I have become very used to travelling with a cabin suitcase. It is easy on my back, has wheels, and after years of work travel, I know exactly how much I can squeeze into one. So taking the EUME Nexa 25L Laptop Backpack on a work trip to Mumbai was a bit of a departure for me. This was also not going to be a light backpack. My work kit has grown considerably over the years. It is no longer just a laptop and charger. There is an iPad, a compact tripod, recording microphones, books, personal essentials and all the little things I need through a workday. I also have a tendency to carry a water bottle and coffee mug everywhere. The first question in my head was simple. Could I actually carry all of this on my back? More importantly, would my back agree with the idea? After taking the Nexa on multiple trips, including that Mumbai work trip, I can say that I was pleasantly surprised by how well it worked for the kind of travel I do now.
What made me rethink the cabin suitcase
The Mumbai trip was the first time in a long time that I used a travel backpack as my cabin luggage instead of a cabin suitcase. Usually, I carry a sling bag along with my suitcase, but a sling has obvious limits. It can take my wallet, phone and a few personal bits, but a water bottle and a novel already start making things complicated. Add a coffee mug or a sandwich, and I am suddenly trying to be unnecessarily minimal. The EUME Nexa changed that.
I could put my laptop and iPad in their dedicated sections and still have enough room for my tripod, recording microphones, a book, a novel, water bottle, coffee mug, makeup bag and a few personal things such as mouth fresheners, hand cream and my prayer beads. I even had room for a small sandwich. What I liked was not just the amount of space. It was how accessible that space was. A cabin suitcase can hold a lot, but once everything is packed in, getting to one small thing usually means opening the suitcase and moving things around. With the Nexa, I could reach for what I needed much more easily. That made a bigger difference to my work trip than I expected.
A 25-litre backpack that does not look like a typical laptop bag
The EUME Nexa has a 25-litre capacity and measures 33 x 17 x 42 cm. It weighs 1.65 kg and has a dedicated compartment for laptops up to 15.6 inches, along with space for a tablet. EUME also specifies a water-resistant inner lining, YKK zippers, a cushioned mesh back panel and cushioned shoulder straps. But the specifications are not actually what made me like this backpack. It was the way it looked.
I have never been particularly interested in carrying a boring black laptop backpack just because it is practical. The Nexa has a much smarter, more polished appearance. The vegan leather gives it a structured finish and makes it look more like a work bag than a traditional backpack. That mattered to me because I was carrying it into meetings, hotels, airports and restaurants throughout the trip. It did not look out of place anywhere. In fact, it is the kind of backpack I was quite happy to be seen carrying. The inside is just as nicely finished. The lining feels good, the zippers have worked smoothly throughout my use, and there is a sense that the bag has been designed for someone carrying a lot of small things rather than simply throwing a laptop into one large compartment.
Everything finally had a place
I am a big fan of bags with proper pockets because I dislike digging around for small things. The Nexa has multiple internal and external pockets, and I found myself assigning specific things to specific spaces quite quickly. My prayer beads went into the inner zipped pocket. My wallet and card holder sat in the open inner pockets. The boarding pass went into the outer pocket along with my pen and diary. My tech and larger items stayed in the main compartment, while the side pocket made carrying my water bottle much easier.
That organisation sounds like a small thing, but it is exactly what made this bag work for me.
I could carry a surprisingly large amount without it turning into one giant compartment where everything was mixed. My tripod could sit alongside my recording equipment. My book and novel did not have to fight for space with my laptop. My coffee mug and water bottle could come along too. And then there was the sandwich. I am mentioning the sandwich because it is the sort of silly little detail that tells me a bag is actually useful. I did not have to make a choice between carrying my bottle and carrying something to eat. There was simply room for both.
But what about carrying all that weight?
This was the part I was genuinely concerned about. I have had enough experience with heavy bags to know that a good-looking backpack means very little if your shoulders and back are complaining after an hour. I was therefore prepared to miss my cabin suitcase. The Nexa is not feather-light at 1.65 kg before you add anything to it. Once fully packed with my laptop, iPad, tripod, microphones and all the other bits, there was obviously weight on my back.
Yet I honestly did not find it as difficult to carry as I expected. The shoulder straps are thick and cushioned, and the back has cushioning too. I could feel the weight, of course, but it did not become the sort of uncomfortable load that had me wishing I had brought my suitcase instead.
The bigger advantage came once I reached Mumbai. I did not need to carry everything with me every day.
On days when I needed the laptop, I took the laptop. On days when I was heading out for other activities, the tripod and recording equipment could stay in the hotel room. I could simply take what I needed for that particular day. That made getting around Mumbai much easier.
The little travel feature I ended up appreciating
The rear trolley strap is another feature that became more useful once I started travelling with the bag. It allows the Nexa to sit on the handle of a rolling suitcase, so you can use it as your personal work bag even when you are travelling with larger luggage.
For airports, this makes a lot of sense. I could use the backpack on its own for a shorter work trip, or place it over my suitcase when I needed both. It gave me the flexibility I usually get from a cabin suitcase and sling combination, without actually having to carry two separate bags.
Insights with EUME founder Naina Parekh
The one bit of wear I noticed
The outer material still looks good, but after using the bag on multiple trips, I did notice some chipping and bruising around the edges and close to the zippers. That is the only part of the bag that disappointed me. I suspect this is also one of those things that comes with regular use of this kind of material, particularly around areas that constantly rub against other surfaces. It has not affected the functioning of the bag, and the zippers themselves continue to work smoothly, but the wear is visible. For me, that is a reasonable trade-off for a bag that has actually been used rather than sitting pretty in a cupboard.
What I liked most after actually travelling with it
• The 25 litre capacity gave me room for considerably more than just my laptop and charger.
• The pocket layout meant that small things such as boarding passes, cards, prayer beads and pens had their own places.
• The side pocket made carrying my water bottle easy, which is something I often struggle with when using a sling bag.
• The look is much smarter than the average laptop backpack and works well for office meetings and travel.
• The padded straps and back panel made carrying a fully loaded bag more comfortable than I expected.
• The trolley strap makes it particularly useful at airports when you are also carrying a cabin suitcase.
• The zippers and inner finish have held up well during my trips, and everything has continued to work smoothly.
The one thing I would keep in mind is the vegan leather finish. The edges and areas around the zippers can show signs of wear with regular travel, so this is not a bag I would expect to remain completely pristine forever.
So, would I choose the backpack again?
I think this is the biggest change the EUME Nexa brought to my travel routine.
I went to Mumbai thinking I was taking a backpack because I wanted to try something different. I came back realising that my work travel has changed enough for a backpack to actually make more sense on some trips. I now carry far more technology and equipment than I used to. A laptop, iPad, tripod and recording microphones are part of my regular work kit, along with the usual personal things. The Nexa gave all of these things space without making me feel as if I was carrying several separate bags.
I still love my cabin suitcase, particularly when I am travelling with clothes for several days. But for a short work trip where the bulk of what I am carrying is technology, equipment and everyday essentials, this backpack has made a very convincing case for itself. And perhaps the biggest thing I learnt from taking it to Mumbai is that a backpack does not have to mean giving up on comfort, organisation or a polished work look.
Sometimes, you just need one bag that lets you put everything in it and get on with your day.
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