It’s not too often I get blown away by something that lands in my inbox, but the Trunkster Zipperless Luggage has done that. Just about wrapped up on Kickstarter, the company has definitely made it’s goal and then some, and that’s probably because they’ve taken a basic product we all take for granted, and completely redesigned it to make it handy, clever, and a travel necessity.
Trunkster has taken all the things you HATE about a carry-on (or they are making a full size version), and done away with them; the finicky zipper is gone, replaced by a rolling front door that gives you access to the bag without having to splay the whole thing open on the floor like you’re gutting an animal pre-flight. “The last major update to the core design of luggage was wheels. And while many cool new features have been introduced since then, most have failed to improve the actual experience of using luggage,” says trinkets on its Kickstarter page.
Trunkster keeps the wheels and handle part of luggage design, but the company says it’s made them better. “Trunkster features a robust, side-to-side handle that gives you absolute control and enhanced balance through many grip positions. Plus, the handle’s special design allows for an uninterrupted cargo space for optimum packing capacity.” I’m not exactly sure what a “robust side-to-side handle” means. But if it means it doesn’t break or get stuck after a dozen uses, I’m in! I also appreciate the fact it appears the telescoping slides don’t infringe on packing space. I’d love to get hands-on with one of these bags to truly see how this all works.
The Lost Bag that Finds Itself!
Losing a bags sucks, to put it bluntly. Especially when your airline gives you the line “We don’t know where your bag is, Ms Erin, but I’m sure it’ll turn up somewhere.” So reassuring. So what if your bag could track itself and tell YOU, and the airline, where it’s snuck off to? Amazing. Why hasn’t this been thought of before? Especially when you think tracking devices like Tile and others are now so small, and that it would be so easy. This is quite simply a brilliant, brilliant innovation for luggage.
Power on the Go
Trunkster has made it easy to keep all those devices you need to keep connected or entertained on the go fully charged. The Trunkster carry-on bag has a built in USB charger and battery that will charge a phone up to nine times. Longer than the world’s worst layover! So while all the other airport zombies are crowded around the 11 available charging stations or licking musty airport carpet to access a hidden wall plug, you’ll be sitting in comfort with a glass of your favourite beverage in the airport bar, still fully charged!
The Bag that Weighs Itself
With all the new baggage fees out there, many people are choosing to carry on to save money. Which means airlines are soon going to start cracking down on size, number and weight of carry-ons. You won’t get caught, because the Trunkster has a built in scale that will display in pounds or kilograms.
Other features:
- World-Class Construction – made from brushed airplane grade aluminum and 100% virgin polycarbonate (durable, lightweight, and scratch resistant) with a matte finish.
- Compression Panels – specially designed panels with a single hand closure mechanism to compress contents.
- All-Terrain Spinner Wheels – robust, ribbed, omni-directional wheels that glide smoothly and silently over any surface.
- Hidden Compartment – minimalist compartment for travel essentials like passport, notebook, pens, etc. Also holds removable battery.
- TSA Lock – custom Travel Sentry TSA-approved combination lock to keep your bag safe from intruders.
This Kickstarter campaign is overfunded, so congrats to Trunkster. I’m really impressed with the thought and intelligence that’s gone into the design, but I’m curious about how well that rolling door design will work, especially after being banged around a lot. The company has apparently thought of that, because they’re offering Kickstarter backers a 5 year warranty on the bags, which I think is a smart idea. I hope to be able to review this product soon to let you know what it’s really like hands-on. The company estimates the retail price of the carry-on with GPS to be around $500. The Kickstarter price is $335, plus shipping (cheap to Asia Pacific and the USA, not cheap to Canada – its $100) The checked version would retail around $600.
2 Comments
My wife and I try to travel carry-on only. To help we bought a couple of these bags a few years ago after quite a bit of research. http://www.redoxx.com/Shop-by-Gear-Item/Sky-Train/91019/13/Product Not as high tech as the unit in your blog but very practical as long as you don’t mind the lack of wheels in order to trade for the extra space.
I’ll check them out! Thanks!