Heimplanet Sling Pocket XL Review

Bo Ismono has tested many sling bags, but the Heimplanet Sling Pocket XL ticked all of the boxes.

My last sling bag review made me sad, so I was happy to see that this sling bag hit all the right marks to become my new daily driver. Heimplanet is based in my hometown of Hamburg, Germany. So this already gets some points. But the Heimplanet Transit Line Sling Pocket XL has a lot more to offer.

The Positives

This is a 3L sling bag made out of sustainable dope dyed DYECOSHELL fabric. And together with the YKK Water-R Zippers it is very durable and water resistant. But the durability doesn’t stop there: Instead of a regular plastic buckle there is this aluminium buckle that is very secure and tactile. This will be a love or hate relationship. More on that later in the video.

The shoulder strap is this seatbelt kind of webbing that is very soft and comfortable to carry. Even when it is fully loaded. And you can actually fit a lot of stuff into this sling bag. Because the bag has these slanted sides the bag appears and feels smaller than it actually is.

So you have three separate compartments. First this outer scratch-free pocket, in which I actually store doggy bags. This can be used for glasses or your phone. But my phone is too big and I don’t dare to store glasses inside because I fear they would get crushed inside. Next there is an extra top pocket which is great to separate my mask and some rubber gloves from my main items. I guess this is normal in these pandemic times. And then there is this well-organized main compartment. Here you can find several drop-in slots to keep all of your items in place.

The Negatives

However, these slots are all open and just secured by this elastic. Which is okay, but you need to be aware that small items can easily just jump out of these side pockets when you are running for instance. As mentioned, the shoulder strap is very soft and comfortable but it is also kind of slippery, which might be the reason why this strap whenever you unbuckle the strap gets tangled upon itself. So this might loop, get pulled through here and makes everything a bit messy. This only happens when the shoulder strap is unbuckled though. Not a big deal and easy to fix, but just something I wanted to mention because the first time this happened I needed some time to figure out how to detangle the strap.

Continuing with the shoulder strap: As mentioned in the beginning, the buckle will be either a you love it or a you hate it situation. It’s pretty obvious that the buckle is quite unusual and also admittedly a little bit cumbersome to open and close. Moreover, when you aren’t wearing the bag it is a little bit rattly because it is made out of metal. But to me all of this is actually a good thing. 

First and foremost, the metal build is very durable and also very tactile. So when I wear gloves on my motorcycle it is very easy to find and to adjust. But more importantly while it is very cumbersome to open and close, this also means it is very secure while riding my motorcycle. The buckle won’t just accidentally open while I am riding.

Verdict

And that is why the Heimplanet Sling Pocket XL has basically become my main sling bag when I am riding my motorcycle, but also has become my daily driver for everyday tasks like going to the supermarket or going for a walk with my dogs (the small little lashing point is actually great to attach a bag for dog treats). I can store all my essentials and even have some room to carry my camera while still being very comfortable to carry and not feeling too bulky.

I really like the look and the build quality is incredible without it becoming too heavy. So if you are looking for a good-looking, very well-made and more importantly very useful sling bag, definitely check out the Heimplanet Transit Line Sling Pocket XL.