Briggs & Riley Sympatico Essential 22 Inch Carry-On Front Pocket, Navy

I loved this suitcase. No surprise, this Briggs & Riley is well made, and thus far, appears to be holding up well. This dark blue does show a bit of the scuff and scratches.

Absolutely stunning looking suitcase!! Beautiful look, excellent amount of pouches/zippers/straps on the interior, and fully expandable. I almost didn’t want to travel and give TSA the chance to scratch it all up. 🙄

Super expensive for luggage, but the quality is great and the lifetime guarantee is worth it in my eyes. I've taken this on several trips now and it has help up really nicely, the wheels remain super smooth, and I can pack enough in there where I'm never wishing I had more space.

After replacing an old set of luggage about a year ago and that set (which wasn't that cheap) falling apart, I set out to find something that would hold up and check most, if not all, of my boxes for luggage. Bear with me as this review is likely to be long but hopefully this offers some insight for those in a similar position.TL;DR: the B&R Sympatico pieces (I purchased the set) are excellent quality with features I didn't find anywhere else. The warranty truly is the best I found too. Very pricey but high quality. If you're only buying 1 piece, this is likely 5 stars. If you are buying 2 or even 3 pieces, keep reading.I did an extensive amount of reading and research to narrow down what I was looking for. I am not a carryon-only type of gal- I will always have at least one checked bag, sometimes two depending how long and where I'm going.What was important to me:- I needed a 3 piece set. I can do most of my travel with a carryon and large checked but the times I need a medium, I really need it.- Durability - I don't travel A TON but a decent amount between work and personal. Probably 6-10 trips a year, maybe a little more but can vary significantly.- Hard-sided, preferably with a texture to minimize scratches and scuffs- Wheels - wheels need to be smooth, spinner style. Decent performance on carpet- Expansion capability (I didn't realize that this was not necessarily standard until I embarked on this adventure)- High quality zippers- Integrated TSA locks (again, didn't know that companies have started to skimp on this feature)- Strong preference for the carry handles to be on the right side (not the left)- Durable, sturdy rolling handle- Warranty- the warranties that specifically excluded airline handling are essentially worthless to me since that's where a majority of the issues will arise.- Price point: I was originally looking to stay under $1k for a set. After evaluating several sets in this range, I opted to try a more premium lineWhat sets the B&R apart- keep in mind this is a summary for the 22", 27", and 29" as they all have very similar features with some minor exceptions.- Hands down, the warranty. Lifetime no questions asked. No nonsense about keeping all sorts of paperwork, where you purchased, etc. If you own it, it's covered. Each piece is serial numbered so an exact (or close) match to the original materials can be used for repairs. There's even options to send your luggage to them to repair or they have designed DIY kits to do yourself. Pretty cool.- Extension handle is extremely smooth- Really innovative expansion system (see con re: the 22" though) is on the interior and works a bit like a compression system too.- Recycled polycarbonate material feels durable- Zippers, overall, are extremely good quality. A night and day difference from many I tested. The outer zippers are annoying though but that's not a testament to their quality, moreso the angle at which they lay- TSA integrated lock on all pieces works well and is easy to set- Ability to monogram and personalize (if that's your jam...I don't care)- Carryons (21 and 22) have an integrated pocket on the outside back that can fit your phone, wallet, or anything small that you might need to quickly reach for on day of travel. While a super simple feature, it is very, very handle when your hands are full and you're juggling things.- The interior lining and compartments are extremely high quality and feel like they will withstand a fair amount of wear and tear. I really like the different compartments and the 21/22 carryons work nicely. The top panel is a bit shallow which took some getting used to but everything else is organized really well. Zipper quality on the interior is very niceSome cons (and annoyances):- While the hardshell is a more matte finish with a slight texture, it does show scratches fairly easily which is annoying. After one short trip, there are several scratches that I was hoping it would be a bit more resistant to- I have never encountered this issue, even on cheap luggage, so when I noticed it on this ultra premium brand I was floored. I also think that it's, frankly, a bit of an unacceptable oversight. This won't apply if you only purchase and use one piece but if you purchase multiples or even the carryon, medium, and large it *will* be noticeable. If you have the luggage upright and are using the extension handles to wheel the pieces around, the handles do not extend to the same height when extended. In many other sets I've owned, the max height for the rolling handle was the same height across sizes so you could easily wheel two of them in one hand. This is NOT the case with these. While you can adjust the 22" carryon and the large to be at the same height, it takes some trial and error when it should be seamless. The locking positions for the medium will not set to the same height as either the 22 or the large and no matter what position it's in, will be off by about an inch. Not a big deal with 1 piece but if you try to use one hand to roll your luggage, that 1" makes a difference. I almost returned the whole set for this. I tested the 21" piece and the issue is significantly more exaggerated (i.e. there was no way to set two handles anywhere near the same height that would allow me to still hold them with one hand because the gap was too large) with that piece and I did end up returning it for that reason. Maybe they assume that with luggage this expensive you're not rolling your own bags? LOL- The 22" carryon with the expansion extended can be problematic as a carryon. On a recent flight, it DID NOT fit like it should (perpendicular on it's side) in the carryon bin in a SW 800-700. The flight attendant had to turn it long ways for it to fit. Fortunately it was Southwest so they didn't give me any grief but other airlines might not be so lenient. Lesson learned though, I likely cannot use the expansion on the carryon if I need to be absolutely certain it will fit. I have never had this issue with other pieces.- If you do not properly lock the expansion position when packing, your luggage might look like a weird A shape with part of it flared. This happened to one of my checked bags on a recent trip and I thought my luggage was broken. Turns out I didn't lock the expansion inside securely.- No bottom groove or handle to lift or pull- Carry handle is on the left side. Not a deal breaker but annoying to anyone who is right handed. Most people may not notice this- Limited color selection. I'm fine with black but some other colors would have been nice options. I loved the red from the previous version of this lineOverall, there are definitely some cons to these pieces which in totality were almost deal breakers for me. A few little things I can handle but I become a bit less tolerant of that at this price point. HOWEVER, they are excellent quality without a doubt and the peace of mind that the warranty brings I cannot emphasize enough. The fact that I don't have to have anxiety about my luggage being unusable after every trip is worth it to me and that this will be the last set of luggage I *need* to purchase.The price is steep which made me immediately write these off. However, after weeks of additional research, reviews, videos, and testing probably 5-6 different "top rated" brands and sets, I settled on this despite some of the annoyances and I am still happy with them.

I love my B&R carry-on. It is now the only bag I travel with. The size is perfect. I’ve had flight attendants compliment me on my bag.

Glad I finally pulled the trigger and upgraded my cheap carry-on that I bought from Target a while back. Although the carry-on is pretty expensive, every aspect of this luggage was clearly designed thoughtfully and exceptionally. Absolutely love the zipped compartment that allows you to put in suits/dresses that you want to protect. I had some body oil/lotion leak into my luggage but the compartment saved the oil from getting to my dress!A few downsides but not a dealbreaker: The luggage is a little bit on the heavy side... and if you check your bag, be warned - it will definitely get scuffed! The expansion/compression feature isn't as 'easy' to use as advertised. It was as bit rough to click on the CX button to pull the expansion up.

Pros- Quality materials and finishes- Lifetime warranty- 70/30 split is much better for loading than the typical 50/50 bag- Expansion concept is useful- Large capacityCons- Too heavy for a polycarbonate carry-on- The wheels are nice but it *does not roll straight*. Puts constant strain on your wrist. I suspect there's something wrong with the weight distribution of the bag- The expansion mechanism is flimsy. It will collapse while you're loading the back before you're ready to collapse it- The middle seam can protrude and look sloppy depending on how the bag is packed

Completely sold on this brand! It has outlived every other carry-on I have ever bought making it worth its price tag. I love the expandable/compression feature! No extra zippers to break mid-trip. It wheels easily, even after years of travel. A purchase you won’t regret!