Find the Best iPad Pro 12.9 Bag: Crossbody, Backpack or Sling

Updated January, 2024 -

If you're going to move your Apple tablet through the world, you're going to need to protect it. A great way to do this is with a specifically-designed 12.9 iPad Pro bag or dedicated iPad backpack or iPad messenger bag. But how do we find the best iPad bags to meet our needs?

While the term "best" is subjective, there are certain attributes that any Apple tablet user would agree are important when choosing amongst the best iPad Pro bags available. This is especially true for the more fragile 12.9 Pro model.

With its large glass screen and semi-flexible rear aluminum panel, having a secure place to store this tablet when transporting it is paramount. So protection and security are important qualities to look for in an bag or iPad Pro briefcase.

iPad Crossbody Bag for 12.9

Depending on what you're looking to carry, you have to ask yourself, "How much bag do I need?" How much other stuff do you plan on carrying with you when you take your Apple tablet out into the world? If the answer is "a lot", this will facilitate the need for a bag that will carry more than just the tablet.

If the answer is, "I just want to carry the iPad, my Pencil, the AC adapter and maybe some screen cleaner and a cloth. Oh, and being able to take my Magic Keyboard along would be great too!"

An iPad crossbody bag would be perfect for this requirement list. It's going to look much different than the travel case the person above will be carrying. If you're someone looking for this minimalist approach in an iPad shoulder bag, look for a compact, comfortable design.

Moreover, it's important it's highly protective, lightweight and easy to get in and out of. A silent magnetic closure will let you sneak into a meeting late, get your tablet out and start taking notes as if you were there the whole time.

There should be a place for the Apple Pencil and a removable storage pouch that attaches to the shoulder strap that can hold your AC adapter, cables, screen cleaner and a cloth, earbuds, etc.

When you put all these elements together, it should equal is a cross-body iPad bag at its best. Compact, smart, and built to last, it will be everything you could want in an iPad case with a handle and a shoulder strap.

Many potential customers come to MacCase to find what they consider the best iPad Pro 12.9 bag. In many cases though, someones perfect iPad Pro bag is not leather, but nylon.

Nylon iPad Pro 12.9 bags are lighter and more cost effective than their leather brethren. MacCase has made iPad Pro bags since Apple's original iPad was released in 2010. They've evolved over the years. Let's take a quick look at the options MacCase currently offers in an iPad Pro carry bag.

A Backpack for iPad Pro 12.9

The MacCase iPad Pro Backpack sets itself apart from the heard by including a custom-designed sleeve specifically for the 12.9 iPad Pro.

The tablet goes in the sleeve, the sleeve goes in the built-in pocket inside the backpack and you are good to go. This kind of 2 for the price of 1 approach to the design gives you options.

You can use the backpack together with the sleeve, use is alone or use the sleeve alone or with another case. This makes the MacCase Backpack for iPad Pro 12.9 also one of the best values you will find in Apple tablet protection. 

One thing that is often overlooked in backpack design is theft deterrence. If you're carrying a very expensive piece of hardware in your backpack, in this case, Apple's largest tablet and the backpack's design telegraphs this to the world, congratulations you're now a potential target.

The iPad Pro 12.9 Backpack is designed not to look like your carrying an expensive computer device inside. It's just too round. Laptop and tablet backpacks tend to be boxy and very rectangular.

This is the tip-off that something expensive is inside. Our little round, organic shape is the furthest thing visually from what a thief would be looking for. This design keeps you and your iPad safer especially when traveling. 

Another excellent feature of this iPad Pro backpack is its lightweight. We can all agree that when carrying something on our body, lighter is usually better. Backpacks are no different, especially when you're carrying around Apple's largest tablet. 

The key difference in our little pack is that the floor is padded. Many packs on the market offer padding of some sort but many manufacturers leave out padding in the floor. Having a padded floor is vitally important if you ever plan on putting your iPad Pro backpack down onto some hard surface like say, the ground!

Having a padded floor helps ensure that no matter what you have inside besides your expensive Apple tablet, the contents will be safe when you put the pack down. 

A New iPad Pro Sling Bag?

For many years MacCase made a highly successful Sling model in three different colors. This was one of the most unique, original designs in MacCase history. If you are a long-time customer, you may remember it.

You may have even owned and used one. It's been many years since the Sling went out of production but even after all this time, there is still nothing on the market that looks quite like it.

Besides being very lightweight, it was always very comfortable and easy to use. But functionality aside, it was a radical design. With its "ear" that stuck out above what appears to be the main body of the case combined with a slash of contrasting color that serves to keep any moisture of out the zipper, the case turned heads where ever it went.

We recently found one in pristine perfect condition in an old box of samples. "That would make the best bag for an iPad Pro 12.9", someone reacted upon seeing it for the first time at a meeting. "It's just perfect".

Our original Sling design was ten years ahead of its time. When it came out, it was one of the lightest and thinnest bags available from any bag manufacturer. It predicted exactly how the hardware it was designed to carry would become lighter and thinner as well.

Here we are ten years later and it is perfect for Apple's tablets. It would also fit the latest 13" MacBook Pro Touch Bar model perfectly. 

What do you think? Should we resurrect our Sling design and create one cool bag for IPad Pro 12.9, 11?

If you found this article helpful or have a question, please leave a comment below. 

" Finding the best iPad Pro 12.9 crossbody bag or backpack should be easy...."