore, there’s no gap in the bottom of each compartment to let the charging cable through, which seems like a silly oversight. In terms of construction, under some light you can make out the magnets beneath the surface of lid. While this isn’t prominent it does somewhat take away from that perfectly-crafted, artisan feel that you're supposed to be paying for.

But that’s all minor. This is an uncommon statement piece and a good one at that. If price-tags have no meaning to you and you want a well-built, leather briefcase (with better handling) for your tech, then this will suit you, sir.

Price $849 from The Iconic

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