Olaf Wolff
AllAboutBikes.com Sr. Staff Writer

I’m okay that my perception of things continually changes as I get older. I prefer it that way in fact. Once I viewed motorcycles with top-boxes as bikes with big butts. Now when my Givi Monokey box is off my bike it looks incomplete, and only reminds me I don’t have a place for my stuff. Givi’s nifty, highly functioning box designs helped me with that development. It must be contagious too, because I’m seeing more bikes then ever with top-boxes these days.
It appears to me that Givi has come up with another winner and a logical link in our commuting evolution. The T450 Trolley soft-bag is ingenious in its simplistic, straight forward approach to purpose, and for filling a niche we heretofore didn’t realize even existed.
The T450 is a stylishly designed trolley-type travel bag, equipped with wheels and an ergonomic telescopic handle for convenient walk about use when off the bike. This new soft-bag by Givi is made of a tough Cordura textile and features three separate storage compartments. A medium sized outer one, a padded sleeve to fit a 15" laptop and a main storage section that’s expandable enough to hold a couple of helmets. It also has a side mounted water bottle compartment (bottle not included) that’s a lot more useful then it appears on paper. The entire top of the bag is trimmed with silver reflective piping and the supplied rain cover slips over the entire bag in a few simple seconds.
What really works for me with the T450 though is how easily it clicks directly onto a Monolock or Monokey mounting bracket. There’s a small plate located on the bottom of the bag secured by two Phillips-head screws, loosen them and slide the plate up for Monolock, down for Monokey. And, you’re good to go – with one key and the push of a button. Mounting brackets are sold separately if you don’t already have one.
I don’t see the T450 Trolley bag so much as a replacement or alternative for hard-shell top-boxes, but more as a brilliant addition and compliment to a box. Although the T450 locks securely to the mounting bracket, everything inside is totally vulnerable, being that only zippers protect my stuff from the rest of the world. Point is I’d always feel the need to take the bag along with me when off the bike.
But, when it comes to acting as a briefcase, a week-ender bag, or a piece of legal sized airport carry-on luggage – this thing is pretty damn close to motorcycling-commuting perfect. I’m pretty sure there’s a time when I’ll even be using the bag for journeys that don’t involve my motorcycle at all.
Givi T450 Trolley Soft Bag - $259.99
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