Crumpler 4 Million Dollar Home Camera Bag Review

[Ben Stafford]

The Crumpler 4 Million Dollar Home camera bag is right in the middle of a seven bag  “million dollar” line.  The line starts with the One Million Dollar Home and ends with the Seven Million Dollar Home, with One Million Dollar as the smallest and Seven Million Dollar as the largest.  According to Crumpler, the 4 Million Dollar Home can hold a compact digital SLR with two lens kit; a digital SLR with one lens and flash; or a DV camera and accessories.

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The 4 Million Dollar Home is available in four colors: purple/light purple/orange, dark red/red/blue, black/gun metal/oatmeal, and dark brown/oatmeal/light olive.  As you can tell by the pictures, I got the red one to review.

Features

The bag is constructed very well.  The exterior shell is water resistant 900D nylon with a 300D ripstop nylon lining.  There is a plush lining in the main interior compartment so that you can nestle your camera into the padded compartment without worry of scratches.

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On the exterior of the bag, there is a carrying handle as well as a removable/adjustable shoulder strap.  There are also a couple nylon loops on the outside that may be useful for clipping things too, but I’m actually not sure exactly what.

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There is one main flap that keeps the majority of the bag protected from the outside environment.  The flap is attached with both a plastic buckle and a Velcro patch.  Once open, you’ll find the main camera compartment as well as a couple smaller pockets.   The main compartment is well padded on all sides and has an additional stiff plastic panel on the bottom to help the bag keep its shape and for protection.  There is one removable/adjustable divider in the main compartment.  On the interior of the flap, there is zippered mesh pouch for flat and/or flexible items.  In front of the main compartment, there is another Velcro-attached flap that opens up into another small accessory compartment.  This compartment also has a mesh pocket inside it that is kept closed by a healthy strip of Velcro.

Empty main compartment (view large image)

Main compartment with Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi (view large image)

Front pocket (view large image)

Impressions

Overall, I’m very impressed with the 4 Million Dollar Home.   Crumpler is known for their unique product naming schemes as well as their quality construction and attractive, yet practical design.

Security-wise, the bag is very good.  The Velcro patches are very strong and the outer flap, while attached by Velcro, is also attached with a buckle for extra security.  Probably just as important, the bag doesn’t necessarily look like a camera bag either – another important security "feature".  There is sufficient padding in the main compartment to keep your camera investment protected.

The shoulder strap is nice, wide, and well-adjustable.  I do wish that it had some sort of non-slip treatment, like a rubber patch or something.  The shoulder strap is not padded at all, but I don’t think that it’s necessary in a bag this size.  Your load should not be too heavy and the strap is wide enough to keep it from cutting into your shoulder.  If you look at the larger bags that can handle multiple cameras or more lenses, you may want to add shoulder strap padding as something to look for.

While the bag can’t hold a “ton” of stuff, I don’t think that’s the point of this bag.  The point of this bag is to be a nice-looking, non-camera-bag-looking bag.  You’ll definitely be able to pack an instruction manual, spare battery, extra memory cards and a cable or two if you need it, but don’t expect to fit a compact point and shoot, a backup media device, etc., in addition to the basics.

Conclusion

The Crumpler 4 Million Dollar Home is a fashionable, well-built camera bag that doesn’t look like a camera bag.  It’s constructed of high quality materials that provide good protection for your camera investment, with sufficient padding to provide protection from the bumps and jostles of a day of taking shots of your kids on the soccer field.  The one thing that I would change from their design is to add some sort of non-slip treatment to the shoulder strap.  The 4 Million Dollar Home is a good choice for the amateur photographer with a compact digital SLR that doesn’t want (or need) a heavy, pro-level camera bag since it provides the exact amount protection while still looking good.

Pros

• Excellent build quality
• Sturdy straps
• Not over-engineered – just enough pockets to hold the essentials and keep the bulkiness down

Cons

• Would have liked a non-slip shoulder strap

[reeser8]

The bag also has two slip-in side pockets that are great for keeping mini tripods and batteries. Look between the two layers of material on either side of the bag. The space there is deliberate!