Raden A22 Carry-on Luggage, Hunter Green Matte, One Size

For the last 20 years I have used nothing but Travel pro luggage (as a former airline crew member) so I'm used to a very high quality bag. I figured that I'd try this "smart" luggage and spent three weeks doing my homework. First of all, of all the current "smart" luggage currently available on the market the Raden gets the highest rating. It came down to the Raden and the BlueSmart bags and the Bluesmart was smaller even though it was smarter so I went with more space and less brains. So a few points.1. All this raving about this bag being the "iphone of bags" are vastly overstated. Its a good looking bag in its simplicity but lets not go overboard. I doubt that it will turn heads in the airport. I'm taking it to Philly next week so we'll see. If people stop me to oogle over my bag I'll report that back here.2. Smart luggage? Disruptive? The thing of the future? Another huge exaggeration. The latest version of the Raden app is as barebones as its suitcase. So much so that all of the cool features that Raden has on its website are now GONE. No bag sharing. No flight status. No airport traffic status. GONE. Now all you have is a scale, a battery meter, and a TOTALLY USELESS location tool. I like the fact that there is a chat window built into the app for direct customer service. Other than that the app doesn't do much besides weigh the bag (which it did very accurately) and tell you when the battery has been charged. Think about this, why do you even need a scale in a 22" carry on bag? Unless you are going to fill it with bowling balls or you wear lead underpants you can't fit enough clothes in there for it to be overweight! So the point of having a scale is kind of silly.3. More about the Location tool. Three words: Are you kidding? The location tool will tell you that your bag is generally in SAME TOWN as you but doesn't put a pin on a map so it could be anywhere within dozens of square miles and hundreds of buildings. Right now, my A22 is in my closet, 15 feet away from me, but the map shows that it is located somewhere in the Frankfort, IL general area (there is no drop pin). And since your bag needs to be in Bluetooth range of your phone, if for some reason someone wheels off with your bag while your not looking what are you going to do about it? It doesn't have an alarm to tell you that your bag has been taken out of range. It doesn't tell you the exact address at which your bag was located. It doesn't even tell you where it is if another Raden app user finds it because it can't show itself on the map? This tool is about as useful putting a screen door on a submarine.4. Build quality. The bag actually feels cheap and rickety compared to my travel pro Crew 11 spinner. Travel pro has magnets that force the wheels to track true so its a smooth ride. The Raden wheels feel like a shoping cart and it tracks where ever it wants to go. The handle feels VERY rickety and wobbly. Where the Travelpro handle is rock solid, the Raden handle has a lot of play and feels like its going to fall off. The interior is good, but missing features that you might expect in a $300 bag like straps, suit carrier, etc.I am a technologist and an MIS professor so I like gadgets, but I am so disappointed because all the hype and promise does not live up to the reality of the execution. This bag is not smart by any stretch of the imagination. You can get the same functionality with an extra battery pack from Walgreens and a $20 Tile tracking tag. Is it worth $300 - not in your wildest dreams. This is all hype and very little substance until such time as Raden makes their app much more useful and increase the build quality.In case you are wondering, I'm not sending it back because its a conversation piece and I want to support startup companies like Raden. But make no mistake, this product is a swing and a miss. Its essentially cheap luggage, with mostly useless technology.

This is worth the investment, but I wanted to address the flaws first, and the biggest one is NOT the suitcase's fault.CONS:-If you fly on smaller planes (not REALLY small planers, but smaller regional jets), airlines now force you gate check your bag. as the overhead bins are not large enough to fit even a regulation sized carry-on. This eliminates the hassle of baggage claim, yes, but the baggage handlers are not always kind, as you may know.-This leads me to my next con - the gloss scratches pretty easily. I'm aware this is a suitcase. I am aware they will scratch and travel is tough, but the baggage handlers WILL SCRATCH YOUR CASE. So, if you like things to be absolutely pristine, this is something to consider. It doesn't scratch the color off the bag by any means, but there will be cosmetic wear and tear.-This d*mn thing takes forever to fully charge. Who buys a "smart" suitcase and doesn't charge the battery pack? You better start charging the full night before if you're wanting to hit the airport with enough juice to get you through your trip.-The "tracker" only works if you're basically right on top of the suitcase. This is NOT a GPS locator. If that's the technology you want, try a Lug Loc or something along those lines.PROS:-It packs more than it looks like if you are a smart packer. I was able to go on a 4-day business trip with this small bag and another carryon (about the size of a large tote) without any problems. I am able to fit my hair straightener, cosmetics, about 3 pairs of shoes and all the other outfits/essentials with some planning.-It holds more than enough charge to keep my phone and tablet powered up. (I have not tried a laptop.)-The wheels are a dream. This is an ease to get through crowded airports on carpet, walkways, or regular flooring. I appreciate being able to walk "with" it or drag it behind me.-The zippers are high quality as is the TSA approved lock. I feel like my belongings are truly secure, and I appreciate the extra water tight seal, especially when traveling to places like NYC where you might be in the elements before getting to your destination.It's not a perfect bag, but I am really happy with it over all, especially since my biggest complaints actually have to do with airline regulations and not the suitcase itself. It is truly pricey, but I feel like I am getting my money's worth.

I used this lovely pink suitcase on one trip to Denmark and Norway last October.It was so badly marked up after the journey that it looked worse than any other piece of hard body luggage I have ever ownedThey advised me to wipe it down with soap and water... which I did and it did look better.However it still looks beat up.Now this very expensive suitcase is no longer permitted to fly on any airline because of the lithium battery that enables this suitcase to be a smart suitcase...I have not been able to remove the battery because it is built into the case...removing it would damage the case further.The entire purchase has been such a disappointment.I now own a smart suitcase that I can take on trainrides and bus trips.....waste of money because I only fly.....

This is my first smart luggage purchase and I will never travel the old way again. I opted to get one of each size, a carry-on and a check. The check-in is big enough to pack for three people for an entire week. The price for the quality is unbeatable, I've used Tumi for years and for the cost of one carry-on Tumi, I was able to purchase two Radens. The luggage itself is light weight and stylish. The battery is a life saver, one charge lasted both plane rides, and I never had to look around for an outlet to charge my phone. I only used the app to weight my check-in, but it was pretty simple to use. The only tough part about purchasing a Raden is picking a color, there are too many to choose. I'm definitely going to gift a suitcase or two for the holidays.