WaterField Designs’ X-Air Duffel is a carry-on duffel bag that solves many problems for frequent fliers. High-quality components and an incredibly well-thought-out design make it one of the best under-seat luggage options around — especially for anybody who tends to carry a lot of Apple gear.
Meticulously crafted, with loads of luxurious details, it’s roomy enough to hold a couple of days’ worth of clothing. And yet it’s still small enough to cram under most airlines’ seats. Dedicated compartments safely hold your MacBook, iPad and other devices, keeping them well organized for in-flight use.
WaterField Designs X-Air Duffel review: Quality under-seat luggage
When it comes to bags and luggage, you can choose from two paths to follow. You can cheap out, buying something that will frustrate you with its shortcomings (jammed zippers, flimsy construction, etc.). This type of carry-on bag inevitably will end up in the trash bin within a couple of years. Alternatively, you can invest in a high-quality piece that will last virtually forever, without the slow degradation that afflicts lesser products.
With WaterField Designs’ extensive lineup of purpose-made bags, you can be sure you’re taking the high road — the San Francisco bag company charges a premium for its products. And the X-Air Duffel is no different. Made in San Francisco of high-performance, waterproof X-Pac material with black, full-grain leather accents, the X-Air Duffel proves lightweight yet rugged. It comes with two compartments — an “office” for your laptop, etc., and a main compartment for clothes or whatever else you like. Overall, it measures 16 inches long by 9.75 inches wide by 10.75 high and weighs just 2.4 pounds.
At that size, this tech-oriented carry-on bag will fit under the seat of almost any airline, while still holding your precious tech arsenal. Whether it’s small enough to work as your “personal item” on some of the world’s skinflint airlines is another question, but if you get creative it can pass even the strictest of tests.
A personal item that fits underneath practically any airplane seat
Photo: Lewis Wallace/Cult of Mac
For instance, the X-Air Duffel worked perfectly on a recent United Airlines flight. It held all my gear in an organized fashion, making it easy to find my MacBook Air, iPad Pro, AirPods Pro and all the cords and chargers they depend. The under-seat luggage also gave me quick access to my water bottle and other in-flight essentials. (The hardest part? Bending down to reach my feet in my cheap economy seat.)
You should face the same experience on virtually all U.S. flights. When it comes to certain international carriers, however, you might need to take certain precautions. For instance, as a penny-pinching traveler on a Tap Air Portugal flight late last year, I faced rather daunting carry-on restrictions.
The Portuguese airline sometimes enforces its ridiculous personal item size limit of 16 inches by 12 inches by 5 inches, with a max weight of 4.4 pounds. As you can see by the X-Air Duffel specs above, WaterField’s bag is clearly too deep (9.75 inches versus Tap’s 5-inch mandate). Plus, even with nothing inside, the featherweight X-Air weighs more than half of Tap’s puny allowance.
I got around the spartan maximums by lashing a cheap adjustable cinch strap around the X-Air Duffel to flatten it out. I left my iPad Pro and a few other things in the under-seat bag. But I moved my “heavy” MacBook Air to my carry-on luggage so I could limbo under Tap’s ludicrous weight limit.
Premium carry-on bag with an ‘office’ to hold all your Apple gear
Photo: Lewis Wallace/Cult of Mac
The X-Air Duffel review unit WaterField Designs sent me came in olive green, but the ingenious under-seat bag also comes in deep blue, slate and black. (A waxed canvas version is also now available.) The interior lining — a distinctive goldenrod-colored nylon that makes it easy to spot things on the bottom of the bag — marries incredibly thinness with remarkable durability. Waterproof YKK zippers with custom metal pulls keep everything securely buttoned up.
As mentioned, the well-designed “office” compartment of the X-Air Duffel easily holds an enormous amount of tech. It consists of three storage areas. A padded, neoprene-lined pocket on one side can hold up to a 16-inch MacBook Pro and a 12.9-inch iPad Pro with Magic Keyboard. An unpadded pocket on the other side of the office compartment easily holds any Apple tablet. Smaller twin pockets hold cables, chargers and other miscellaneous gear.
… with plenty of organized storage and a spacious compartment for clothes
Between the office compartment’s two large pockets for laptops and tablets, a 2-inch-by-16-inch slot can hold books, bulky power banks or — highly recommended — one of WaterField’s clever pouches, which provide an excellent way to organize all your cables, dongles and other tech accessories. Or you can grab one of the company’s handy Air Caddy sleeves to hold for your iPad, AirPods and other in-flight necessities.
On the other side of a thin divider, the X-Air Duffel’s larger compartment measures roughly 8 inches wide by 16 inches long by 10 inches high. That’s large enough to stash a pair of shoes, a change of clothes or two, and some food — everything you’d need for an ordinary overnight or weekend trip. Sleek interior pockets help with organizing smaller goods. And a built-in keychain gives you a convenient place to securely store the one thing you won’t need during your trip but definitely will want when you arrive back home.
X-Air Duffel is built to last, with high-quality materials
Photo: Lewis Wallace/Cult of Mac
As per usual, WaterField does not skimp on anything with this exceptional under-seat luggage. Magnetic Fidlock closures on the bag’s front cargo pockets slide open to give you quick access to whatever you stuffed inside. And, reminiscent of Apple’s genius use of magnets in its products, the Fidlock buckles magically snap closed. At first, the high-end fasteners confused me. But once you understand how Fidlocks work, you will wonder why any bag manufacturer uses anything else. Say goodbye to grasping, tugging and squeezing as you try to get a lesser clasp to open or close.
A pair of extra-long handles with leather grips give you an easy way to carry the bag. For some people, including me, the handles will prove long enough to work as shoulder straps. However, the X-Air Duffel comes with a detachable WaterField Supreme Suspension Strap. Luxuriously padded, this strap grips your shoulder with a 4mm textured neoprene segment that’s stretchy and supremely comfortable.
And, as with all things WaterField, the strap comes with high-quality connectors. The company designed its own swiveling snap hooks. These matte-black metal hooks are a far cry from the cheap plastic ones on inexpensive bags.
WaterField Designs X-Air Duffel: Final thoughts on premium under-seat luggage
If you want this kind of quality from your under-seat luggage, you’re going to pay for it. The X-Air Duffel lists for $459, and WaterField rarely offers discounts. That’s a lot of money for a piece of carry-on luggage. But, unlike with lesser bags, this one isn’t going to wear out in a couple of years.
If you’re a frequent flyer with plenty of tech to tote around, you will appreciate WaterField’s attention to detail. The company’s consistent use of high-quality materials and components will surprise and delight you many times during your travels.
Everything about this streamlined under-seat bag screams quality. It might be the ultimate carry-on luggage for frequent flyers with serious tech requirements. The only downside is its price. But as every Apple fan knows: You get what you pay for.
Price: $459
Buy from: WaterField Designs
★★★★★
WaterField Designs provided Cult of Mac with a review unit for this article. See our reviews policy, and check out more in-depth reviews of Apple-related items.
