Speck TechStyle Classic w/ Holster for BlackBerry Pearl 8100 Review
CaseandCover.com reviews Speck cases and covers for the iPhone, iPod, and BlackBerry. Trusted reviews, from trusted sources throughout the internet.
The Ultimate in Style and Protection for your Pearl
Did you get a shiny, new BlackBerry Pearl for the Holidays? There are few feelings like holding that new BlackBerry Pearl in your hands when it first comes out of the box. It is shiny, smooth, scratch free and truly beautiful to look at.
Unfortunately, most of us are pretty tough on our phones – especially our Blackberries. They get so much use and so much in and out of pockets and purses and jackets that they start to scratch and look worn.
Because of this, a good, protective case is almost a must have. There are lots of options and many to choose from in the CrackBerry Store. Today, we will take a good look at the Speck Products TechStyle Classic w/Holster Case and see if this is the one you should invest in to protect your new Pearl.
As you can see from looking in the CrackBerry Store, cases come in all sorts of shapes and sizes and styles. Holsters are particularly attractive to BlackBerry users because of the nature of BlackBerry devices as business devices – often on our belt.
The problem with holsters is that once you take the BlackBerry out of the holster, it is unprotected – and vulnerable if we were to drop it while using it (a fate that has happened to most of us.)
The problem with “skin” type form-fitting leather cases is that they don’t stay well on our belts.
Enter Speck Products with a unique solution that provides the style of a leather form fitting case with the protection and convenience of a holster.
The “Official” line from Speck products is the following:
“Enhance your BlackBerry Pearl with a premium, hand-crafted Classic leather case. These beautiful, textured cases are adorned with fine stitching, a removable swivel holster, and touch-thru screen protector. Offers secure protection and classic style for your BlackBerry Pearl.
Made from premium leather
Soft, plaid interior lining
Sewn-in screen protector
Removable swivel holster (belt clip)”
Design and Function:
The Speck case is really a brilliant design. Too many leather form-fitting cases either don’t have a belt clip, or, if they do, it protrudes from the case making it uncomfortable to also use in your pocket.
Speck offers the best of both worlds – a form-fitting leather case and a leather holster. The beauty of this design is that when in the holster – you have a nice looking, safe way to transport your BlackBerry. The holster is made of strong leather over a harder material that gives it a very secure feeling.
The holster is also “magnetized” so that the “holster” features available in your BlackBerry Profile settings can be used (like “vibrate in holster.”)
The “Skin” part of the case is also made of a nice, durable feeling leather. Pretty much every part of the BlackBerry Pearl is protected – with openings for the convenience keys, standby button and charging port.
The “Skin” case has a snap on the back to keep the Pearl in place once it is loaded (from the top) into the case.
The “Skin” case also has a plastic screen protector in place which protects the BlackBerry screen. Now, I am generally not a fan of plastic screen protectors for BlackBerries since none have a touch screen which gets poked on continually. Some people like the added protection and this case certainly offers that.
Fit and Finish/Aesthetics:
My sample case came in nice, dark brown leather. The holster had a nice plaid design on the inside which was certainly fashionable.
The leather seems “protective” and durable. This is not soft, supple calf skin which you find on many very expensive cases – this is hard, protective leather – function over aesthetics here.
The cutouts were all fine – there was easy access to all the main buttons and keys. Stitching was also nicely done – functional and sturdy.
Protection:
The Speck case offers good protection for the BlackBerry. When in the holster, it was secure and tight. I never had to worry about the BlackBerry falling out of the holster.
When out of the holster, the BlackBerry seemed pretty well protected by the leather skin and the screen protector. The leather was hard, but pliable – which made me think it would hold up well if dropped.
Areas of Concern:
One small area of concern was that the edging was not smooth – when I put the BlackBerry into the case, I did worry that it might get scratched on the way in – or on the way out. Since we all have to do the occasional “battery pull” every so often, this was a concern for me.
Overall Conclusions:
This is a well made and protective case. The solution to have both a leather holster and a leather skin really does make a lot of sense. The BlackBerry was always protected – both in and out of the holster.
01 Jan 2008 22:24 by Gary Mazo
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The Ultimate in Style and Protection for your Pearl
Did you get a shiny, new BlackBerry Pearl for the Holidays? There are few feelings like holding that new BlackBerry Pearl in your hands when it first comes out of the box. It is shiny, smooth, scratch free and truly beautiful to look at.
Unfortunately, most of us are pretty tough on our phones – especially our Blackberries. They get so much use and so much in and out of pockets and purses and jackets that they start to scratch and look worn.
Because of this, a good, protective case is almost a must have. There are lots of options and many to choose from in the CrackBerry Store. Today, we will take a good look at the Speck Products TechStyle Classic w/Holster Case and see if this is the one you should invest in to protect your new Pearl.
As you can see from looking in the CrackBerry Store, cases come in all sorts of shapes and sizes and styles. Holsters are particularly attractive to BlackBerry users because of the nature of BlackBerry devices as business devices – often on our belt.
The problem with holsters is that once you take the BlackBerry out of the holster, it is unprotected – and vulnerable if we were to drop it while using it (a fate that has happened to most of us.)
The problem with “skin” type form-fitting leather cases is that they don’t stay well on our belts.
Enter Speck Products with a unique solution that provides the style of a leather form fitting case with the protection and convenience of a holster.
The “Official” line from Speck products is the following:
“Enhance your BlackBerry Pearl with a premium, hand-crafted Classic leather case. These beautiful, textured cases are adorned with fine stitching, a removable swivel holster, and touch-thru screen protector. Offers secure protection and classic style for your BlackBerry Pearl.
Made from premium leather
Soft, plaid interior lining
Sewn-in screen protector
Removable swivel holster (belt clip)”
Design and Function:
The Speck case is really a brilliant design. Too many leather form-fitting cases either don’t have a belt clip, or, if they do, it protrudes from the case making it uncomfortable to also use in your pocket.
Speck offers the best of both worlds – a form-fitting leather case and a leather holster. The beauty of this design is that when in the holster – you have a nice looking, safe way to transport your BlackBerry. The holster is made of strong leather over a harder material that gives it a very secure feeling.
The holster is also “magnetized” so that the “holster” features available in your BlackBerry Profile settings can be used (like “vibrate in holster.”)
The “Skin” part of the case is also made of a nice, durable feeling leather. Pretty much every part of the BlackBerry Pearl is protected – with openings for the convenience keys, standby button and charging port.
The “Skin” case has a snap on the back to keep the Pearl in place once it is loaded (from the top) into the case.
The “Skin” case also has a plastic screen protector in place which protects the BlackBerry screen. Now, I am generally not a fan of plastic screen protectors for BlackBerries since none have a touch screen which gets poked on continually. Some people like the added protection and this case certainly offers that.
Fit and Finish/Aesthetics:
My sample case came in nice, dark brown leather. The holster had a nice plaid design on the inside which was certainly fashionable.
The leather seems “protective” and durable. This is not soft, supple calf skin which you find on many very expensive cases – this is hard, protective leather – function over aesthetics here.
The cutouts were all fine – there was easy access to all the main buttons and keys. Stitching was also nicely done – functional and sturdy.
Protection:
The Speck case offers good protection for the BlackBerry. When in the holster, it was secure and tight. I never had to worry about the BlackBerry falling out of the holster.
When out of the holster, the BlackBerry seemed pretty well protected by the leather skin and the screen protector. The leather was hard, but pliable – which made me think it would hold up well if dropped.
Areas of Concern:
One small area of concern was that the edging was not smooth – when I put the BlackBerry into the case, I did worry that it might get scratched on the way in – or on the way out. Since we all have to do the occasional “battery pull” every so often, this was a concern for me.
Overall Conclusions:
This is a well made and protective case. The solution to have both a leather holster and a leather skin really does make a lot of sense. The BlackBerry was always protected – both in and out of the holster.
01 Jan 2008 22:24 by Gary Mazo
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Speck SeeThru Case and Holster for the BlackBerry Curve Series Review
CaseandCover.com reviews Speck cases and covers for the iPhone, iPod, and BlackBerry. Trusted reviews, from trusted sources throughout the internet.
OK, You just got the BlackBerry Curve – one of the slimmest, coolest and hottest Smartphones on the planet. Depending on the model, you paid anywhere from $99.00 to $250 or more for it. You hold it in your hand and it feels so nice, thin and…..fragile. You don’t want to drop it, but we all drop our BlackBerry at some point. So, you need a case to protect it…just in case (sorry about the pun). Luckily, there are lots of options at the ShopCrackBerry.com Store.
One of the things I love about my 8320 is the color – I don’t necessarily want to mask or cover that up in a case. Fortunately, I have a good option in the Speck Products SeeThru Case for the BlackBerry Curve 8300 series.
Overview
Speck Holster Case for Blackberry 8300 8310 8320 8330
Here is the “Official Overview” of this case:
Speck Products SeeThru for BlackBerry 8300 Series - Protect your BlackBerry Curve and keep it slim and sleek! Get great protection and functionality with the SeeThru case and holster. SeeThru cases are made of translucent hard plastic to beautify and protect. 2-piece snap together SeeThru case includes screen protection and removable swivel holster.
The Speck SeeThru case is designed to snap over the BlackBerry, giving it a clear, hard outer shell. The case is totally see thru – as the name indicates. There are cutouts on the sides for the convenience keys and charging ports and on the top for the standby/mute key.
Speck’s version of the Seethru case has plastic over the screen as well – to provide an added layer of protection. Included is a plastic swivel clip for attaching to your belt and securely holding your Blackberry.
I found that I had access to pretty much every button and key while the BlackBerry was in this case. The screen protector did get in the way, just a little, when I went to press the trackball. I also found that the convenience keys were a bit tricky to push and the mute key was very tricky to push when this case was put on the BlackBerry.
One thing I appreciated was being able to clearly see the nice Pale Gold color of my Curve through the case. I also appreciated that little bulk was added by using this case.
The holster has a very minimalistic design, but it does hold the BlackBerry securely. Unfortunately, this holster/case combo does not contain a magnet to put the BlackBerry into "sleeper" mode when inserted into the holster. This means you can't utilize the BlackBerry Operating system's In Holster sound profile settings. It also means you will want to hold down the mute key for 2 seconds to manually put the phone into standby (save battery life and prevents accidental keyboard presses) when inserting into the holster.
Fit and Finish
Speck Holster Case for Blackberry 8300 8310 8320 8330
The Speck SeeThru case fit perfectly onto the BlackBerry. I did feel some “sharpness” around the cutouts of this case. Very important was that the camera lens was not obstructed nor were any of the keys on the front of the phone. There was no added glare by having the screen covered. One curious thing about the finish of this case was that there was a seam in the upper left hand corner of the case – sort of small square. This was in the area where the case seals together – so, my guess is that it was simply re-enforcement of the plastic.
Protection
This is a hard case. It seems like it would protect the Blackberry in a fall – but there is no padding, so I don’t’ know how the fall would be absorbed. What it did protect against were scratches and scuffs = both on the screen and on the device.
Overall Conclusions
Speck Holster Case for Blackberry 8300 8310 8320 8330
This is a nice, inexpensive way to protect your BlackBerry and not lose any of the “luster” of the nice color. I happen to really like the feel of the rubberized sides on the new BlackBerry curve. When using this case, I lose that for the feel of hard plastic. It doesn’t add a lot of bulk which is a good thing and it preserves the general look of the device. If you simply want a hard “skin” for your BlackBerry, this could be a fine alternative for you.
14 Mar 2008 by Gary Mazo
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OK, You just got the BlackBerry Curve – one of the slimmest, coolest and hottest Smartphones on the planet. Depending on the model, you paid anywhere from $99.00 to $250 or more for it. You hold it in your hand and it feels so nice, thin and…..fragile. You don’t want to drop it, but we all drop our BlackBerry at some point. So, you need a case to protect it…just in case (sorry about the pun). Luckily, there are lots of options at the ShopCrackBerry.com Store.
One of the things I love about my 8320 is the color – I don’t necessarily want to mask or cover that up in a case. Fortunately, I have a good option in the Speck Products SeeThru Case for the BlackBerry Curve 8300 series.
Overview
Speck Holster Case for Blackberry 8300 8310 8320 8330
Here is the “Official Overview” of this case:
Speck Products SeeThru for BlackBerry 8300 Series - Protect your BlackBerry Curve and keep it slim and sleek! Get great protection and functionality with the SeeThru case and holster. SeeThru cases are made of translucent hard plastic to beautify and protect. 2-piece snap together SeeThru case includes screen protection and removable swivel holster.
- great screen protection
- removable swivel holster (belt clip)
- full phone functionality while your phone is in the case
- protects yet keeps a slim profile
- Design and Function
The Speck SeeThru case is designed to snap over the BlackBerry, giving it a clear, hard outer shell. The case is totally see thru – as the name indicates. There are cutouts on the sides for the convenience keys and charging ports and on the top for the standby/mute key.
Speck’s version of the Seethru case has plastic over the screen as well – to provide an added layer of protection. Included is a plastic swivel clip for attaching to your belt and securely holding your Blackberry.
I found that I had access to pretty much every button and key while the BlackBerry was in this case. The screen protector did get in the way, just a little, when I went to press the trackball. I also found that the convenience keys were a bit tricky to push and the mute key was very tricky to push when this case was put on the BlackBerry.
One thing I appreciated was being able to clearly see the nice Pale Gold color of my Curve through the case. I also appreciated that little bulk was added by using this case.
The holster has a very minimalistic design, but it does hold the BlackBerry securely. Unfortunately, this holster/case combo does not contain a magnet to put the BlackBerry into "sleeper" mode when inserted into the holster. This means you can't utilize the BlackBerry Operating system's In Holster sound profile settings. It also means you will want to hold down the mute key for 2 seconds to manually put the phone into standby (save battery life and prevents accidental keyboard presses) when inserting into the holster.
Fit and Finish
Speck Holster Case for Blackberry 8300 8310 8320 8330
The Speck SeeThru case fit perfectly onto the BlackBerry. I did feel some “sharpness” around the cutouts of this case. Very important was that the camera lens was not obstructed nor were any of the keys on the front of the phone. There was no added glare by having the screen covered. One curious thing about the finish of this case was that there was a seam in the upper left hand corner of the case – sort of small square. This was in the area where the case seals together – so, my guess is that it was simply re-enforcement of the plastic.
Protection
This is a hard case. It seems like it would protect the Blackberry in a fall – but there is no padding, so I don’t’ know how the fall would be absorbed. What it did protect against were scratches and scuffs = both on the screen and on the device.
Overall Conclusions
Speck Holster Case for Blackberry 8300 8310 8320 8330
This is a nice, inexpensive way to protect your BlackBerry and not lose any of the “luster” of the nice color. I happen to really like the feel of the rubberized sides on the new BlackBerry curve. When using this case, I lose that for the feel of hard plastic. It doesn’t add a lot of bulk which is a good thing and it preserves the general look of the device. If you simply want a hard “skin” for your BlackBerry, this could be a fine alternative for you.
14 Mar 2008 by Gary Mazo
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Speck ArmorSkin for iPhone Review
CaseandCover.com reviews Speck cases and covers for the iPhone, iPod, and BlackBerry. Trusted reviews, from trusted sources throughout the internet.
by Dan Pourhadi, Macworld.com
If your friends have nicknamed you Drops McGee, you’re probably on the lookout for an iPhone case designed to minimize the damage of your inevitable clumsiness. Speck’s ArmorSkin For iPhone may not be the be-all, end-all of klutz protection, but it certainly is an attractive option for simple shock-, bump-, and bruise-avoidance. It’s made of a flexible, reasonably-thick plastic polymer covered in what Speck calls a “grippy, rubbery ‘block’ texture”—features that help prevent most booboos while making it easier to grip in your hand—to hopefully prevent drops in the first place. Some mild drop tests here demonstrated satisfying shock protection, sparing my iPhone from the consequences of my indiscretions (I hope).
But the most convenient trait of the ArmorSkin, and one that makes it a winner in its category, is Speck’s approach to belt-clip transportation: The ArmorSkin is a two-piece set: the main case that snugly hugs the iPhone and a belt-clip holder that wraps around the case and secures it to your on-the-go, important-looking waist. Or pocket, if you’re one of those people.
The advantages to this approach make me smile: When you want your iPhone off your belt, you can easily slide it out of the holder and use it as desired. Even out of its holder, the iPhone is still protected by the case itself, unlike belt-clip products where you either have to remove the iPhone from the case/clip entirely, or struggle to get the case on and off your belt. In addition, if you’re entering Dangerous Territory, callously putting your iPhone’s screen at risk for scratches and bumps, you can remove the iPhone from the holder, flip it around, and re-insert it with the screen facing inward. Ultra-effective screen protection, no voodoo necessary.
The clip on the ArmorSkin is lock-swiveling, offering you multiple options if the horizontal look is how you roll. The lock means it won’t be swinging on your belt—a feature that can be either good or bad, depending on your preference.
Plastic never makes for the sturdiest belt-clip on the block, but the Speck clip is at least less-flimsy than those on some of the other iPhone/iPod cases I’ve reviewed. And the clip offers another grin-worthy garnishment: push the clip open far enough, and it snaps into place, turning the clip itself into a convenient stand to prop your iPhone upright on your Starbucks table, desk, plane tray-table.
Unfortunately, and annoyingly, the iPhone’s Home button and volume controls are covered by the ArmorSkin. The button locations are identifiable by etched indentations in the rubbery stuff, but having a layer of skin over the buttons makes it difficult to figure out if you’ve actually pressed them—you get very little tactile response. You’ll spend some time figuring out just how hard you need to push these buttons to activate them, and then some more time getting used to the adjustment. (4 out of 5 stars)
by Dan Pourhadi, Macworld.com
If your friends have nicknamed you Drops McGee, you’re probably on the lookout for an iPhone case designed to minimize the damage of your inevitable clumsiness. Speck’s ArmorSkin For iPhone may not be the be-all, end-all of klutz protection, but it certainly is an attractive option for simple shock-, bump-, and bruise-avoidance. It’s made of a flexible, reasonably-thick plastic polymer covered in what Speck calls a “grippy, rubbery ‘block’ texture”—features that help prevent most booboos while making it easier to grip in your hand—to hopefully prevent drops in the first place. Some mild drop tests here demonstrated satisfying shock protection, sparing my iPhone from the consequences of my indiscretions (I hope).
But the most convenient trait of the ArmorSkin, and one that makes it a winner in its category, is Speck’s approach to belt-clip transportation: The ArmorSkin is a two-piece set: the main case that snugly hugs the iPhone and a belt-clip holder that wraps around the case and secures it to your on-the-go, important-looking waist. Or pocket, if you’re one of those people.
The advantages to this approach make me smile: When you want your iPhone off your belt, you can easily slide it out of the holder and use it as desired. Even out of its holder, the iPhone is still protected by the case itself, unlike belt-clip products where you either have to remove the iPhone from the case/clip entirely, or struggle to get the case on and off your belt. In addition, if you’re entering Dangerous Territory, callously putting your iPhone’s screen at risk for scratches and bumps, you can remove the iPhone from the holder, flip it around, and re-insert it with the screen facing inward. Ultra-effective screen protection, no voodoo necessary.
The clip on the ArmorSkin is lock-swiveling, offering you multiple options if the horizontal look is how you roll. The lock means it won’t be swinging on your belt—a feature that can be either good or bad, depending on your preference.
Plastic never makes for the sturdiest belt-clip on the block, but the Speck clip is at least less-flimsy than those on some of the other iPhone/iPod cases I’ve reviewed. And the clip offers another grin-worthy garnishment: push the clip open far enough, and it snaps into place, turning the clip itself into a convenient stand to prop your iPhone upright on your Starbucks table, desk, plane tray-table.
Unfortunately, and annoyingly, the iPhone’s Home button and volume controls are covered by the ArmorSkin. The button locations are identifiable by etched indentations in the rubbery stuff, but having a layer of skin over the buttons makes it difficult to figure out if you’ve actually pressed them—you get very little tactile response. You’ll spend some time figuring out just how hard you need to push these buttons to activate them, and then some more time getting used to the adjustment. (4 out of 5 stars)
Speck SeeThru for iPhone (original) Review
CaseandCover.com reviews Speck cases and covers for the iPhone, iPod, and BlackBerry. Trusted reviews, from trusted sources throughout the internet.
When I bought my iPhone, the last thing I wanted to do was cover its beauty in an opaque layer of stylelessness, robbing those around me of the opportunity to immediately identify the device, and robbing me of the opportunity to bask in that envy. For those as appreciative of the iPhone’s elegance and slick curves as me, a transparent case is the only option. And while Speck’s SeeThru for the iPhone falls in that category, it’s also plagued by the flaws typically inherent in that category’s products.
Posted on Oct 31, 2008 by Dan Pourhadi, Macworld.com
Namely, and most importantly, the case isn’t the most secure—or most protective, or sturdiest, or most confidence-inspiring—compared to the others in this roundup. In fact, the only protection the SeeThru really reliably offers is defense against scratches and scrapes. You insert your iPhone into the hard-plastic case by sandwiching it between the case’s snap-together front and back panels, but one good bump can cause the panels to pop open. Once that happens, all bets are off in terms of protection. Even when the case is on, it just doesn’t feel like the two pieces are securely and reliably attached—there’s too much wiggling and jiggling, and too little guarantee.
But the SeeThru isn’t all bad. It does have the same nifty belt holster as Speck’s ArmorSkin that we reviewed a while back; you can easily attach and remove your iPhone, case and all, from your belt. Plus, you have the option to insert the case onto the holster screen-side-in for maximum screen protection, and the holster’s belt clip transforms into an iPhone stand for hands-free video watching. The SeeThru also comes in some swanky translucent colors, and Speck includes a removable, thin-film screen protector that hinders the touchscreen’s responsiveness slightly less than other, similar products I’ve tested.
When I bought my iPhone, the last thing I wanted to do was cover its beauty in an opaque layer of stylelessness, robbing those around me of the opportunity to immediately identify the device, and robbing me of the opportunity to bask in that envy. For those as appreciative of the iPhone’s elegance and slick curves as me, a transparent case is the only option. And while Speck’s SeeThru for the iPhone falls in that category, it’s also plagued by the flaws typically inherent in that category’s products.
Posted on Oct 31, 2008 by Dan Pourhadi, Macworld.com
Namely, and most importantly, the case isn’t the most secure—or most protective, or sturdiest, or most confidence-inspiring—compared to the others in this roundup. In fact, the only protection the SeeThru really reliably offers is defense against scratches and scrapes. You insert your iPhone into the hard-plastic case by sandwiching it between the case’s snap-together front and back panels, but one good bump can cause the panels to pop open. Once that happens, all bets are off in terms of protection. Even when the case is on, it just doesn’t feel like the two pieces are securely and reliably attached—there’s too much wiggling and jiggling, and too little guarantee.
But the SeeThru isn’t all bad. It does have the same nifty belt holster as Speck’s ArmorSkin that we reviewed a while back; you can easily attach and remove your iPhone, case and all, from your belt. Plus, you have the option to insert the case onto the holster screen-side-in for maximum screen protection, and the holster’s belt clip transforms into an iPhone stand for hands-free video watching. The SeeThru also comes in some swanky translucent colors, and Speck includes a removable, thin-film screen protector that hinders the touchscreen’s responsiveness slightly less than other, similar products I’ve tested.