Waterfield Designs PSP Gear Pouch/PSP Mini Gear Pouch Review
By: Michael Phrakaysone
Edited By: Steve M. Silver
One of the first things that people do when purchasing a portable device is to look for a case. For me, a case to put my Sony PSP inside is very important and I only want the best. Usually for this type of purchase, the phrase ‘you get what you pay for’ comes into play. When looking for a case for the PSP, one should look for size, quality of materials, and it’s ability to handle wear and tear. While looking for a case, I came across the Waterfield PSP Gear Pouch and its smaller brother, the Mini Gear Pouch. Have a read to find out whether these are worth your hard earned money.
If you don’t really know about Waterfield Designs, that is okay, because I haven’t heard of them either. You usually only hear about the bigger players in the industry such, as Logitech, Mad Catz, and so on. However, Waterfield is a company that produces many types of bags and cases for various products. Here is a little bit about them…
About Waterfield Designs
WaterField Designs is a maker of custom-fitted, stylish, and design-oriented computer-related cases and bags for a full-range of laptop computers, iPods, and digital cameras. WaterField Designs produces their full line of accessories inside the great USA state of San Francisco.
About the PSP Gear Pouches
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The Bigger Brother ^^
The PSP Gear Pouch is made from Ballistic nylon, with padding internally protecting the PSP and other items. The main compartment includes a self tightening pocket, which has enough room for your PSP in a case. Three pockets give you room for game disks, an extra battery and the power supply. There is enough spare room between the sides to carry your power cord, a large spare battery and the manual. Measures 9.75" x 5" x 2".
The PSP Mini Gear Pouch is for the gamer on the move. Outside protection from Ballistic and Indium nylon, and padded compartments securely kept in place with a self locking zipper. A main compartment for the PSP, which is kept in place with the zipper closed. Two pockets for game disks and ear buds, and extra space in the middle. Measures 7.7" x 3.5" x 1.3".
The Smaller Brother ^^
Waterfield offers five different choices of colors for their pouches, all in checkered pattern. These are Blue, Celeste, Checkers, Lead and Taxi. You are bound to find a color that suites your personality.
Both PSP pouches arrived very quickly from Waterfield and were shipped in a no-frills plastic wrapping. No fancy blister packaging here, at least not for my orders.
One of the first things you will notice is the type of material Waterfield utilizes for these PSP pouches. As Waterfield says, it is Ballistic nylon, originally developed to protect WW II airmen from bullets and shrapnel. In that role it has been long surpassed by other products but it gives you an idea how tough it is. The materials are probably the best I have seen in for a case. The exterior material is thick and feels like it will last a lifetime. The weaves on this pouch give it a textured feel and are dense enough it is impossible see light through them. This bag can take a beating.
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The Bigger Brother ^^
On both of the PSP pouches, I noticed that all sewing uses a thread thicker than what I have seen on my other cases for my digital camera and other products. This tells me that the sown areas will probably never separate.
Both cases are similar in design, the only difference is size. We have two zippers, one on the top, and one on the front of the pouch. Both zippers are rubber covered for comfort. The zippers are not cheap; they feel relatively thick compared to other zippers and they never skip a track.
Starting with the bigger brother, the PSP Gear Pouch, let us look inside. There is a lot of room in this pouch. The pocket closest to the front is where the PSP must be placed. The lining material is very soft and hardly has any lint. The PSP fits in like a proper sized glove. We have three pockets (closest to the rear) there are used for UMD storage. You can fit in about 4 UMD discs per pocket totaling 12. If you have your discs in UMD cases, then the total will be a little bit like around 9. The middle of the pouch has room for your accessories, such as your AC adaptor, AC cord, earphones, battery, remote control, you name it.
In the front pocket is where you can store your Memory Stick Duos (four small pockets), and you have room for anything else you may have. You can fit lots of stuff in the big brother case.
Heading on with the PSP Mini Gear Pouch we have a similar package as the bigger brother, but at the cost of having a less thick and less wider package. We start out by placing the PSP inside the padded compartment (closest to the rear) and we have 2 pockets (closest to the front) that allow us to put about 3 UMD cases of games totaling 6. The middle of the pouch is for any accessories that would be able to fit such as extra batteries, ear phones, and your small things. Your AC adaptor and cord will not fit into this.
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The Smaller Brother ^^
Conclusion
At the end of the day, these pouches are worth every penny! During my use of these pouches for the past 3-4 months, I have personally found the bigger brother, the PSP Gear Pouch, to be best for my needs. Having no extra battery packs, I need the AC adaptor where ever I go for extended periods of play.
I have tossed these pouches around in my bag and out. They’ve have seen “real world” usage, yet these both are very solid and feel like the first day I got them. They are really that good!
If you are in need for a pouch for your Sony PSP, look no further, the Waterfield PSP Gear Pouch and its smaller brother, the PSP Mini Gear Pouch do it right! I suggest getting the bigger brother version for only $10 more, unless you need the smallest you can get.
Pros and Cons
+ Extreme quality
+ Extreme materials
+ Lots of pockets and compartments
+ Comes in different colors
+ Nylon vertical and horizontal straps
- May be too expensive for some on budgets, but well worth it!
You may head over to Waterfield SFBags to place your order on the PSP Gear Pouch if you are interested. If you do, let them know that ModSynergy.com sent you!
