Thanks to the office Steam Deck, I now have a choice of venues for playing Infinity Nikki: on the sofa, wrapped up in a duvet, AND avoiding all of my responsibilities. Jokes aside, handheld gaming PCs have ushered in an era of AAA gaming-on-the-go, but they're still fairly bulky devices. Well, the latest collection from Asus sports bags that attempt to protect your preciously priced hardware in style.
With a price tag of $800 for the ROG Ally X, you can't just pop your handheld into a sizeable pocket and carry on without first confronting the fear of a scratched-up screen at least; a specialised carry case is a must for anyone wanting to take their handheld further afield than the couch. As such, Asus has revealed new additions in its Slash line of travel bags specifically for stowing your ROG Ally and similar handhelds. Unfortunately…well, I'll just put it this way: I don't think these bags are going to feature in many look books this season.
Three different bags have been announced: The Slash Sling Bag 4.0, the Slash Sleeve 4.0, and the Slash Backpack 4.0. Though they're not winning any points for those product names…well, they likely won't be scoring particularly highly in the stylist battle either.
All of the bags are available in a tasteful all-over-black colourway, with the sling bag and sleeve both featuring "tear- and water-resistant construction." I can only theorise as to why the Slash Backpack isn't also described as at least 'water-resistant'. One possibility is that, while the roll-top opening with magnetic Fidlock quick-release buckles makes the backpack's overall size somewhat adjustable, it doesn't make for the most secure closure—then again, it may simply be that wearing this backpack will make you look like a big drip.
Still, 26 litres of capacity is nothing to sniff at, with the Slash backpack easily accommodating larger laptops up to 18 inches in dimension. Even the Slash sleeve is fairly roomy too, with space for up to a 16-inch laptop, plus accessories.
However, these new Slash bags all feature a design flourish that I just can't get past. To be fair, I can see the thought process: when crafting any kind of textile product featuring almost exclusively one shade, it makes sense to play with texture and dimension.
Perhaps Asus was hoping for something a little more in conversation with motorcycle leathers, but unfortunately what they've ended up with feels ever so slightly reminiscent of road kill to my eyes. Alas, I dread to think what the Sovereign of Cool would say to me if I rocked up with one of these.
That said, I've glowed up many a piece in Infinity Nikki that was otherwise lacking in stars, so never say never—maybe any one of these Slash travel bags would sit pretty as part of a techwear fit. That aside, no release date or pricing has been announced for these new additions just yet.
