http://www.sigelectronics.com/...iller?search=versa+bag
I got mine in a couple of days ago. I have had a Crumpler 7 Million Dollar Home (pre-2009 model; the new models have two buckles and a few other changes) for a while now, and someone on a photography forum found these on sale at a Canadian retailer (be sure to set prices to USD as the new price in CAD is $24.99; $10 shipping to US). I ordered 2 and have verified that they are exactly the same bag. It took about a week for the bags to reach Texas from Canada.
The "Large Versa Bag" for $20 is exactly like the Crumpler 7 Million Dollar Home (retail around $130) with the exception of the Crumpler logos and the quality of the shoulder strap (and a few minor differences in other materials, see below). The authentic Crumpler has a smooth-feeling strap, like a seatbelt, while the Versa Bag strap is a little rougher. The Versa Bag includes the same shoulder pad as the Crumpler, however.
The working theory is that when Crumpler switched designs in 2009, the factory had some of the old designs left over and decided to sell them under a different brand. The materials, colors, stitching, details, velcro, zippers, etc. are all exactly the same. (EDIT: See my post on Page 5 of this thread for clarification of this. Some differences have been brought to my attention that I did not notice originally.) The bags come with a multitude of padded dividers so you can configure the space to fit your gear. The bag itself is nicely padded as well. I wouldn't drop it off a bridge with all my gear inside and expect everything to come out unharmed, but it's pretty sturdy and well-padded.
The 7MDH is a LARGE bag, however. Probably too big for you if you just have a Rebel and a kit lens, although you could put the camera in one part of the bag and pack a lunch or something in the other part. It is large enough to fit my 13" MacBook if I make creative use of the dividers to create a slip for the MacBook in the back of the bag. However, this bag was not designed to hold laptops and so doing so would be a bit of a kludge. However if you're not a photographer and just want a good quality padded messenger style bag for your netbook or other smaller laptop and some books, etc. then you are good to go if you configure the dividers properly or just remove them altogether. In maximum Tetris mode, I manage to fit ALL of the following in mine:
Canon 5D, Canon 10D, Canon 24-105 f/4L with reversed hood, Canon 70-200 f/4L IS with reversed hood, Canon 17-40 f/4L, Canon 50mm f/1.4, Canon 85mm f/1.8, Canon 100mm f/2.8 Macro, Canon 430EX, Lensbaby 2.0, Canon 1.4x TeleConverter, 4 extra batteries, Canon shutter release, little extra things
For more info on the Crumpler lineup you can look at this thread at photography-on-the.net
A number of different models are covered in that thread. All of the "Million Dollar Home" line are pretty much the same except for size. 7MDH was the biggest until recently when they added the Brazillion Dollar Home. Really a fully-loaded 7MDH is about as heavy as I would want to carry around in a shoulder bag. I usually down-load it by a lens or two when I actually want to walk around with it and take photos, but for storage or transportation I will load it up to the top.
I got mine in a couple of days ago. I have had a Crumpler 7 Million Dollar Home (pre-2009 model; the new models have two buckles and a few other changes) for a while now, and someone on a photography forum found these on sale at a Canadian retailer (be sure to set prices to USD as the new price in CAD is $24.99; $10 shipping to US). I ordered 2 and have verified that they are exactly the same bag. It took about a week for the bags to reach Texas from Canada.
The "Large Versa Bag" for $20 is exactly like the Crumpler 7 Million Dollar Home (retail around $130) with the exception of the Crumpler logos and the quality of the shoulder strap (and a few minor differences in other materials, see below). The authentic Crumpler has a smooth-feeling strap, like a seatbelt, while the Versa Bag strap is a little rougher. The Versa Bag includes the same shoulder pad as the Crumpler, however.
The working theory is that when Crumpler switched designs in 2009, the factory had some of the old designs left over and decided to sell them under a different brand. The materials, colors, stitching, details, velcro, zippers, etc. are all exactly the same. (EDIT: See my post on Page 5 of this thread for clarification of this. Some differences have been brought to my attention that I did not notice originally.) The bags come with a multitude of padded dividers so you can configure the space to fit your gear. The bag itself is nicely padded as well. I wouldn't drop it off a bridge with all my gear inside and expect everything to come out unharmed, but it's pretty sturdy and well-padded.
The 7MDH is a LARGE bag, however. Probably too big for you if you just have a Rebel and a kit lens, although you could put the camera in one part of the bag and pack a lunch or something in the other part. It is large enough to fit my 13" MacBook if I make creative use of the dividers to create a slip for the MacBook in the back of the bag. However, this bag was not designed to hold laptops and so doing so would be a bit of a kludge. However if you're not a photographer and just want a good quality padded messenger style bag for your netbook or other smaller laptop and some books, etc. then you are good to go if you configure the dividers properly or just remove them altogether. In maximum Tetris mode, I manage to fit ALL of the following in mine:
Canon 5D, Canon 10D, Canon 24-105 f/4L with reversed hood, Canon 70-200 f/4L IS with reversed hood, Canon 17-40 f/4L, Canon 50mm f/1.4, Canon 85mm f/1.8, Canon 100mm f/2.8 Macro, Canon 430EX, Lensbaby 2.0, Canon 1.4x TeleConverter, 4 extra batteries, Canon shutter release, little extra things
For more info on the Crumpler lineup you can look at this thread at photography-on-the.net
A number of different models are covered in that thread. All of the "Million Dollar Home" line are pretty much the same except for size. 7MDH was the biggest until recently when they added the Brazillion Dollar Home. Really a fully-loaded 7MDH is about as heavy as I would want to carry around in a shoulder bag. I usually down-load it by a lens or two when I actually want to walk around with it and take photos, but for storage or transportation I will load it up to the top.