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iPad Pro 10.5 Cases Thread
- Thread starter Royksöpp
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The tiny Tech 21 text at the bottom? I barely notice it. The pictures must make it most noticeable. I don't think branding is bad unless it is completely apparent, like the UAG branding. This Tech 21 logo is more subtle than the majority of case branding.
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I wouldn't blame you for wanting to exchange it--a $70 case should not come pre-scratched!
So far, my impressions (after purchasing and using) of the Tech 21 Impact Clear case with the Apple Leather Smart Cover. The buttons are stiff, but not impossible to press. I rarely use the power button, but am finding myself using the volume buttons, from time to time. The case feels nice to the touch and I am not sure how I would handle not having a pencil holder. The case was slightly difficult to get one and off. I ended up removing it because I forgot to wipe it, and the back of the case, down. It feels very secure on the iPad. If you remove the pencil holder, there are open keyhole slots, but they don't look too bad. Being clear, you see through the case quite easily. There is one very tiny bubble in the flexible plastic of the case, but it doesn't appear to impact anything.
As for cutouts, the bottom cutouts are perfect to the mm. The two top speaker cutouts are excellent, but the one on the left is about a mm or two different than the right. The two upper microphone cutouts are good, but not centered, both being off by a few mm. The camera cutout is also not perfectly centered, being off also by a mm or two. While not major, they appear to be off enough that the designer, doing the CAD, didn't use the correct calculations or rounded some values. Not a dealbreaker, but sloppy (coming from a design engineer).
Edit: Here is a picture to show the offset of the microphone hole. The top microphone hole, top speaker cutouts, and camera cutout are also off by this much (sorry for the dark image).
The Apple leather Smart Cover is nice to the touch and to look at. When folded back, it leaves some of the iPad's left side exposed, which is not a fault of the Tech 21 case, but necessary for the Apple Smart Cover to attach. It still seems like a weakness, coming from someone who is used to holding an iPad Air 2 in a Smart Case. When the cover is pulled off, it feels too exposed. As for the magnet strength of the cover, it is weak. The cover will not fully attach to the back of the Tech 21 case, with only the end of the flap holding on slightly (until there is enough movement to make come loose). It also barely attaches to the front of the iPad Pro. This is also an observable issue with the iPad Air 2 leather Smart Case, as well, so I cannot really fault the Tech 21 case here, either. I think the leather may be a weaker magnet from the silicone Smart Cover, as others have pointed out, but I don't think it is not enough of a worry to switch.
Overall, while I would prefer a case in the vein of the Apple Smart Case for the iPad Air 2, there is just nothing of quality that I have found (in Canada) to accommodate this. Unless I find something better, within the next week, I'll likely end up holding onto this expensive combination as it seems to adequately protect the iPad, despite the shortcomings of the less protected left side, where the Smart Cover attaches. Some of the cutouts being offset, by a few mm, is odd. However, it does nothing to lower the functionality of the case. The only offset that can be seen from a distance is on the microphone holes. It also looks nice, showing the colour (in my case, Space Grey) of the iPad quite well.
Edit: Looking at the pictures put up by Seppolainen, their case appears perfectly centered. Perhaps my particular case was poorly cut.
As for cutouts, the bottom cutouts are perfect to the mm. The two top speaker cutouts are excellent, but the one on the left is about a mm or two different than the right. The two upper microphone cutouts are good, but not centered, both being off by a few mm. The camera cutout is also not perfectly centered, being off also by a mm or two. While not major, they appear to be off enough that the designer, doing the CAD, didn't use the correct calculations or rounded some values. Not a dealbreaker, but sloppy (coming from a design engineer).
Edit: Here is a picture to show the offset of the microphone hole. The top microphone hole, top speaker cutouts, and camera cutout are also off by this much (sorry for the dark image).
The Apple leather Smart Cover is nice to the touch and to look at. When folded back, it leaves some of the iPad's left side exposed, which is not a fault of the Tech 21 case, but necessary for the Apple Smart Cover to attach. It still seems like a weakness, coming from someone who is used to holding an iPad Air 2 in a Smart Case. When the cover is pulled off, it feels too exposed. As for the magnet strength of the cover, it is weak. The cover will not fully attach to the back of the Tech 21 case, with only the end of the flap holding on slightly (until there is enough movement to make come loose). It also barely attaches to the front of the iPad Pro. This is also an observable issue with the iPad Air 2 leather Smart Case, as well, so I cannot really fault the Tech 21 case here, either. I think the leather may be a weaker magnet from the silicone Smart Cover, as others have pointed out, but I don't think it is not enough of a worry to switch.
Overall, while I would prefer a case in the vein of the Apple Smart Case for the iPad Air 2, there is just nothing of quality that I have found (in Canada) to accommodate this. Unless I find something better, within the next week, I'll likely end up holding onto this expensive combination as it seems to adequately protect the iPad, despite the shortcomings of the less protected left side, where the Smart Cover attaches. Some of the cutouts being offset, by a few mm, is odd. However, it does nothing to lower the functionality of the case. The only offset that can be seen from a distance is on the microphone holes. It also looks nice, showing the colour (in my case, Space Grey) of the iPad quite well.
Edit: Looking at the pictures put up by Seppolainen, their case appears perfectly centered. Perhaps my particular case was poorly cut.
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Random note on the Brydge keyboards for iPad--I just noticed last night that if you go over to the Brydge website and sit there for a minute, it starts popping up messages telling you when people buy a keyboard. Not sure why I need to know that necessarily, but I was watching 12.9" sales pop up one after another last night and thinking "Wow, nobody buys Brydge cases for the 10.5" Then I realized that the 10.5" Brydge keyboards weren't available to pre-order until today. I went back to the site and everything popping up now is a 10.5". Seems like a pretty popular item for the iPad Pro line.
I do wonder about those hinges though--maybe someone here can tell me. Is it hard to take the iPad in and out of those clamps? It looks to me like it is. Also--do any of you Brydge owners worry about the pressure they put on the body of the iPad when opening/closing the hinges? I suppose it would depend on how stiff they are set to be. Not buying one any time soon, just curious. I guess I feel like they might have the potential to bend or dent the metal on the outside of the iPad.
I do wonder about those hinges though--maybe someone here can tell me. Is it hard to take the iPad in and out of those clamps? It looks to me like it is. Also--do any of you Brydge owners worry about the pressure they put on the body of the iPad when opening/closing the hinges? I suppose it would depend on how stiff they are set to be. Not buying one any time soon, just curious. I guess I feel like they might have the potential to bend or dent the metal on the outside of the iPad.
I think you might have a hard time getting bites for a response in the 10.5” forum since as you pointed out it isn’t out yet
but I’ve been checking this and ended up buying a 12.9” with a Brydge.The hinges have a little bit of flex to them.. when you see the instructions, it tells you that you can squeeze them together a little bit if you need to.
It holds the iPad really well. The 12.9 due to weight won’t hold at 150 degree angle - it just falls to the max 180 degree... but it does take a effort to actually pull the iPad out of the hinges. I think you could dangle the iPad by the keyboard fairly safely. For obvious reasons, I won’t risk testing that over a hard wood floor though
I got the Tech 21 Case today and my experience was slightly disappointing. The Case itself was fine, the condition of the case was not. It had some kind of scuffmarks that I couldn't clean off. It's very disappointing for a 70 dollar product. I would like to try again but Apple isn't going to have any more in stock until next week or so.
I am currently in this situation. I have misalignment and scratches and they have none. However, I contacted Tech 21 on Twitter and they said they are willing to replace it. However, they also do not have any in-stock.
I have the oxford pad and quill leather case for my 9.7 ipad pro - I really like it and it feels great to use - but it does add some weight/bulk that other cases might not. The adhesive works well - I have had no trouble at all with it and the ipad feels quite secure. It is well made, good looking(to me), and sturdy - but it is not slim or light.
Second instance of this I've seen this week in this thread. I'm starting to feel lucky for getting one in pristine condition!
The microphone did seem off. Perhaps it came from a bad batch. Maybe they were pulled from the Apple online store.
The next 'evolution' was to ding us individually for the 9.7 with case and cover seperate for over $100.. now well over $100 for a sheath? NO WAY IMO. I will likely use the cover and a skin or cheap/thin back from Amazon. FWIW, I am 90% sure the Smart Cover I bought from Apple was used. I have a Smart Cover on my 9.7 and even at about 6 months it doesn't leave smudges from the underside of the cover. The one I bought for the 10.5 did immediately.
So, on the accessories/case topic I'm really in a quandary on this one. I have a macbook pro and it doesn't have a case. I don't have a problem with scratches (the metal doesn't scratch easily). I'm thinking with my iPad pro it wouldn't scratch easily either. My concern is that I will drop the iPad pro because it is so slick. I don't want to get something ugly to put on the iPad. Any ideas on a good work around to prevent slippage (since Apple doesn't provide an all around case for the iPad)?
You could always try one of those rubberized skins for it. You are still in trouble if you drop it. Not sure how grippy it is, but I would it expect to not be as slick as the metal.
I think you might have a hard time getting bites for a response in the 10.5” forum since as you pointed out it isn’t out yet
The hinges have a little bit of flex to them.. when you see the instructions, it tells you that you can squeeze them together a little bit if you need to.
It holds the iPad really well. The 12.9 due to weight won’t hold at 150 degree angle - it just falls to the max 180 degree... but it does take a effort to actually pull the iPad out of the hinges. I think you could dangle the iPad by the keyboard fairly safely. For obvious reasons, I won’t risk testing that over a hard wood floor though
I have a Brydge for my mini and the hinges are adjustable: just squeeze on the hinge before installing the keyboard. My biggest gripe with the Bridge is when you need to touch the screen at the lower edge of the screen, it doesn't happen, you have to push your iPad up because there is not enough clearance. I e-mailed Brydge, they said yeah, that's the way it is. Quite a pain.
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Can you brydge flip around and be used as a stand. Similar to the windows flip laptops or the clamcases for the ipad?
Just an update. I got my fake leather smart case (for 10.5") from eBay yesterday. Have to say this thing is great! I'm genuinely impressed with it. The sleep/wake is perfect. The cut is a little rough but no big deal at all. Has the Apple logo on the back. Even the packaging was just like Apple's iPad Air 2 smart case. For the price it's great. Hopefully it doesn't fall apart.
Only 2 issues are they sent me black instead of navy blue, and the headphone jack is too tight to fit headphones (I'm wireless now so not a huge deal). All the other cutouts are perfect.
Here's the one I ordered:
http://www.ebay.ca/itm/For-iPad-5th-9-7-2017-iPad-Pro-10-5-Ultra-thin-Leather-Smart-Cover-Case-Pen/182627665060?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&var=485188379105&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649
Only 2 issues are they sent me black instead of navy blue, and the headphone jack is too tight to fit headphones (I'm wireless now so not a huge deal). All the other cutouts are perfect.
Here's the one I ordered:
http://www.ebay.ca/itm/For-iPad-5th-9-7-2017-iPad-Pro-10-5-Ultra-thin-Leather-Smart-Cover-Case-Pen/182627665060?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&var=485188379105&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649
Great review! I ordered the Tech21. The first unit I received had microphone cut outs that didn't align well. Not a big deal but I work a few blocks from an Apple store so it was easy to exchange. The replacement aligns better so I recommend an exchange if you have a misaligned unit.
I agree with all of spiderman0616's observations and especially like the lightweight design and Pencil holder. However, the case has one significant drawback. Unlike Apple Silicone Case (which is what many of us really want), the volume buttons are hard to press. I didn't realize how often I adjust the volume until I used this case. I plan to return it for this reason.
A minor rant. Apple told us in 2016 that the iPad Pro was more mobile than a laptop. This was especially true with the 9.7-inch Silicone Case and Smart Keyboard because you could carry the iPad Pro around without a bag much like carrying a book. In theory, Apple still offers this mobility with the new sleeve but what are you supposed to do with the sleeve when using the iPad Pro in a cafe, etc.? The beauty of the Silicone Case is that you didn't have to think about where to put it when using the iPad. Apple's insanely high manufacturing standards have spoiled us. 37+ pages of third-party case reviews and so far nothing measures up to the Silicone Case.
I would agree with everything you just said. There is still nothing quite like the Apple brand silicone cases, which I would have gladly paid the high price tag for. But sadly, I don't think they're coming. None of the third party cases I've tried have been completely issue-free--the buttons on the Tech21 are a bit stiff, but they do work, so it's not a deal breaker for me. The only other one I like--the Luvvitt clear TPU case--does not fit on the corners of the iPad correctly. Their customer support people promised me a replacement from a new production run that fits the corners the right way "in a week or two". That was couple of weeks ago and still no replacement, so I'm not holding my breath.
I agree. People holding out for a 10.5-inch Silicone Case are whistling past the Apple graveyard. May it rest in peace with the Retina MacBook Air, G5 PowerBook, and probably the Mac mini.