MVST Select Essential Collection Suitcase (Carry-On) Review

We’ve had our hands on plenty of rolling carry on luggage over the years, from budget brands to premium models. While the more expensive ones offer more features and the inexpensive ones might fall apart faster, they all aim to do the same thing: get your clothing, toiletries, and shoes where you need them to go. But, as we point out, some of them do it differently.

The MVST Select Essential Collection Suitcase (Carry-On) sets itself apart from the crowd with premium components, leather accents, and included accessories. Are those features worth the price? We packed gear for two inside it for a weekend road trip to find out.

External Components

The MVST Select Essential Collection Suitcase (Carry-On) is a 36L piece of hardside luggage made with German polycarbonate. It weighs nearly 8 pounds (3.6 kg) and is designed to be strong and scratch-resistant. MVST Select includes a Magic Eraser to help you remove any scuffs that come up. While ours did scratch in regular use, the eraser did the job.

We have to point out that the instructions state to wipe the surface clean and dry it before using the eraser. Since we have lots of experience with using Mr. Clean Magic Erasers in our homes, we know that they work best when damp, and that’s the case here. MVST Select’s eraser didn’t do much to remove the scuff when dry and made a high-pitched squeak that made our tester cringe. Once lightly dampened, the noise stopped and, more importantly, the scuffs came off quickly.

It comes in four neutral colors: the Matte Black we’re testing, Monica Sand (a cream color), Dark Olive Metallic, and Navy Blue. They all look good in different travel situations, so you won’t feel like you’re dragging your mom’s heritage bag along on a trip or using something better suited to a teenager.

Each colorway has a section of smooth polycarbonate at the top and a horizontal ridged design starting about one-third of the way down, in line with the MVST Select logo. In our experience, designers use ridges to hide some of the scratches and imperfections that are bound to occur as you travel. You can also see the outline of the bag’s reinforced corners, reassuring you of the bag’s durability.

It’s easy to fit into the overhead compartment of most major U.S. airlines, from budget flyers like Allegiant to traditional carriers like Delta. It may be a little too tall for some international airlines, though, so be sure to check the restrictions of the airline you plan to fly and do a little research as to their permissibility before trying to carry it on board.

At the top and right side of the bag are leather carry handles for occasions when you can’t roll it alongside you. They are comfortable to hold and easy to grab, which is what you want in a handle. Our only concern would be accidental staining if you were to grab the lighter colorway with dirty hands or have to use the darker colorways after applying sunscreen. We haven’t had any issues with that so far, but it’s something to keep in mind.

Above the side carry handle is a TSA-approved combination lock, specifically TSA-008, the latest model available. MVST Select says it has upgraded internal mechanisms for additional security. We didn’t try to break into the suitcase to check, but we appreciate that it’s there.

That lock holds the YKK zippers in place, keeping them from snagging on neighboring luggage in the overhead bin and from unfriendly neighbors trying to get into your luggage without your permission. To open it, you simply turn it to the correct combination and use the slider to pop out the pulls, then open your bag.

On the opposite side of the zipper track from the lock is a small plastic hanger for the included leather luggage tag or any other accessories you can hook inside its shallow (about ½ cm) depth.

As with other modern roller bags, the MVST Select Essential Collection Suitcase has a telescoping handle, and this one has silicone padding underneath to provide cushioning for your hands as you roll. It is easy to extend and retract, though you have to pull it all the way out and then push it back to the correct level if it’s lower. However, many roller bags are designed that way. If you pull it out very slowly, you can get it to stop at a lower level, but it’s actually more convenient and easier to pull it out and push it back in, especially since it retracts so smoothly that it practically falls into place once you get it past the lowest level.

Of course we wouldn’t need to talk about a handle if it weren’t for the fact that there are four sets of wheels on this carry on—RIVA™ Tri-Bearing Precision Wheels, to be exact. They aren’t a brand that we have a lot of experience with, but we find they work well, rolling nicely over cement, stone pavers, and carpet, as well as smooth surfaces. MVST Select claims that these wheels roll 30% smoother and are 20% quieter than wheels from other premium brands when bearing 50 pounds of weight. It’s hard to say if that’s true or not in our experience, but we had no issues with hiccups or sticking, so we’ll take them at their word.

Each set includes two wheels lined with rubber for a quieter roll and better shock absorption, so you don’t feel the handle vibrating as you roll along, as you might with cheaper models.

As you might hope for the price point, the MVST Select Essential Collection Suitcase (Carry-On) looks premium. The polycarbonate is much sleeker than plastic, especially in the matte finish we’re testing. We don’t feel out of place wherever we roll it, whether it’s up the driveway to a friend’s house for a weekend getaway or through the airport for a longer vacation.

It rolls well and is quite quiet as you roll. It’s easy to turn around corners, whether empty or full, and we really have no complaints when it comes to the wheels.

We find the four-stop telescopic handle has the right height for most users, whether you want to roll the bag alongside you or drag it behind. Our shorter tester uses it on the lowest setting, but there are two more for taller users, so we think you should be able to find a comfortable level. You simply push a button on top to extend or retract it, and we haven’t had issues with it slipping out of place or locking unevenly.

Inside The Carry On Luggage

The MVST Select Essential Collection Suitcase (Carry-On) opens similarly to other hardside luggage, via a zipper running around its center. That means that both sides have about the same depth for packing, though they include different organizational features. There aren’t any external pockets or places to stow gear on the outside of the bag, but that’s not uncommon with hard luggage. If you need that, you’re better off considering a softside suitcase instead.

On the lid side of the carry on, which will be on top when you set the bag handle-side down, you’ll find a zippered panel made from the liner material, a polyester-nylon blend that’s antimicrobial, shiny, and soft. It has a large mesh zippered pocket on its front where you can stow flat gear like gloves, a hat, or a (dry) swimsuit.

The panel opens about an inch from the edge of the suitcase, so there’s a bit of liner material to pack underneath when you’re filling this side. This isn’t uncommon, either, but the liner material is quite taut, so it can be tricky to tuck gear beneath it when you’re trying to use every inch of available space. We used this side to pack a pair of women’s size 10 shoes and a toiletry bag, among other clothing, and we found it hard to wedge the soles of our tester’s shoes underneath. We didn’t want to forgo the inch of space and preferred packing shoes along the edge of a bag to make the best use of the capacity, but the liner material fought us here. The solution is probably having a looser liner, which we wouldn’t like either, but it would be nice if the zipper could be closer to the bag’s edge instead.

If you’re packing two travelers into this carry on for a short trip, you can use the lid for one person and the base for the other, as our tester did. However, you’re more likely to use the lid for bulky gear, like shoes, a thick extra layer or jacket, and toiletry or tech accessories, since you don’t have to worry about slotting those in around the channels of the telescoping handle like on the back side. And if you aren’t trying to squeeze two travelers into one suitcase, you may not need every available inch of space. Or you might—it really depends on the length and style of your trip and your gear.

The opposite side is similarly open, but with a different method of holding gear in place. This side has a compression panel that swings out the top of the bag. That might sound awkward, but it works well if you have the suitcase on a luggage rack against the wall and want to open the lid to get to the base.

The panel itself has a zippered mesh pocket on its front to keep a button-up shirt folded neatly or to hold travel documents or other flat gear. Both mesh pockets will press into each other when you close the suitcase, though, so keep that in mind when filling one or the other (or both). The MVST Select Essential Collection Suitcase (Carry-On) doesn’t have an expansion zipper to give you more space, so you can’t overload either section without making it hard to zip closed.

You’ll find the telescoping handle channels running vertically down the center on this side, so you’ll have to pack around them as you do with most rolling luggage. We like to use the channels for skinny packing cubes, or socks and underwear to create a flat base for the rest of our packing cubes, but whether you do so is up to you. Whether you use packing cubes or not is up to you, as well, since the compression panel is held in place by two adjustable straps that connect with a buckle. Since the panel covers a majority of the area and you can cinch it down tightly, it’s just as easy to pack in this carry on without cubes, and it may help you to make better use of all of the space.

If you use the base for socks and underwear on the way out, you can toss them in the provided laundry bag and squish that into the uneven base for the return trip. All three bags are made with the same slippery material as the liner and feature simple cinch closures. You’re not getting the most premium packing pouches with this suitcase, but you are getting them for whatever you want to toss inside. Unfortunately, the cinch closure means that you can’t really use them as packing cubes; you’ll lose space at the top when you cinch them, and it’s hard to stack them on top of each other since they’re so slippery.

There is also a long, water-resistant zippered pocket along the side of the bag where you can pack small gear, like a few toiletries. It’s really small for that, though, and we prefer using a toiletry bag, so we didn’t make use of it. Luckily, it lies flat if you don’t need it.

All of that is to say that the MVST Select Essential Collection Suitcase is a nice option if you’re in the market for a carry on and like its organization. Is it groundbreaking? No. Does it get the job done? Yes. Do we think it will last longer than cheaper models? Probably. Is it worth the upgraded price? That’s something you have to decide, although we will mention that it’s on the lower end of the price spectrum for bags we’ve rated highly.