Ira Goldman has done it again. The inventor of the Knee Defender, a clever device that prevents the passenger in front of you from leaning into your personal space, has just released a new product that promises to expedite your trip through a TSA checkpoint.
The Scanner Bag (price: $14.85 to $24.85) looks like a large luggage tag, and it is a fully-functioning tag.
But instead of carrying just a card with your address and phone number, there’s also a fold-out pouch to accommodate your Blackberry, coins, cellphone, iPod, jewelry and keys — in other words, all the items you would otherwise have to place in one of those plastic trays at the checkpoint and feed through the conveyor belt.
As someone who just lost an item at security (a belt clip for my cellphone) I can see lots of practical uses for the Scanner Bag. Not only do you keep your valuable items in one place, but the chances of losing anything are now reduced considerably.
Goldman says there wasn’t an “a-ha!” moment in which the idea for the Scanner Bag came to him. “It was something that evolved as I was thinking about a new luggage concept,” he told me.
But why ask why? The new Scanner Bag is pure genius.
Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.

Elliott is consumer advocate
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