I don't care about t-shirts, but the best backpack I've ever owned was given to me when I worked at Google. I probably never would have bought a $200 hackpack on my own, but it's great.
I’ve got a Google “exclusive swag” branded messenger bag, it’s a lovely timbuk2 hand made from excellent materials. It’s been my bag of choice for 7 years, only just started to show signs of wear despite travelling with it extensively.
I’ve never worked at Google, I won it at a charity auction for PyLadies at a Python conference and not only was it for a good cause but worth every dollar. I don’t think I’ve had a better bit of swag. Its even been a humorous conversation started at times when people assume I either work for or used to work for Google because I have the bag, particularly at software conferences.
Some swag is definitely higher quality and I think Google put some serious money behind their bag selection at least for the years between your bag and mine.
I kept the backpack google gave me as a noogler for probably 6-7 years and most of my T-shirts are Google gifts. Those gifts made me feel valued as an employee and also acted as free advertising (I no longer wear those shirts in public, as I don't want to advertise for them).
A lot of people are paying off student loans, and then they're saving up to buy a house, which requires a down payment, and then they're paying a mortgage, and then they're paying for day care on top of it. $200 for a backpack is a luxury, when it's easy to find perfectly decent backpacks for $30-50.
And it's not just about a single $200 backpack. Many times people feel the need to either be the kind of person who responsibly saves money, or you just buy whatever you want all the time, and it can be hard to be in-between. If you're dropping $200 on a backpack without thinking about it, you're probably spending $1,000+/mo. on things you don't really need... and there goes a big chunk of money.
Personally, spending $200 on a backpack sounds like insanity to me. But I've also had the similar experience where someone got me a $200 something as a gift and it turned out to be amazing, and I would have bought it if I had known, but often you don't even know whether something is worth it until you've tried out owning it for a month or two. Nine times out of ten, the $200 item isn't worth it compared to the $50 version. So getting it as a gift and discovering you love it is just really, really nice.
I think software engineers can afford luxury, sooner or later. But I get that saving is more important for some people.
I can only speak for myself, but I've looked for months to find something I really like so it's not an impulse buy and I'm not dropping 1k/mo on random things.
You have amazing people around you, it's great when people show you the good stuff :)
As crazygringo guessed, I have a mortgage...and a few kids, and my wife is a SAHM. I live in a HCOL area. Google compensated me well and I could have spent $200 on a backpack if I specifically wanted it, but I don't spend $200 just on a whim.