The Expedition
When Grinder Gear named their third bag the Expedition, they did it for good reason. This bag has so much room for your PDA and other items that you could go for quite a long excursion and be fine. Upon first inspection, this bag seems to be built like a suitcase for you Palm device. Made with the same nylon Cordura material as the other bags, with a large zippered opening around three sides and a large handle along the binding, this bag is ready to be taken anywhere.

When opened, the bag reveals fleece lining, elastic straps sewn into the right hand side for securing your PDA, and a bind strap on the left hand side for a small notebook. There are also loops and pockets on the binding for your stylus, pens, and batteries. Figure E gives you an idea of all you can store in the bag.

FIGURE E


The Expedition has room for just about anything you could need. Roll over picture for a larger image.

The back of the bag has the same belt loops and clip that are found on the other two bags. On the front of the bag, meanwhile, there's a mesh pocket with another zippered pocket beside it. You can see these in Figure F.

FIGURE F


Two more pockets are available on the front of the Expedition. Roll over picture for a larger image.

Into this bag I loaded my trusty Palm IIIxe, a pair of pens, four AA batteries, my wallet, my Band-Aids, my pocketknife, a small flashlight, and my cell phone. This bag is so wide and long that the mesh pocket on the front was able to house my Nokia 5100 series cell phone as well as the flashlight with no difficulty. I stored my wallet in place of the notebook pictured above, but either would work fine depending on what your needs are. I actually had a bit more room in one of the interior pockets, but I had nothing else to shove into the bag. Of course, with everything I was carrying, I knew my belt would have to be very tight around my waist to keep from losing my pants.

I hiked for a mile with the Expedition bag. It turned out to be a very long mile, as it was getting dark and the Band-Aids were doing little for my feet. The bag performed well, despite the weight of it. I never had any doubts about the security of the belt loops (or my belt for that matter). However, due to the size of this bag and the weight of it when full, I did find it to be rather bulky when trying to move quickly. I was always aware of it on my belt, and due to the zippered opening, my Palm device wasn't as easy to reach as it was with the flip top design of the other two cases. However, this bag doesn't fail when it comes to providing room enough to store a wide variety of items in addition to your PDA. It's definitely the Cadillac of SUBs.

Conclusion
All three of these bags are high quality, stylish products that I recommend strongly. They provide a great level of protection for your PDA while providing you with the option to carry additional items that may be necessary for you or your PDA. Since first trying these bags out, I've been using the Basecamp model on an everyday basis, whether it's just to go to the office or out to run errands. Even if I'm just carrying my Palm device in my briefcase, I like to keep it tucked inside the bag because it's nice to know it has the additional level of protection the bag provides.