How well do cases for macbooks (pros) work?

[Unprocessed1]

I'm going to purchase a macbook pro in the coming months (likely after WWDC to get a good deal), and since I've had a MacBook Air which took an extremely small and soft fall, and still managed to get a minor dent and apparently the hinge busted months after because of the fall, I'm a little paranoid about aluminum bodies.

I wanted to get either the Incase or Speck hard cover, but I read in another thread that someone had the Speck case on, dropped it on concrete and the Pro had significant dents on it as a result.

Do the cases actually work to prevent dents and disasters (concrete aside, talking more about 4-5 foot drops on hard floors), or are they kind of a gimmick and false security?

 

[leavingwave]

i personally prefer incase over speck.. here's my take on your question.. no, it will not prevent significant damage to the unit housing.. to be honest.. even if you have it inside a booq case or any padded bag.. it's not a guarantee that it won't be dinged up or destroyed.. it also depends on how it landed on the floor.. corner first or flat... either way a protective cover alone will not save it from a drop.. it will however save it from your everyday clumsiness like hitting it on the table when moving it to a diff spot etc..

 

[buckeye17]

The aluminum body is used as a heat-sync. By using a case/cover you will be insulating it. I wouldn't use one...

 

[ChrisA]

The only case that will provide real protection is a Pelican case, or something like it. To be effective you need for (1) the case's shell to be solid and inflexible and (2) there to be foam padding to absorb any shock. Anything less is just a scratch and bump protector that will not do much for a drop onto concrete.

 

[techound1]

That looks like the silicone-y one that incase makes - if so, I've got one on my air and it's great protection against scratches whilst still having plenty of holes for ventilation. If you're worried about the overheating, check out coolbook to underclock your cpu.