WaterField Designs Essential Crossbody Pouch (Merch)
Official GBAtemp Review
Product Information:
- Publisher: WaterField Designs
- Official Store: https://www.sfbags.com/products/essential-crossbody-pouch
WaterField Designs has made some compelling premium tech backpacks and gaming accessories, often with a minimalist design that doesn’t compromise on the functionality. The San Francisco-based company has further accentuated this philosophy with its latest product line, the Essentials Collection. Lightweight and streamlined, they are meant to help you carry your tech and belongings with ease and in style.
Featuring among the Essentials Collection is the Essential Crossbody Pouch, a expansion of your pocket if you will. Be sure to take a peek at the official product page to get a glimpse of the product before diving in this review!
Retailing for $89 on the official WaterField Designs website, the Essential Crossbody Pouch comes in four colour accents (Red, Blue, Green and Black) and has the following features:
- Material: 1680 Denier Black ballistic nylon and Forza nylon
- Dimensions: 8.25” (h) x 6.25” (l) x 2.5” (w); 6.4 oz. / 20.95 (h) x 6.35 (l) x 15.87 (w) cm; 0.18 kg
- Volume: 2.1 litres
As is customary with WaterField Designs’ products, the Essential Crossbody Pouch is of premium quality. Even if I prefer their canvas finish, the ballistic nylon material is of a sturdy quality that also looks and feels good with its black finish and a subtle coloured open compartment. The ballistic nylon is also abrasion- and water-resistant, adding to the longevity of the item. In fact, I haven’t had any issues with other WaterField Designs’ products I’ve used in the past and I’m sure the Crossbody Pouch will also be a lasting item as it bears the same make calibre.
The attention paid in designing the product is also evident. The back of the bag features a padded, moisture-wicking mesh that makes carrying the bag comfortable and unobtrusive. The strap, which is easily adjustable with a one-handed manoeuvre, is removable which enables the Crossbody Pouch to double as an organisational add-on to tuck in another bag. The front zipper features a key hook which is extremely convenient to store/retrieve keys without having to fiddle with the pockets’ contents.
As for storage areas, the Essential Crossbody Pouch keeps it simple with three access points: a zippered main compartment, a front zippered pocket, and front open pocket. The main compartment further features an interior pocket that can fit in an iPad mini but it can also fit in a small book/notebook or even a small eReader. I myself think it’s great to use to fit in a pocketable handheld like the Anbernic RG350M and, for travelling, tickets and my passport. The main compartment also easily stores the case for my glasses, a powerbank and a tote bag with some extra space left.
As for the front zippered pocket, I found it to be ideal for my earbuds, wallet and spare pen. The key tether in this compartment is also a very welcome addition to quickly have access to/store your house or car keys. Notes and tickets also easily slide into the open pocket.
What’s enticing about the Essential Crossbody Pouch is the ease of access it provides. Once you’ve adjusted the strap to your desired length, you can easily access the pockets and retrieve items in a jiffy. Given that our smartphones are getting larger, foldable, rollable and what-not, this pouch easily expands the capacity of what you can carry in your pockets in an organised fashion while freeing your pockets altogether. The waterproof YKK zippers also provide some much-needed peace of mind to securely store your tech belongings in the pouch.
I found myself adopting the Essential Crossbody Pouch as a replacement for my pockets. I usually put in my phone, wallet, earbuds, and tote bag when I head out for a quick shopping trip. For longer journeys, it handily holds my sunglasses, powerbank and retro handheld, in addition to the aforementioned items. Your configuration might vary based on your needs but this pouch is an easy winner as a travel companion.
Even if I’ve grown to make the Essential Crossbody Pouch part of my daily gear, there are some features I’d have liked to see in it to make it a more compelling accessory. Firstly, the main compartment’s interior pocket isn’t padded. If you wish to fit in an iPad mini or eReader, you might want it to be padded to provide added protection. WaterField Designs does feature padded inner pockets and they could have done so with this pouch as well.
Also relating to the main compartment, while the interior is easily accessible, it would have been better to have the zippers to open up further down. Their current design can feel restrictive and having it open further would enable easier access and might even enable fitting items of odd shapes and dimensions.
Lastly, I wish that the strap included a shoulder pad to further enhance the comfort. While the Essential Crossbody Pouch isn’t meant to be heavy with tons of items, further comfort is always welcome. A shoulder pad could have been a removable option for those wishing to have one.
All in all, the Essential Crossbody Pouch WaterField Designs is a well rounded pouch to expand your pocket’s carrying capacity and essentially free up your pockets. It’s not exactly cheap but it won’t break the bank either. If you’ve been looking for a quality pouch to conveniently carry your items in style, then the Essential Crossbody Pouch is worth looking into.
Product Link
Interested in the Crossbody Pouch? Be sure to check out the official store link below as well as the new Essential Collection line!
Verdict
- Premium build quality
- Minimal design without compromising on storage space
- Easily adjustable and removable strap
- Convenient, lightweight pouch
- Inner compartment isn’t padded
- Main compartment zippers’ opening can feel restrictive
- No shoulder pad
