Inexpensive sleeve for the MBA

[mynameis321]

I'm looking for an inexpensive (£20 and under) sleeve for my 2013 13" MBA, that's available in the UK. The ones I've seen seem to be made of cloth material and won't protect it from dings and rain/water. Doesn't have to be fully waterproof, but should be able to withstand rain, and withstand knocks as I'll be putting it in my bag and travelling to and from work everyday.

Thanks

 

[Macgyver1]

At that price point I believe your down to an Amazon basic sleeve or incase neoprene.

Cheers

 

[weckart]

I got this for my 13" MBP.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dbramante1928-Leather-Case-inch-MacBook/dp/B00BKW5KK2

Cheap and genuine leather. Probably enough for lightish dings and knocks. If you want something a bit more robust, you are going to need something in EVA - most likely a case rather than a sleeve. There were good deals on Thule cases recently but those seem to be coming to an end. Your best bet is to have a hunt in a larger Currys. They have a few Thule and Tucano products discounted to clear and you might strike lucky.

Something like this Thule Gauntlet sleeve should be fine in another bag

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Thule-Guntlet-Envelope-MacBook-Surface/dp/B00KNNRBXI

 

[Jazzman 76]

I'm looking for an inexpensive (£20 and under) sleeve for my 2013 13" MBA, that's available in the UK. The ones I've seen seem to be made of cloth material and won't protect it from dings and rain/water. Doesn't have to be fully waterproof, but should be able to withstand rain, and withstand knocks as I'll be putting it in my bag and travelling to and from work everyday.

Thanks

[doublepost=1481813814][/doublepost]

I'm looking for an inexpensive (£20 and under) sleeve for my 2013 13" MBA, that's available in the UK. The ones I've seen seem to be made of cloth material and won't protect it from dings and rain/water. Doesn't have to be fully waterproof, but should be able to withstand rain, and withstand knocks as I'll be putting it in my bag and travelling to and from work everyday.

Thanks

[doublepost=1481814040][/doublepost]Try Ebay, they're selling the Knomo 13" Macbook Air sleeeve for around £19 in black.

 

[weckart]

Try Ebay, they're selling the Knomo 13" Macbook Air sleeeve for around £19 in black.

£6 if you don't mind patent leather. A bit blingy but Knomo are very decent. I have one for my 11" MBA.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/KNOMO-MacBook-Air-13-Patent-Leather-Envelope-Sleeve-Black-/162000956671

 

[mynameis321]

I got this for my 13" MBP.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dbramante1928-Leather-Case-inch-MacBook/dp/B00BKW5KK2

Cheap and genuine leather. Probably enough for lightish dings and knocks. If you want something a bit more robust, you are going to need something in EVA - most likely a case rather than a sleeve. There were good deals on Thule cases recently but those seem to be coming to an end. Your best bet is to have a hunt in a larger Currys. They have a few Thule and Tucano products discounted to clear and you might strike lucky.

Something like this Thule Gauntlet sleeve should be fine in another bag

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Thule-Guntlet-Envelope-MacBook-Surface/dp/B00KNNRBXI

Thanks for that. I know, I missed out on the deals unfortunately I had a look at the Thule Gauntlet Envelope 2.0 that you've linked to but there are barely any reviews for it out there and the reviews aren't that great.

That leather one, how snug is it? Will it fit my MBA 2013? How are you finding it so far? Do you think it's worth getting the leather one you linked to, or the Knomo Leather Envelope Case in Black https://www.amazon.co.uk/knomo-Leather-Envelope-Case-MacBook/dp/B007ADCNLE

[doublepost=1481813814][/doublepost]
[doublepost=1481814040][/doublepost]Try Ebay, they're selling the Knomo 13" Macbook Air sleeeve for around £19 in black.

£6 if you don't mind patent leather. A bit blingy but Knomo are very decent. I have one for my 11" MBA.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/KNOMO-MacBook-Air-13-Patent-Leather-Envelope-Sleeve-Black-/162000956671

Thanks guys, would you recommend the Knomo Leather Envelope Case
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/161912912403

Or the Dbramante1928 Leather Case
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dbramante1928-Leather-Case-inch-MacBook/dp/B00BKW5KK2

Or the Thule Gauntlet Envelope 2.0?
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Thule-Guntlet-Envelope-MacBook-Surface/dp/B00KNNRBXI

With the Knomo one I'm concerned about the studs to enclose, if it has an impact on the MBA on the inside it may cause scratches and such

 

[weckart]

With the Knomo one I'm concerned about the studs to enclose, if it has an impact on the MBA on the inside it may cause scratches and such

That was my one concern with the design. However, the force required for the inside of a stud to pierce through the lining and mark a Macbook would be considerable, so you would be in as much danger of cracking the screen as marking the lid. The one I have for my 11" has a zip and I picked it up in TKMaxx a while back. You can occasionally find Knomo sleeves there, too. The Knomo is decently padded for what it is. For scratch protection it should be plenty in an adequately padded bag, otherwise I would plump for a stiffer EVA case.

 

[mynameis321]

anymore recommendations?

 

[Sinfonist]

anymore recommendations?

I've got a Jazooli neoprene cover for my 13" MBA. It's (fake) fur lined and the zips seem strong.
It costs about 8 pounds including postage on Amazon. I had an InCase Neoprene case before and that protected from most scratches and dings (the ones I got were when the laptop wasn't in the cover), and was also rain resistant (I wouldn't leave it out since water could get through the zip/seam, but a few raindrops while carrying it seemed fine). I expect the Jazooli cover to be similar.

Negatives for the Jazooli

i) it has a small zip at the bottom for a charge cable, but I often try to open it there by mistake!
ii) the zip opening is relatively small (doesn't go all the way round like the InCase)
iii) it's a bit big (will fit an MBP), so the MBA is a bit loose

As basic protection, it works well though, and the price is excellent.

 

[cbdilger]

I have the 13" version of this Thule case: https://www.amazon.com/Thule-Gauntlet-TMAS-111-11-Inch-Chromebook/dp/B006J6G4OU/ — not sure if it's still around.

Pros: good weight to protection ratio, doesn't add a lot of thickness to the laptop.
Cons: adhesive on Velcro not that great.

Overall it's served me well — had a bike wreck when I ended up on my back, shredding my backpack. Some road rash on the case, but when I pulled out my MBA it fired right up. Afterward the outside seam started coming apart, but I took it to a shoe repair place and they easily repaired it by stitching all the way around it.