Screw portable chargers: Targus' laptop bag wirelessly charges your smartphone

It took 26 water bottles to make the Targus Cypress+ EcoSmart Backpack.

(Image: © Future)

Early Verdict

The Targus Cypress+ EcoSmart is an eco-friendly laptop bag that conveniently wirelessly charges your smartphone, but it's expensive.

Pros

  • +

    Eco-friendly

  • +

    Wireless charging

  • +

    Spacious

Cons

  • -

    Expensive

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LAS VEGAS, NV -- One of the most annoying things about traveling is having a portable charger constantly on hand to power my smartphone. And when I do need to plug in, I usually have to drag out a mess of wires out of my bag. But with Targus' Cypress+ EcoSmart Backpack, you can just toss your phone in that baby and feel the bliss of fast wireless charging.

Unveiled at CES 2020, the Cypress+ EcoSmart Backpack is an eco-friendly laptop bag that can wirelessly charge your smartphone via Qi charging. It costs a "measly" $180 (gulp) and will launch some time between Q2 and Q3. It does have the potential to be one of the best laptop bags of 2020.

Targus Cypress+ EcoSmart Backpack design

From a distance, the Targus Cypress+ EcoSmart Backpack is unassuming and discreet, as it boasts a sleek gray color on its medium-sized stature. Although it doesn't look like a super premium backpack, it seemed pretty durable when I messed around with it. 

(Image credit: Future)

Most importantly, the Targus Cypress+ EcoSmart Backpack is made from 26 water bottles, which is wild. The bag can fit up to a 15.6-inch laptop in its first sleeve, and the second sleeve small pockets are for notebooks, pencils and pens. There is also a larger open space for a tablet.

Targus Cypress+ EcoSmart Backpack Qi-charging

The Targus Cypress+ EcoSmart Backpack has a pouch on the right-hand side that you can open up and throw your phone into in order to wirelessly charge it, which is convenient for people always on the go. 

(Image credit: Future)

Targus outfitted a Qi 4.0, 10 Watt wireless charging pad into that small pouch backed by a 5,000 mAh battery. According to Targus, it can fully charge your smartphone approximately one to two times. Obviously, we'll do more in-depth testing once we get this through our lab.

The cradle in the pouch has side and front pressure holders to keep your phone stable, and thanks to its soft-touch design, it shouldn't leave any scratches on your phone. If you are worried about that, however, the pad will also work with most phone cases, so long as the battery is within 5 millimeters of the charger.

When your backpack is out of juice, you can simply charge the pad by plugging the USB Type-A port into an outlet or laptop (there's a microUSB port already connected to the pad).

Bottom line

The Targus Cypress+ EcoSmart Backpack is a pretty badass backpack, although it's just a little expensive. I'd love nothing more than to toss my phone in my backpack without a second thought. We're excited to get more hands-on time with the Targus Cypress+ EcoSmart Backpack once we get it to our office, so keep an eye out for our full review later in the year.

For news on laptops, tablets and more, check out our CES 2020 hub page. 

Rami Tabari
Editor

Rami Tabari is an Editor for Laptop Mag. He reviews every shape and form of a laptop as well as all sorts of cool tech. You can find him sitting at his desk surrounded by a hoarder's dream of laptops, and when he navigates his way out to civilization, you can catch him watching really bad anime or playing some kind of painfully difficult game. He’s the best at every game and he just doesn’t lose. That’s why you’ll occasionally catch his byline attached to the latest Souls-like challenge.