In Search of a Case to Protect the iPad
From left, the Macally BookStand, the Incase Convertible Book Jacket and the Saddleback Leather Company’s iPad sleeve.
By NICK BILTON
Published: September 1, 2010
The Apple iPad, so sleek and glassy, should be in a design museum, watched over by heavily armed guards with fierce dogs. But millions of iPads are bouncing around in backpacks or purses where they are gradually and inexorably scratched, dinged and pummeled by far less important objects.
Etsy, the online crafts marketplace, makes a felt sleeve for the iPad that looks like an Etch A Sketch.
The DODOcase makes the iPad look like on old sketchbook with a leather-bound jacket.
While the iPad’s aesthetics are exemplary, its built-in protection is a bit spare, especially when it comes to its 9.5-inch screen. Transporting the iPad can sometimes resemble a trip home from the grocery store with a dozen really expensive eggs.
But fear not, iPad owners: thousands of armed-guard-like cases are available to protect your frangible computing device.
These cases have some problems, though. Some are pretty and sumptuous but offer no real protection. Those that do offer safe harbor from the elements can make you feel as if you have put handcrafted Ferrari seats in a dump truck.
Over the last few months, I set out on an iPad case expedition, fiddling with more than 100 cases in search of the best iPad guardian angel. Sadly, I didn’t find the perfect case for my dear gadget, although a few came close.
The official Apple iPad case, which costs $40, is extremely practical, offering the appropriate openings for headphones and power and folding into a stand, but its rubbery case can feel a little downscale.
There are, however, hundreds of other options. A close copy, and my favorite case, is a $50 sleeve from Macally called the BookStand that can fold in a number of directions to improve typing or allow lean-back viewing. The BookStand is not perfect. Its lightweight feltlike material feels somewhat dainty, offering a little less protection than similar folding products.
Macally also offers a range of other iPad accessories, many of which didn’t make sense to me — like a http://www.macally.com/en/product/ArticleShow.asp?ArticleID=318" title="Macally’s chrome case." style="color: rgb(0, 66, 118); text-decoration: underline;">chrome case.
A number of cases are actually sleeves that fit around the back of the iPad, protecting its rear side, but leaving the glass completely exposed and vulnerable. These are not meant to protect an iPad in a crowded backpack, but are intended for a cosseted coffee table iPad.
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