StilGut – UltraSlim Case for the new iPad
When they’re not busy bailing out other
people’s banks, Germans are known for dabbling in a bit of engineering, and
that skill is certainly in evidence here.
Other folio-style cases use a variety of
sleeve, pocket and elastic arrangements to hold your iPad in place. StilGut’s
own couverture case takes that approach to its logical conclusion, sheathing
the whole bevel in leather so that only the screen itself (along with the
cameras and ports, of course) is visible. It’s attractive and protective – and
yours for €69.90, around $84.75, if it’s the kind of thing you like – but it
wasn’t our favourite case from StilGut’s range.
StilGut
– UltraSlim Case for the new iPad
No, our pick is the UltraSlim case, because
it pretty much does away with the whole iPad holder business. Through a
combination of ingenuity and precision manufacturing, it manages to hold your
iPad in complete security using just a curved backplate with tough plastic
corners. You slide one edge of the iPad firmly into the embrace of the inner tabs,
then thumb the outer ones onto the remaining corners until they click, and
there you go. No messy flaps or straps.
The UltraSlim is finished in synthetic
leather, but feels very classy. It closes neatly and puts the iPad to sleep
using built-in magnets; do make sure you buy the correct version for your
model, because although the iPad 2 and 3 are physically interchangeable, the
wrong magnets cause weird phantom gestures. Ridges in the front panel allow the
hinged back to prop the iPad in landscape at a choice of angles, the shallowest
just about flat enough for comfortable typing.
Price: $76 inc VAT
(sold in Euros at €59.90)
Info stilgut.com
Best bit Slim,
secure cradle
Wish list Real
leather Das Urteil Ausgezeichnet
Toffee – Premium Leather Folio for iPad 2/3
This flip case has a simple but functional
design. The outside is finished in real leather, with a firmly padded feel that
put us in mind of a Chesterfield sofa in a gentleman’s club. Opening the front
flap reveals that, behind a synthetic felt lining, it’s stiffened with a ridged
series of inserts more reminiscent of a stab-proof vest.
Toffee
– Premium Leather Folio for iPad 2/3
The back panel is where the clever stuff
happens. It consists of two leaves, hinged two-thirds of the way across for reasons
we’ll come to. The inner leaf incorporates a narrow leather pocket at the outer
margin, into which you slide one edge of the iPad, which is then held in place
by elastic corner straps at the opposite side. We were a bit concerned about
the slenderness of the leather tails that join the iPad holder to the case, but
the material seems tough enough to cope with this arguable weakness in the
design.
Turn the Folio sideways, and you see the
purpose of those ridges. With the front panel face down on your desk, the back
panel pivots to allow the iPad to stand up, in landscape orientation, with its
front edge tucked into whichever ridge holds it at the angle you prefer – from
about 30° to almost vertical. This gives you more flexibility than many folios,
and a bonus is that only the outside of the case comes into contact with other
surfaces. When you’ve finished using the iPad, closing the case activates Smart
Cover sleep.
The only task that isn’t well catered for
is typing. None of the ridges really gives you a shallow enough angle. As with
other folio designs, you can just fold the case in two with the iPad on top but
this leaves it barely angled at all. The Toffee, however, has an advantage
elsewhere. A broad elastic strap on the back is designed to fit around a car
headrest for movie viewing on the move. It’s a great idea, though the strap
felt slack for a while after using it this way.
Based in Australia, Toffee makes a wide
range of iPad carriers. Besides the rather macho Folio, we tried the Girlier Pocket,
a clutch bag that provides a soft pouch for your iPad and a lined outer pocket
with compartments for credit cards and mobile phone. At the same price, in a
softer leather, it’s also well worth considering.
Price: $101 inc VAT
From accessoryvillage.co.uk/brands/toffee
Best bit Neat
leather finish
Wish list Typing
angle Gender Masculine
