Wednesday, March 19, 2003
Coverless Cases
Posted by Janak Parekh in "THOUGHT" @ 03:00 PM
I'm starting to notice a new trend in cases: a solution that doesn't actually cover the screen. Here's a new case that Vaja just announced for the iPaq 5450 series units: the Vader, which is now available for purchase as a custom unit.
Before you stop, scratch your head, and think "what's the use of a coverless case", read on. I've been playing with one, and I have some thoughts about it.
Most of these cases have come out for the Pocket PC Phone Edition, where there is a very tangible problem with classic cases: you often want to be able to hold the phone up to your ear, and would rather not have a cover flap around while doing so. Just as importantly, you'd like to be able to use the device with just one-hand. Vaja's T-Buron II case fits this bill perfectly: the screen and buttons are accessible as soon as you retrieve the unit from your pocket, so you can pull it out, hit the Dial button, and dial the number by tapping the screen with your free thumb.
The big concern, of course, is dealing with the fact that there's no hard protective cover over the screen. I was worried about this as well, until I got my T-Buron II case. It turns out the padding on the sides actually serves as decent impact and pressure protection: the screen is recessed more because the front is specially padded, which prevents the screen from impacting the ground and cracking in the case of a fall. It also prevents the screen from touching my leg when I put it into a pocket. It's not foolproof and it's not for everyone, but the relatively small tradeoff in protection is worth it to me. Additionally, the padding in the front eliminates contact between your face and the screen, eliminating the dreaded "face grease" problem.
Of course, a custom Vaja case is not going to be a cheap option. It's therefore worth mentioning that other manufacturers have started to latch onto this idea as well: both Krussell and a smaller maker, Batari, have produced coverless cases for the HTC Pocket PC Phone. And in an interesting twist, Proporta is planning on making a case that is covers the screen, but not the earpiece (thereby giving additional protection but losing the one-handedness of the other products).
What do you think about this idea? Interesting, or utterly insane?
(I'll eventually write up a detailed review of the T-Buron II, so if you want detailed pictures, wait a couple of weeks. ;))
Before you stop, scratch your head, and think "what's the use of a coverless case", read on. I've been playing with one, and I have some thoughts about it.
Most of these cases have come out for the Pocket PC Phone Edition, where there is a very tangible problem with classic cases: you often want to be able to hold the phone up to your ear, and would rather not have a cover flap around while doing so. Just as importantly, you'd like to be able to use the device with just one-hand. Vaja's T-Buron II case fits this bill perfectly: the screen and buttons are accessible as soon as you retrieve the unit from your pocket, so you can pull it out, hit the Dial button, and dial the number by tapping the screen with your free thumb.
The big concern, of course, is dealing with the fact that there's no hard protective cover over the screen. I was worried about this as well, until I got my T-Buron II case. It turns out the padding on the sides actually serves as decent impact and pressure protection: the screen is recessed more because the front is specially padded, which prevents the screen from impacting the ground and cracking in the case of a fall. It also prevents the screen from touching my leg when I put it into a pocket. It's not foolproof and it's not for everyone, but the relatively small tradeoff in protection is worth it to me. Additionally, the padding in the front eliminates contact between your face and the screen, eliminating the dreaded "face grease" problem.
Of course, a custom Vaja case is not going to be a cheap option. It's therefore worth mentioning that other manufacturers have started to latch onto this idea as well: both Krussell and a smaller maker, Batari, have produced coverless cases for the HTC Pocket PC Phone. And in an interesting twist, Proporta is planning on making a case that is covers the screen, but not the earpiece (thereby giving additional protection but losing the one-handedness of the other products).
What do you think about this idea? Interesting, or utterly insane?
(I'll eventually write up a detailed review of the T-Buron II, so if you want detailed pictures, wait a couple of weeks. ;))
