AppAdvice Reviews The Sleeve360 iPad 2 Case
by Tim Chaten
July 19, 2011
Introduction
If you have been unhappy with the level of protection offered by the SmartCover and want a real case, you may want to check out the Sleeve360. The Sleeve 360 for the iPad 2 allows you to hold your iPad 2 in a very secure way and the case offers a variety of stands for when you simply want to put it down on your desk. Here are our findings with the Sleeve 360.
The Pros
We absolutely loved the packaging. It was definitely Apple inspired and mimics that of the actual iPad. A nice perk of getting this case is you get a nice little bag to throw your iPad into. The bag is very soft and well made. The case itself is made of a unique rubber compound. It is similar to the original iPad case Apple sold, but has a little better feel to it. One of the nice little touches that we love is the covering for the home button. It feels great, it looks great and it may prolong the life of your home button! All of the ports are easily accessible. The headphone jack can be used with larger sized connectors. The case adds very little thickness to your device, which is a major win. In fact a naked iPad 1 is still thicker than the iPad 2 in this case.
The multitude of stand options is another major advantage. You’ll have more options with this case than with the SmartCover. Built into the case itself is a typing stand. It will raise your iPad into an appropriate angle for typing. When you attach the hand strap you have a few more stand options. The strap will actually open up to allow you to stand up your iPad in portrait or landscape mode. The stand in both of those modes are very sturdy. When we use our iPad 2s with the SmartCover, the iPads fall over. That problem is solved with this case.
The hand strap is another huge advantage over the SmartCover. It is comforting to know that you don’t actually have to hold your iPad anymore. Your iPad will hold on to you! It will spin around and be usable in any orientation. The strap is very easy to take on and off and is very portable. The strap is one of the biggest improvements over the original Sleeve 360 model that shipped for the iPad 1 case. The strap is well-built and easy to operate.
The Cons
Not everything is perfect and this is not a perfect case. We do enjoy it, but there are some things to keep in mind. The weight is not substantial, but enough to make it heavier than a naked iPad 1. There is no screen protection, unless you want to throw it into the bag that comes with it.
The biggest problem that we had with the case is that it doesn’t utilize the special iPad 2 magnets in any way. One of the coolest features of the iPad 2 is the automatic on/off functionality with the SmartCover and other cases. The Sleeve360 ignores this feature completely, which is a shame. We would have liked to see some magnet integration.
The iPad's screen does get fingerprints pretty easily. While this is not a fault of the case, we did find that the Apple SmartCover (though not perfect), does a pretty good job cleaning off the screen.
Finally, as with most cases, you will not be able to dock your iPad. Most people do not have a need for this, but if you like to place your iPad 2 into a dock, then this case may not be for you.
