iPad Case Review: Waterfield iPad Wallet

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I’m a huge fan of cases and bags from Waterfield. Their designs tend to be a bit different from all of the other look-alikes. The materials and construction is second to none. And they tend to bring out new products shortly after devices are announced and shipping. That is the case with their iPad offerings. Within a few weeks of the iPad shipping they had a good number of protective systems available for it. Since then, they have rolled out new items on a regular basis. One of the most recent is the iPad Wallet. The iPad while it is a great way to carry your iPad if you need to bring along the wireless keyboard and a few accessories. If you are traveling with your iPad and needed to do some serious work this is a great way to carry everything you need, throw it in your carry-on bag and not worry about your precious device. I have one right here and have been using it for the last few days. Let’s take a look.

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From Waterfield–

Productivity on the Go. The iPad Wallet is your compact iPad travel case for the iPad and Apple wireless keyboard. Two scratch free, lightly padded internal pockets keep your iPad and Keyboard separate and safe. A stretchy back pocket provides all the storage you need for your complete mobile office. Impact-resistant inserts further protect the iPad screen, keyboard and other accessories.

The svelte and stylish iPad case comes in a choice of six panel colors, each with distressed brown leather sides. YKK self-locking zippers seal the deal. Do yourself—and your gear—a favor and order an iPad Wallet to keep your iPad and Apple Wireless Keyboard safe, organized and secure…and look good doing it.

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My thoughts–

The iPad Wallet is an unusual offering in a world of increasingly similar iPad protection systems. In its basic form it is not a case for the iPad itself. It’s not a bag. Rather it’s a way to carry and protect your iPad, wireless keyboard and accessories when placed in a larger bag or briefcase. Some might think it is a bit on the bulky side (I don’t) but the protection it offers is fantastic.

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While the basic iPad Wallet is designed to fit INTO a bag, there are additional options for adding both D-rings and a shoulder strap that effectively turn it INTO a bag. I can actually see this being an incredibly useful way to carry your iPad and just enough additional tools for getting serious work done. Yes, when you add these options the price begins to creep toward $100 but, as Elana CONSTANTLY reminds me, you get what you pay for.

With or without the d-rings and strap this is definitely a quality case and is a product that should last an incredibly long time and endure a good deal of use and abuse. (I should know. Before I began reviewing their products here on Gear Diary I purchased a few. They are still going strong and aren’t showing any significant wear.

When you first get the iPad Wallet it looks like a rectangular fabric box. Effectively, that’s exactly what it is. There’s high-quality material on the top and two sides.

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Soft distressed leather covers the remaining sides and there is black stretch material on the back that creates a pocket over more of the main case material. This pocket is great for carrying a host of accessories but it’s worth noting that it doesn’t have any closures so if you’re using it for small items be careful they don’t drop out.

The heavy-duty zipper zips open on two sides. This isn’t a case that opens up and lies flat but rather the zipper opens up to give you just enough space to get your items inside.

There are two ways to get your iPad inside.

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There is a nice soft pocket that a naked iPad will slip into with ease. An iPad that has a shell on it will also fit but is a little bit tighter when trying to get inside.

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What you can’t see it you can feel the fact that there is some hard material sewn into the back of the iPad Wallet. This ensures that the delicate screen of the iPad is protected once inside. It’s flexible plastic but it feels substantial enough that I wouldn’t worry about the iPad screen being damaged when using this particular case.

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If your iPad is inside a case you can simply place it into the main compartment.

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There is plenty of room.

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On the other side of the interior of the case is a pocket designed specifically for the Apple wireless keyboard. There is no clear indication with regard to how the keyboard slides inside but I found that if the battery compartment of the keyboard is facing out the keyboards keys lie flat against the iPad with two layers of protective material between them.

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Finally, there is a third soft pocket inside the iPad Wallet that can be used for additional accessories. It doesn’t zip closed but once the iPad Wallet itself is zipped close nothing inside the case is going to be moving around. Not even a little.

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The iPad Wallet is hard to describe. It doesn’t fit into any of the familiar categories of device protection. I don’t necessarily see using this on a daily basis but I do know that when I go on vacation at the beginning of December I plan to bring my iPad and wireless keyboard with me and I see this particular protection system being the perfect way for me to bring all of my iPad related gadgets, keep them together, and know that they’re well protected in my carry-on.

Unsurprisingly the materials are of the highest quality, the design is both thoughtful and functional and the construction is fantastic. It is an unusual offering but one that I believe anyone who is using their iPad as a productivity tool will appreciate and wish they had it six months ago when the iPad first came out. The iPad Wallet has an MSRP starting at $79 and comes in black, copper, flame, green, pearl and pine.

MSRP– $79; d-rings add $5; simple strap add $9; suspension strap add $19

What I Like: Great protection; Great build quality; let’s me keep my iPad and iPad-related gear all in one place

What Needs Improvement: Some might balk at the price but if you are traveling with your iPad and wireless keyboard, isn’t such good protection worth it?

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About the Author

Dan Cohen
Having a father who was heavily involved in early laser and fiber-optical research, Dan grew up surrounded by technology and gadgets. Dan’s father brought home one of the very first video games when he was young and Dan remembers seeing a “pre-release” touchtone phone. (When he asked his father what the “#” and “*” buttons were his dad said, “Some day, far in the future, we’ll have some use for them.”) Technology seemed to be in Dan’s blood but at some point he took a different path and ended up in the clergy. His passion for technology and gadgets never left him. Dan is married to Raina Goldberg who is also an avid user of Apple products. They live in New Jersey with their golden doodle Nava.

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