I've the 13 but I think that the same lessons apply.
Interestingly, I have drawn an opposite conclusion from the post immediately above.
I have concluded that the hard candy is the best protection that you can buy for $50 for an air. Somewhat disordered comments:
1. It's actually thinner than its competitor, the Booq Vyper.
2. The bubble design can be viewed as making it thicker (if it didn't have the bubbles), but it doesn't bother me. I felt that the case functionally felt thin.
3. The bright pink/orange bumpers do work and they gave me reassurance if you drop the air on its corner.
4. It doesn't have a pocket like the Booq Vyper. This is a good thing, b/c the Vyper's pocket is useless. Absolutely useless and no one uses it.
5. The zippers on the hard candy may be problematic over time. I could see them breaking off, but they do not appear to be much worse or better than the competition's.
6. The fit is good, esp since you can adjust those bright orange bumpers.
7. It's reasonably watertight. I got caught in a huge deluge, and my backpack was totally soaked. My air was in the hard candy and it survived. Had it not been in the hard candy, I do think we would have had some water damage. But in no way shape or form am I saying that this is waterproof. It's lightly water resistant.
8. Design looks girly to me. The company is headed by two suburban dads on their website. They purposely go for a juicy couture vibe and while I don't like it, the hard candy is the most functional hard case out there.
9. Soft neoprene cases don't do jack squat if people care about protecting their air. I don't know why they are so popular. If you are in the middle of winter in a cold environment, there's also static electricity that can build up b/c of the neoprene. I never understood any of rationale for the neoprene cases when a hard case is available. Certainly neoprene should be priced cheaper at least.
10. There is about 1/8 of extra play on all sides when the air is fully inside the hard candy case. This is a good thing b/c the sides are also rigid, and the air is held tightly by the bumpers. So if you drop the air, in order to dent it, you've got to deform the outside shell, and then go 1/8" deeper before you hit the air. The key being that the air, despite the play, is being held tightly by the 4 bumpers, so it's ok to have that play as extra cushion.