Unlike many other leather bags, the Two23 bag uses some of the finest top grain leather. This makes the leather both heavier and thicker than other bags and provides greater protection for your netbook. The Two23 leather netbook messenger bag is currently only being sold in the United States at a price point of $189, reflecting the quality of materials used. Click through for our impressions.

The Two23 netbook messenger bag uses natural materials such as leather and canvas. As you can tell from the pictures, the bag is manufactured from very thick leather. Most leather bags are made from thin leather, around 0.8mm in thickness, to keep costs low. This Two23 bag uses 2.75mm thick leather. The bag goes through a 5 day dying process to add colour all the way through the thickness of the vegetable tanned leather. This means it stays looking fresh even after many years of wear.

The Two23 netbook bag is made from vegetable tanned leather, rather than a chromium based tanning process. Whilst this is more expensive, it results in a stiffer leather that holds its shape better. This compares to softer leather from a chromium leather process. Vegetable tanning also leaves the pores of the leather open that allows the surface to oxidize and absorb hand oils to take on a sheen.

There is a strong strap on the back of the bag that allows it to be attached to the handle of a suitcase. A small Velcro strip on the underside keeps the strap flush with the bag when not in use.

The Two23 bag has been designed to maximise the space on the inside without adding bulk on the outside. The small size enables it to be used with ease when travelling, allowing it to be stowed under the seat on a plane. The approximate exterior dimensions are 11.5” (W) x 10” (H) x 5.5” (D). The internal dimensions measures 10.5” (W) x 7.5” (H) x 2.5” (D).

Two small leather loops are attached at the bottom of the bag to enable it to stand upright on its own. Even when fully loaded these ‘feet’ do a great job of keeping the bag standing.

The picture below gives you a good idea on how thick most of the leather in the bag is. The edge of the leather is not a trim piece sewn over the edge, but the actual edge of the leather. The edges of the leather were intentionally unfinished to show the quality of the leather. The thick chrome buckles are attached very securely, showing a high level of craftsmanship.

As the bag is made by hand, every one is different. They are not guaranteed to be perfect because of this and the leather may have slight imperfections and marks on it. The bag is double stitched at all of the stress points. There may be places where the stitching doesn’t look uniform, as it is not machine sewn. Two23 says that if the bag received is not perfect, it will replace it free of charge. However, each bag is inspected and insured to meet high quality standards. There were no issues with our sample bag.

The bag has a simple flap held together by two chrome magnetic fasteners.

Two23 has used some high-quality fasteners that have a catch area that means the flap should stay securely in place, even when the main compartment is stretched to the limit.

The flap system used means that the main netbook compartment is very easy to open. This gives you quick access when needing to get your netbook out in a hurry (for example when screening at airports).

As well as the robust stitching used, the bag comes with a solid metal zip and large metal zippers. These zippers allow for good grip, making opening/closing the front zipped compartment very easy.

Unusually, the Two23 netbook bag’s handle comes in two parts. The shorter part has buckles on both sides that allow you to use it to carry the bag in your hand, much like a handle. There is also an extra long strap that can be fed through the shorter part. This makes the strap adjustable from 49-62-inches. With the longer strap attached you can use it as a shoulder strap or you can strap it to the extended handle of a suitcase when travelling.

As with other areas of the bag, high quality metal buckles are used on each of the straps.

The shorter strap allows the bag to be carried in the hand comfortably.

Attaching the larger strap works like a typical belt and has a number of holes to adjust the length to your desired need.

Another small loop is included to make sure the loose part of the longer strap is kept together with the rest of the strap. This can be seen on the very right side of the picture below.

Most other leather bags are made using only surface colour. This means that any wear and tear shows up as a sharp contrast to the leather as the thin layer of colour is worn through. This is most apparent at the edges and corners of these types of bag. As the Two23 uses premium leather material, this bag will not suffer from the same effect.

There is one main zipped compartment at the front of the bag. This is mainly for smaller devices such as phones, MP3 players, cameras, memory cards etc. There is also one pocket designed to carry a mouse. The compartment also includes a pen holder, a leash and clip for keys and room for 6 USB devices. There’s no nylon in this bag, the lining and pocket material uses a warm-feeling canvas material.

This bag can easily support other gadgets apart from the netbook itself. We were able to test this out by sticking a Blackberry, mouse, phone, MP3 player and a couple of SD cards without any issues.

Inside the main compartment, there is a leather strap towards the bottom that has a Velcro strip on the top.

The bottom of the bag can be used to store the netbooks charger and cord as seen below.

This flap is then folded over and attached to the Velcro strip on the case. The idea is that it separates these cables and the netbook can be placed on top without worrying about scratching the netbook. It keeps the main compartment nice and tidy.

Two23 says that the bag will accept most netbooks with display sizes of 12-inches and under.

Here you can see a Toshiba NB200 with 6-cell battery inside the bag. This netbook probably has one of the largest protruding batteries out there, hence you can see it sticking it out slightly at the top.

Not that this is a problem. There is plenty of room inside the bag and the flap is easily large enough to cover the bag. The bag is certainly very stylish and should appeal to business people or those who frequently travel.

We estimate that the Two23 bag weighs 1.66lkg (3.7lbs) with both straps included. This is heavier than other bags out there but reflects the quality of materials used.

Overall, it was a real pleasure reviewing the Two23 leather netbook messenger bag. It is not as refined as other bags we’ve reviewed in the past, but it has a distinct charm of its own. It is quite clear that a lot of thinking has gone into the bag and this shows through in some innovative design decisions.

We really liked the fact that you could hide a netbooks power cables and plug adaptor in the bottom of the main netbook compartment and cover this with a leather flap. We also liked the innovative strap that allows you to use the bag with a handle or shoulder strap.

The quality of materials and high levels of craftsmanship are evident throughout the bag. The bag is intended for many years of use, as the leather wears it will inherit a unique character of its own. Some people will rightfully say that the cost of the bag is nearly as much as some netbooks. However, considering the dearth of luxury netbook bags on the market, we are sure that there will be quite a few people who this appeals to. Whilst the $189 price point may be a sticking point for some, for those that want a stylish and premium netbook bag, the Two23 netbook messenger bag is well worth considering.

Many thanks to Two23 for sending through this very unique bag for review! Two23 currently ships to all locations in the Continental U.S.

The polyurethane laptop pouch is available in two sizes (10.1 and 11.6-inches) so I imagine even if you haven’t got a Corby coloured netbook / ultra-thin you could always use the pouch with your existing netbook as some kind of fashion statement. It looks like it will be exclusive to Korea for now though.

Via Akihabara News.

In terms of resolution, 720p (1280 x 720) is supported over HDMI and 1400 x 1050 is supported over VGA. The minimum requirements are a 1.6GHz Atom processor, 512MB RAM and a Windows operating system. The kit will cost 13,800 Yen ($147, €108, £96) when it hits retail on 12 April.

Via PC Watch [via Netbooked].

The X25-V uses 34nm MLC NAND flash memory and features TRIM support within Windows 7. It has a 1.2 million hours mean time before failure rating. The sustained write bandwidth is up 35MB/sec while sustained reads is a zippy 170MB/sec. These drives are aimed at netbooks, although whilst 40GB may be fine for a Windows XP installation, I do wonder whether the same can be said for a Windows 7 install.

“It’s basically 6 screws, pulling off a bezel, unconnecting the old screen and plugging this one in. That’s it. It’s a 5 minute operation”, says Jepsen. Pricing and netbook compatibility remains a mystery for now.

The Cool Bananas OldSchool Netbook Messenger Bag costs £28.97. GearZap apply a small delivery charge on top of this depending on whether shipping is to the UK or mainland Europe. GearZap are a specialist retailer of netbook and laptop accessories. They have an extensive catalogue of products and deliver across Europe. Click through for our impressions on this OldSchool Netbook Messenger Bag.

The messenger bag has very classic styling as judged by its ‘OldSchool’ name. It is made out of high standard materials and wouldn’t be seen out of place for business use. Even just looking at it screams of premium quality.

The back of the bag includes one zipped compartment with enough room to place small accessories such as USB sticks or pens/pencils etc.

The styling of the bag is very chic. As with most other messenger bags it has a front flap that covers its main pouch, with a Cool Bananas logo on the bottom right. The bag’s dimensions are 34cm (W) x 29cm (H) x 7cm (D).

As befits the styling of the messenger bag, it’s nice to see that Cool Bananas embossed its logo into the flap rather than including its usual coloured logo that would have seemed out of place. The exterior is made out of a soft leatherette material. You’d be hard pressed to tell the difference between real leather as the texture looks and feels very similar.

As with other Cool Bananas products, stitching is of the highest quality. All of the seams feel robust and overall the bag has the feeling of a long lasting and durable product.

This extends to the zips that feel robust when opening and closing pockets. The zippers themselves are made out of a brass-like material that adds a touch of classiness to the overall proposition. They are large enough to easily grab hold of and have good grip.

The inside of the pockets are lined with black nylon, fitting well with the rest of the messenger bag.

The front flap is fastened by two magnetic poppers allowing for easy and convenient access.

The same nylon lining material is used on the underside of the flap, which prevents the bag getting dirty. Apart from the main compartment, there is another pocket held by a single magnetic fastener that sits in front of it.

It’s the little touches that count in any product and the metal fasteners used feel expensive. They come together easily and have just the right amount of resistance to easily open the flap.

The high quality of materials extends to the padded shoulder strap. The great thing about the messenger bag is that there is enough room for both a netbook and documents that means the bag can be used as a sole bag for work/business.

The Cool Bananas messenger bag should last a long time. It has been constructed well and the stitching feels secure. The same brass-like metal is used in the strap coupling.

The shoulder strap is made of a soft satin-like material that feels very nice in the hand. The padded part is made from the same leather style material and is thick enough to not cause any agro whilst on the move.

The front compartment has enough room for loose paperwork or small accessories. It is fastened by a single magnetic button.

The main compartment is divided into two areas. One is a padded area for your netbook and the other can be used to house pens/pencils and documents.

This can be seen more clearly below, with our Toshiba NB200 netbook on the left and space on the right for pens and documents.

Our Toshiba NB200 had no problems in sliding into the case with room for much more.

The messenger bag is designed for netbooks (or CULV ultrathins) with display sizes up to 12.1-inches. We tested this with the 11.6-inch Samsung N510 netbook that fit inside leaving plenty of space for other bits and pieces.

The bag itself is reasonably lightweight considering the build quality and materials used. According to our measurements, the messenger bag weighed 761g.

Overall, reviewing the OldSchool Netbook Messenger Bag reinforced the high regard we have for Cool Bananas products. There is no doubting the high quality of craftsmanship that has gone into its construction and the premium feel of materials used.

The only surprising thing about the bag is the price. It feels much more expensive than it is, for less than £30 you get a messenger bag that would not look out of place for business use. This is perhaps where the bag is targeted with the ability to carry around netbooks up to 12.1-inches in size along with enough room for documents and small accessories. Even for everyone else, it is a stylish bag that should last for a long time and comes fully recommended.

Many thanks to GearZap for sending through this bag for review! GearZap is the sister-site of Mobile Fun, one of the largest mobile accessory sites in the UK.

The UltimateAddons netbook sling bag comes in two colours, black (which we tested) and olive green. It was sent over for us to review by those nice guys over at Ultimate-Netbook who ship these bags at a cost of £19.99 with free worldwide delivery. Ultimate-Netbook is a specialist retailer of netbook accessories, including bags and cases. Read on to find out our thoughts on the netbook sling bag.

The UltimateAddons netbook sling bag is small, lightweight and comes with detachable shoulder straps. As with other UltimateAddons products tested, build quality is of a high standard. The exterior is made from durable 1000D Nylon.

The UltimateAddons bags are designed in-house, which means a high level of quality assurance. The company is confident enough in their range to offer a 30-day money back guarantee as well as providing a 12-month warranty.

The sling bag has one main compartment that fits the netbook, along with two zipped compartments on either side of the bag. The bag has external dimensions of 28cm (L) x 22cm (H) x 8cm (W).

To prevent the bottom of the bag getting scuffed whilst out and about, two large plastic feet sit at the bottom. These also help in keeping you netbook protected against shocks when putting the bag on the floor.

As you would expect for a bag designed for use in the outdoors, the sling bag is waterproof. This includes protective waterproof zips that feel secure when opening and closing the bag.

As you would have noticed from the previous picture, the lining of the bag comes in a fashionable orange colour. Two side pockets sit on either side of the bag.

If you prefer to carry the case in your hands, rather than the shoulder, then handles are hidden in the top pocket on each side of the bag.

The handles feel sturdy enough to carry c2kg (the weight of a netbook plus accessories) quite comfortably. The handle straps are wide enough not to dig into your hand causing uncomfort.

Opening up the main compartment of the case, reveals the Orange lining but also a surprise. If £19.99 wasn’t good value enough for the sling bag, it also includes a free 10.2-inch neoprene sleeve inside as well as a smaller pouch to house USB/Bluetooth dongles.

The sleeve is of higher quality than those normally included as part of the netbook package.

It includes a Velcro strip on the top to prevent the netbook slipping out and stretchy side material to ensure that most 8.9 to 10-inch netbooks should fit comfortably.

The small pouch case is attached to the inside of the case with a Velcro strap. This means it shouldn’t go flying on the inside of the book whilst travelling.

The small pouch also includes a Velcro strap and is made from similar material to the outside of the case, feeling quite robust. You could use this to store anything little such as USB, Bluetooth or 3G dongles or even a small MP3/media player.

The inside of the case is made from orange waterproof 420D nylon. Whilst the orange may not to be with everyone’s taste, it does make it easy to quickly tell what is inside of the case. The inside contains various pockets and compartments to include pens, memory cards etc.

There are two internal zipped compartments that have a reasonable amount of room for small accessories or paperwork.

The insides have dimensions of 27cm (L) x 21.5cm (H) x 7cm (W). There’s easily enough room to fit any 10-inch netbook on the market, including the Toshiba NB200 with its large protruding 6-cell battery.

Whilst it’s only marketed for up to 10-inch netbooks, we didn’t have a problem fitting our 11.6-inch Samsung N510 ION netbook too.

The zip was a little tricky with the Samsung N510 inside, but didn’t have to be forced close. We would feel quite comfortable using the sling bag on the road with a larger netbook/CULV machine in tow.

The bag itself is very lightweight weighing 447g according to our measurements. This makes it ideal for the active amongst you, or cyclists looking for a light bag to carry their netbooks.

Overall, we enjoyed our experience with the UltimateAddons netbook sling bag. It offers a lightweight, waterproof bag that is strong and durable enough to carry your netbook safely. The sling bag has a number of pockets that means you should be able to carry most of your netbook accessories and other bits and pieces with you too. You can even choose to use the shoulder strap or handles depending on preference.

There was also the added bonus of being able to carry 11.6-inch netbooks/CULVs as well. If that wasn’t good enough the sling bag also includes a high quality neoprene sleeve. This only adds to its value proposition and one that we can easily recommend at £19.99 (free delivery worldwide).

Many thanks to Ultimate-Netbook for sending through this bag for review! Ultimate-Netbook is a specialist retailer of netbook accessories and ship their products worldwide.

As an XBMC user for many years, I was very excited to hear that the development team has announced support for the Broadcom Crystal HD video accelerator across all three major platforms (Windows, Linux and OSX). This means hardware decoding of MPEG-2, H.264 and VC1 1080p video content will be coming to those netbooks with the Broadcom Crystal HD mini PCI-E (BCM970012) installed.

Whilst many have bought these mini PCI-E cards already, the software support is somewhat limited and includes WMP 12, Flash Player 10.1, ArcSoft TotalMedia Theatre and CyberLink PowerDVD. The arrival of XBMC support is a major milestone as it’s one of the best media players around and should be able to play anything you throw at it.

The new code will be available in the next release of the project. The drivers can be downloaded from the Broadcom site. The Mini PCI-E Broadcom Crystal HD card can be bought from Logic Supply for $69, or you can always try your luck on eBay where you can find it for as cheap as $25.

The single-chip HD video decoder can provide video playback of a number of different codecs including H.264/AVC, MPEG-2, VC-1, WMV9, MPEG-4, DivX, Xvid and AVS. It also provides support for Adobe Flash Player (v10.1) and Windows Media Player (v12).

Whilst a genuine alternative to Nvidia’s ION chipset, it is worth noting that Broadcom’s solution is only applicable for video and not games (unlike ION). The BCM70015 will be available in mini PCI-E format, as well as having the motherboard option.

The Seagate Momentus will come with 8MB of cache, a SATA 3.0Gb/sec interface and a 5400RPM spin speed. The company claims that over 90 percent of netbooks use 2.5-inch HDDs that are 9.5mm in thickness. There are no details on price right now, although the Seagate Momentus Thin is expected to be available from January 2010.