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Everyone has their own set of values regarding the ideal bag. I've had'em all. Here's my value set.
Hard bags are always 1 cm smaller than what you want to carry.
Leather bags are great until they get wet, mold, and won't dry.
Synthetic leatherare the most practical.
I have not found price to be a goodindicator of utility. The shortest bag dimension will be the most limiting (a 5" thick bag will carry a lot more than a 4" thick bag). Aesthetics are a personal thing--the bag that looks great to you will be considered ugly by someone else.
If all you are looking for is utility at a fair price, synthetic is maint. free, less expensive, and totally weatherproof. Leather looks better, has "character", and if maintained, will last a long time. I think synthetic looks cheap compared to real leather.
To me,vinyl bags look just like that: plastic and that equates to cheap. Leather is the best as far as I'm concerned. The more it is used the better it looks. Probably the most practical are hard bags as they won'tshow age or wear.
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