Two new Vaja case designs, ivolution Holster, and ivolution Lady Holster

[St. Germain]

I have a Vaja case that I've totally loved for my iPod for a few years now. Expensive but the quality is second to none, but I wasn't thrilled with their initial selection of iPhone cases. I was heavily leaning towards getting a Casemate leather case.

Just before ordering a couple of Casemates for my wife and I, I noticed that Vaja released a couple of new designs since I looked last week. Having been extremely happy with their quality in the past, we now have orders for a ivolution Holster in Brownie color for me and an ivolution Lady Holster in Ruby Wine for her. Mine is a nice deep brown color, very professional looking. She absolutely loves the strap of the Lady Holster and hers is a nice wine color.

http://www.vajacases.com/home/home_en.html

Yes they're much more expensive than the Casemates, but I really like the fact that they don't hide all of that killer silver edge styling that the iPhone has. Sure, the Casemate protects it better by completely covering it, but well, it completely covers it so that you can't even see it. I know that it will bother some that it isn't fully covered, but I want to be able to enjoy the styling of the iPhone too. I like the nice balance that the Vaja takes.

Here are a couple of screen captures of their Flash site. These aren't the colors we're getting but it will give you an idea of what they look like:

ivolution Holster

ivolution Lady Holster

 

[scriptkitten]

the strap is a nice touch on the lady one, but i decided to get the casemate because i didn't think this vaja would protect the iphone from damage all that well... let us know what you think when it arrives.

 

[DylanG]

I agree that the Vaja are really nice looking cases and, based on past history, should be very well constructed with fine leather. Even so, I also decided on the Case Mate because it looks like it has some chance of protecting the top half in case of a drop. And I wish Vaja offered a clip option that was flush with the case when the clip isn't attached.

 

[SteveM8]

Nice looking cases

but I canceled my order as I did not like the clip options. I would prefer a clip that is flush with the case so it can be clipped nice and tight against my hip. The clip this comes with would have it dangling around and give even more chance of damaging the phone. BUT these are the best looking cases I have seen yet.

I opted for the SENA case and love it.

 

[St. Germain]

Neither my wife nor I use a belt clip so we ordered the cases without them.

I can totally understand why someone would prefer total coverage like the Casemate, but I'm trying to find a balance between completely hiding the smooth silver styling on the iPhone to protect it and enjoying it. A brilliant silver edge won't do me any good if I never get to see it I suppose.

I've been faring pretty well actually without a case at all so far with no scratches of note after sitting in my pocket since launch. That made me a little less wary of totally covering it I guess.

As for drop protection, I figure the Vaja will protect me about as well as the Casemate will. If it's a serious drop, that's what my insurance coverage is for I guess.

 

[Nahmeanz]

seriously considering one with a rivet clip and maybe personalized text...but I just paid 630 for the phone, another 75 for the case??? maybe I should hold off a bit...but a complete skin (invisi or bse) + a vaja case is what I'm going to get sometime in the future...

 

[hotsauce]

I've had a vaja ivolution case in the past for my treo. I ordered it in blue. After about a week it looked like a blue and black camoufage. The leather seemed to have been painted as opposed to dyed. I don't claim to know the manufacturing process of leather, but the paint wore off way prematurely. I'd recommend ordering them in darker colors.

For those who ordered this case, please post on the durability of the colors.

 

[MyJelleo]

I think I'm the only one who isn't impressed by these cases. They hardly cover the crucial, highly scratchable areas of the phone. You might as well not use a case and save yourself 60 or so bucks.

The best case I've found for the iphone is my hand.

 

[DylanG]

I think the most important thing they provide is an easier to grip surface. The curved lines and brushed metal are gorgeous but an accident waiting to happen for someone with butterfingers like me. I've already dropped mine on carpet and had a close call over pavement.

 

[Npalettas]

Fantastic cases, really they are, but vajas i-volution full case is what im waiting for. Who knows, maybe they'll never release a full version, but if they do its going to be an instant buy for me. I am curious of the manufacturing/shipping time. I do believe they say that the handcrafting takes 10 days and i'd imagine another 5 or so to ship up from Argentina? Please lets us now when it arrives! Again, great taste in cases!

 

[Nahmeanz]

its a holster not a case, it's not supposed to offer complete protection

 

[St. Germain]

I've had a vaja ivolution case in the past for my treo. I ordered it in blue. After about a week it looked like a blue and black camoufage. The leather seemed to have been painted as opposed to dyed. I don't claim to know the manufacturing process of leather, but the paint wore off way prematurely. I'd recommend ordering them in darker colors.

For those who ordered this case, please post on the durability of the colors.

Interesting, I hope you got a refund because that's not been my experience with Vaja cases. My iPod case is half white and half light grey to mirror the aesthetics of the iPod itself and I never have had any fading after 3-4 years of use.

 

[SteveM8]

Fantastic cases, really they are, but vajas i-volution full case is what im waiting for. Who knows, maybe they'll never release a full version, but if they do its going to be an instant buy for me. I am curious of the manufacturing/shipping time. I do believe they say that the handcrafting takes 10 days and i'd imagine another 5 or so to ship up from Argentina? Please lets us now when it arrives! Again, great taste in cases!

The process takes 25 days, then shipping on top of that. Probably a bit over a month to get your case, but probably worth it. Their Ipod cases look sweet!

 

[St. Germain]

I think I'm the only one who isn't impressed by these cases. They hardly cover the crucial, highly scratchable areas of the phone. You might as well not use a case and save yourself 60 or so bucks.

The best case I've found for the iphone is my hand.

I think that for the most part iPhones are durable enough to not even need a case really. That's been my experience so far. They can be a bit slippery at times, and it can't hurt to cushion them just a bit from a fall. So we're going the route of some protection but not going overboard to the point where we can't enjoy the styling of the iPhone itself, which is really quite nice.

 

[St. Germain]

The process takes 25 days, then shipping on top of that. Probably a bit over a month to get your case, but probably worth it. Their Ipod cases look sweet!

That's definitely a downside of Vaja, the waiting time. They only make the cases when they get an order for them for the most part. I assume that they always have stock of certain very popular colors, but with all the color combinations they offer, they probably can't keep all of them in stock.

 

[MyJelleo]

I think that for the most part iPhones are durable enough to not even need a case really. That's been my experience so far. They can be a bit slippery at times, and it can't hurt to cushion them just a bit from a fall. So we're going the route of some protection but not going overboard to the point where we can't enjoy the styling of the iPhone itself, which is really quite nice.

I'm a hypocrite; I broke down and ordered the holster in black. I'm so WEAK.

 

[bostonte]

When they say 25 days, they mean it unfortunately. And add 5-10 for lettering or graphic. I'm hoping they have "some" of the colors ready to go as I hate waiting.

On the plus side, they've always shipped FedEx Overnight to me - so at least once its ready, the wait is short.

FYI: to those that havent ordered before, they tell fedex to REQUIRE someone to physically sign on delivery (no notes - but its not restriced so any adult is ok). And fedex's new policy is to not allow a hold at location until after the first failed delivery attempt. Though luckily vaja sends the tracking number and I live only 20 mins from the depot -- so I can track from work and call to hold for pickup on my way home.

A bit unusual of a policy, but I understand why they do it. Just wanted those that didn't read the full policies before ordering to know to expect this.

 

[MyJelleo]

When they say 25 days, they mean it unfortunately. And add 5-10 for lettering or graphic. I'm hoping they have "some" of the colors ready to go as I hate waiting.

On the plus side, they've always shipped FedEx Overnight to me - so at least once its ready, the wait is short.

FYI: to those that havent ordered before, they tell fedex to REQUIRE someone to physically sign on delivery (no notes - but its not restriced so any adult is ok). And fedex's new policy is to not allow a hold at location until after the first failed delivery attempt. Though luckily vaja sends the tracking number and I live only 20 mins from the depot -- so I can track from work and call to hold for pickup on my way home.

A bit unusual of a policy, but I understand why they do it. Just wanted those that didn't read the full policies before ordering to know to expect this.

Well, darn the luck; I was hoping they were bluffing with that 25 day estimate. I also had lettering on mine...OMG! It's going to take a month for me to get my case??? Sigh~ I guess i'll have to find something temporary for now.

 

[hotsauce]

Wirelessly posted (Apple Communication Device: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU like Mac OS X; en) AppleWebKit/420+ (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.0 Mobile/1A543a Safari/419.3)

I've had a vaja ivolution case in the past for my treo. I ordered it in blue. After about a week it looked like a blue and black camoufage. The leather seemed to have been painted as opposed to dyed. I don't claim to know the manufacturing process of leather, but the paint wore off way prematurely. I'd recommend ordering them in darker colors.

For those who ordered this case, please post on the durability of the colors.

Interesting, I hope you got a refund because that's not been my experience with Vaja cases. My iPod case is half white and half light grey to mirror the aesthetics of the iPod itself and I never have had any fading after 3-4 years of use.

How's their customer service? I've heard from other forums that they're kinda hard to work with so I didn't bother. So any insight on their manufacturing process?

 

[dominatrix]

i like the look of those cases , they look really fancy and the color options are soooo beautiful.. but the price they go really crazy , i just selected a lemon green color and added a clip the price is 85U$ , NO WAY ! the 55U$ price is just to make you start to pick the color.. too expensive for a nice color case.

whats the difference between those clips ??

 

[St. Germain]

i like the look of those cases , they look really fancy and the color options are soooo beautiful.. but the price they go really crazy , i just selected a lemon green color and added a clip the price is 85U$ , NO WAY ! the 55U$ price is just to make you start to pick the color.. too expensive for a nice color case.

whats the difference between those clips ??

Heh, well you could just get one of those free phones that cell companies offer instead of an iPhone too couldn't you?

 

[St. Germain]

Wirelessly posted (Apple Communication Device: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU like Mac OS X; en) AppleWebKit/420+ (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.0 Mobile/1A543a Safari/419.3)



How's their customer service? I've heard from other forums that they're kinda hard to work with so I didn't bother. So any insight on their manufacturing process?

I have seen Vaja representatives respond to customers on forums before. I've never personally had any problems that made me contact them. My order arrived when they said it would and the quality was top notch.

 

[dominatrix]

Heh, well you could just get one of those free phones that cell companies offer instead of an iPhone too couldn't you?

hey my friend its not because you spend 80 bucks on a case that everybody else need to do that.. i have the money and i can buy a 300U$ case if i want to, but they need to worth the price. i really like the color on those cases, but cant see the reason to be sooooo expensive and take sooooo long to make a simple case probably 1 month or more to delivery. If you think like that go buy a Louis Vuitton case, they just cost 1200U$, cmon if you can spend 600 on a phone you can get a 1200 case..

 

[lilnyc]

I've been faring pretty well actually without a case at all so far with no scratches of note after sitting in my pocket since launch. That made me a little less wary of totally covering it I guess.

As for drop protection, I figure the Vaja will protect me about as well as the Casemate will. If it's a serious drop, that's what my insurance coverage is for I guess.

After seeing a scratch from the Belkin clear, and hating any screen cover, I decided to roll naked with the iPhone until I can get a Vaja.

I have a holster, but my concern is taking it out to use it, and dropping the phone. However, IMO, almost any case takes away from the feel of it. It's almost like a museum piece, y'know?

The Vaja is the only case I have seen that, like you said, retains some of the styling for the phone. I'll just have to be very, VERY careful.