Targus' singing backpack

Juniper Foo | Jan 21, 2008

Here's a pet peeve. There's nothing more irritating than someone thumping out music from a (insert: Boombox, speakerphone, stereo player) to the world at large as if they're doing us a huge favor. Reality check: In Asia, this constitutes being a public nuisance. Sometimes, one can get slapped with a hefty fine.

Having gotten that off the chest, here's something from Targus that audiophiles on-the-move may just go for. We spotted the SonicPak backpack with internal speakers at a CES event in Las Vega. This comes with two speakers and a lightweight amplifier that includes NXT "exciters", which are supposed to offer quality sound. Though given the din at the show, we weren't able to discern just how good this really was.

What's nifty is that the front panel speakers are removable while designed to be protected from the elements by a shock-resistant EVA panel and water-resistant zippers. Makes sense if you're going to backpack and tough it out in the Great Outdoors or at the beach. For e-juice, there's a battery compartment with an on/off switch and a power-indicator LED light.

Souped-up feature aside, this Targus bag follows the usual route of offering a padded compartment to hold a notebook (15.4-inch). Other useful features are side mesh water bottle holders, adjustable, padded shoulder straps, molded carrying handle, oversized zipper pulls, and a fully equipped interior workstation with plentiful pockets for accessories.

The backpack measures 36 x 19 x 46cm and weighs 1.6kg. We're told it ships in March, for US$99.99.

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