Miniot Wooden iPad2 Case

(photo credits : Miniot)
Miniot is based in Holland and they have done quite a number of products especially for iPad2 and iPhone 4/4S. They have just launched new product called Miniot Case for iPad2. From what I can see, it’s an improved version of Miniot Cover, they have extended a curved case to protect the iPad2 as well.

The iPad2 case is made of wood and there are options for you to choose, Walnut, Cherry, and Mahogany.

You can expect a total 100% wood for this case including the cover. The flexible wood hinge allows you to flip the lid 360 degrees.

Miniot Case can be used in three angles and the inner part of the cover is enhanced with Ultrasuede microfiber lining to protect the glass from any scratches. Apart from it, they have tiny holes for the audio flow.

Miniot iPad2 Case pricing starts from $243, not including shipping.

Grove Bamboo iPad2 Case

(photo credits : Grove)

Grove is based in Portland, Oregon, USA and have grown up to become one of the established iPad2 case maker in the USA. Grove products are mostly for iPad2, iPhone 4/4S and apart from that, they also sell bamboo wall art. But I’m not gonna explain all their products here as my real intention was to have comparison between these two handmade iPad2 case.

Grove case is made of bamboo and the cover is made of leather. They also have Ultrasuede liner to protect your iPad2 screen. Customer will have the option to choose their preferred color of leather and have a custom laser engraving for the cover. The cover can be folded and are available in 3-4 viewing angles.

Basically, this case has access for the camera, audio and button controls on the right.

Grove iPad2 Case starts from $139, not including shipping.

Comparison Table

Conclusion

Both of these two products have similarity in function and purpose of it is made. Both are Eco-green products and are handmade.  Miniot case is made of 100% wood and have full coverage protection from the back of the iPad2 to it’s screen , whilst Grove is partly bamboo and leather. Both have successfully portray as an elegant iPad2 case and I believe what out stand the most here is the pricing difference.

So which is your favourite iPad2 case? As for me I like both and can’t decide which is the winner unless I’ve the products with me

Morris Lessmore DODOcase is a fine collaboration between the iPad case maker, DODOcase and Moonbot Studios. As for some of us, we might don’t have any idea what is Morris Lessmore. Morris Lessmore is actually an animated film and a story about people who devote their lives to book and books who return the favor. You can find more information about it at Moonbot Studios website.

Exterior

Morris Lessmore DODOcase came in red shiny faux leather and has been designed to look similar like the books in the animated film. On the front, the Morris Lessmore’s signature has been stamped in gold-ish color to give more book-feel into it.

You will see M letter is stamped at the spine area and that makes one of the unique features. The interior is in cream color. I really like the material they used for the exterior as when I hold it, it provides me strong grip on the case.

Morris Lessmore does not have any elastic strap on it, for some of you, you might be thinking, will it be any trouble to make it stand properly? This actually depends on the surface where you will have it on perch mode.  Since the real intention is to create an iPad case that resemble the book in Morris Lessmore film, I can agree to the reason of not having the elastic strap. A great addition to perch mode is by having one of DODOcase accessories, The Nest. I will do short review on The Nest before the conclusion part.

Interior

This is my second DODOcase and honestly I’ve seen improvement on this case. It has a magnet which is for wake/sleep feature, thus we do not have to press the On/Off button anymore to have the iPad in sleep mode. My previous DODOcase doesn’t have this magnet feature, so I was very disappointed and not happy at that time.

A good thing which I realized is, the bamboo tray. When I first inserted my iPad into it, my iPad2 snug fit and honestly it was a bit difficult for me to remove my iPad2 from the tray for the first time. I did the shake test and my iPad2 still stay there steadily as if it didn’t have any vibration on it. The only downside was on the bottom tray part, it was not glued at all. Maybe the person who assembled the tray forgot to glued that part.

The Nest

If you noticed on DODOcase website, there is a product called The Nest which adds a nice typing mode angle and adds more secure when your case on it’s perch mode. The rubber lining cushions on the backside allows it to hold your case securely or even when you had your iPad without the case. The price for The Nest is $14.95.

Conclusion

This is a very well made case by DODOcase and for those who are looking for other color than black, this is surely the one for you.  For a book lover and DODOcase collector, you will find $64.95 is an affordable price for it’s design quality and you won’t regret it to have it as one of your collections.

I can say that this case is an elegant and a high class level of DODOcase.

Find it more on DODOcase website and if you purchase it, do share your experience by leaving your comment in the comment box.

PS: I really would love to see monogramming option for this case. Maybe in the future perhaps?

PS: I’ve taken a lot of effort to take photos professionally for this comparison review, so please email me if you want to use the photo for your website or blog Thanks!

Exterior

I’ve no problem with material for each case, Morocco Faux Leather has grain feature, whereas Buckram is a well known material that is usually use for book binding. Leather provides you the luxurious feel and elegant to your iPad2 case.

DODOcase

Portenzo

germanmade. g.2 (leather)

germanmade. g1

Dimensions of each cases :

DODOcase : 10″ x 8″ x 1″
Portenzo : 10″ x 7.875″ x .76″ to .82″(depending on the material)
germanmade g.2 : 10.55″ x 8.35″ x 0.98
germanmade g.1 : 10.55″ x 8.35″ x 0.87

Interior

DODOcase interior

Portenzo interior

germanmade. g.2 interior

germanmade. g.1 interior

DODOcase frame is made of bamboo, Portenzo frame is made of American Maple and germanmade frame is made of wood as well but I wasn’t provided with a specific wood name.

DODOcase frame is made of 4 pieces of bamboo and been glued together at its four corners. Whereas, Portenzo and germanmade. frames are multiplex birch plywood and thus it creates a super strong frame.

How does my iPad2 look like in these cases?

Rubbers / Pads

If you are curious about how your iPad2 will snug fit into the case, here is the answer. Each case has it’s own corner system or pads.

DODOcase pads

I know for some of you, you’ve read about DODOcase pads problem on other website or blog review. It seems that these pads is one of the small problems of DODOcase, it may fell off for quite some time, thus DODOcase really need to improve this feature.

Portenzo rubbers

Portenzo, is not using any pads for the corners, they have their own corner system and doesn’t need to be re-glued.

germanmade. rubbers

Whereas germanmade. has found a unique solution to avoid the rubbers from falling off. The people at germanmade. has strengthen the rubber onto the frame by using four screws and it looks like the rubbers are going to stay there for a long time, perhaps years.

Special Feature of the case

DODOcase : I don’t found any special feature or DODOcase can create any unique feature in the future?

Portenzo : power button trick. If you notice at Portenzo case, there is no hole nearby the power button. Portenzo has a trick for it, press the iPad on the right top for few seconds and your iPad will be switched on or off. Please see the video.

germanmade. g.1 and g.2 cases : germanmade. has a special feature on their cases, there is a special cut-out on the bottom left where you can place the iPad2 in horizontal and vertical stand. I found it very easy to take the iPad off from the case.

Ports

DODOcase
I can access the volume, power buttons successfully, so I’ve no issue on this. The only thing which I want them to improve is to make sure there is no small gaps between the frame and the iPad2. You will notice few small gaps in my photos and it looks like the iPad is hanging a bit, if you know what I’m trying to say here.

Portenzo

There is no problem in accessing ports in Portenzo case as well.

germanmade.
All ports are accessible and they have done a great job for both g.1 and g.2 cases!

DODOcase , Portenzo, germanmade.

Which is the best?

The winners are Portenzo and germanmade. g.2 case!

After been using these two iPad2 cases for few weeks, I found that these are the most comfortable cases I’ve ever used so far. I don’t have to worry about my iPad of falling out from the case eventhough it’s in perch mode. I feel very secure and I do not have to worry on getting new pads for the frame corners. germanmade. g.1 case would be my second option as it prove to be another great option for those who would like to have minimal feature on the case. Although DODOcase is the pioneer and the first iPad case that came out earlier than these two competitors, I still see people complained the same problems, pads tend to wear off after some time and the bamboo frame have cracks especially on the corners. DODOcase should have a better solution to replace their current frame.

My DODOcase’s cover is not straight as well. I guess this is due to no support in the middle, so it tend to bend a bit. Portenzo & germanmade. cases spines are straight and the covers were supported by the frame.

Here are the case features.

Portenzo features :

• magnet for auto wake/sleep
• optional : Magna grip (this magnet holds the cover better when you flip the case upside down, without the elastic strap)
• all ports are accessible
• optional : stylus holder
• optional : camera port
• audio chamber
• there is no extra charge when you requested other color
• Price Range : USD 59.95 to USD 84 (if you add Magna grip, stylus holder and camera port), price for leather material starts from USD 125 onwards
• special trick on/off power
• optional : custom artwork

germanmade. case features:

germanmade. is based in Dusseldorf, Germany and is one of the companies in Germany that sells iPad1 case  & iPad2 case. It was founded in early 2011. Though they’re new, they’re very committed with their product and this can be seen on the iPad2 cases which I’m going to cover in two posts.

I was provided with two types of germanmade. case(s).

iPad 2 case g.1
Exterior : White
Interior : Green
Material : English Buckram

iPad2 case g.2
Exterior : Black
Interior : Black
Material : Leather

I’m going to cover g.1 in this post and for g.2, you can read it here or you can click on the link at the end of this post.

Interior of g.1

g.1 case came in white color as exterior and green as the interior color. This case is equipped with magnet for the auto wake/sleep feature.

What makes germanmade. case unique from other is it has a cut out on the bottom left where you can place your iPad in either vertical or horizontal stand.

g.1 frame (top part) is in white color and it’s actually smooth and shiny surface of plywood.

There is no problem in accessing the sound button, power button. They have made proper cut out so that we can press the buttons easily.

The frame as you can see from the above photo, is consist of few layers of wood which gave us an impression of pages of a book. These are hand sanded, no machine is used so some part of the frame may still feel like it’s still need to be smoother. I’m sure germanmade. can improve this part in the future.

Although germanmade. is using rubbers on four corners, the iPad2 snug fit into the case and it passed the shake test as well. Unattaching the iPad2 from the case is easy too, use your finger at the power button/microphone hole and pull up the iPad towards yourself. The rubbers on the case won’t fall off easily since the rubbers have been put on screw as well together with the frame.

As for audio, germanmade. has made a special cut-out so the sound is directed towards the user for a better audio experience.

Exterior

Now we have a look at the back part of this case. They have strengthen the frame onto the cover by using four screws and they are not using glue for this purpose. All four screws are located at each corner of the back case. These are the screws that are attached to the rubbers as well, you won’t have to worry on getting replacement for the rubbers, but you can always send them email for support in case any problem occurs in the future .

Their logo was embossed on the spine area.

germanmade. g.1 case starts from 69.95 € (USD 95) and this may differ for other material, faux leather or leather. germanmade. also provides options for the buyer to have engraving for their case. I believe that their case price is much cheaper and affordable compared to Cocon Berlin case. I’m not being bias here

Apart from g.1, there is another version of germanmade. case, which they called it as g.2. I’m not gonna end up this post with conclusion as it is not finished yet. So head up to my second post of germanmade. case by clicking here.

Ps: Please read my review on g.1 case first if you haven’t read about it

Exterior g.2

This is one of their best selling product and this is a fine luxurious leather case with both exterior and interior colors in black. My first impression , WOW! This is an awesome product, it look very solid and elegant. Aaaahh..with the smell of the leather, I couldn’t wait to see how it looks like on the inside.

Interior

g.2 is a case that has few compartments, which you can see from the above photo. A notebook was provided with the case as well. You can store your pen, USB cable, Apple earphones or even your iPhone.

Every germanmade. case has the special cut-out for vertical and horizontal iPad position, so you don’t have to worry which case you want to buy, what matters is which case suit you the best.

Accessible power button, sound button and earphones

Audio chamber

g.1 or g.2 ?

The spine difference between g.1 and g.2

g.1 or g.2 ? It all depends on yourself , as for me I will choose the g.2 as it provide me few compartments which is very useful for a web designer like me, I can place my business cards, pen and earphone, all in one case.

The price for g.2 leather  is 119.95 € (USD 163) , so if you don’t mind to spend more money on it, then g.2 is definitely the case for you. If you choose other material than leather, it’s going to be a different price, much less than 119.95 €. I recommend you to check out their website and try the Configurator option to get the best style for your case.

Overall, germanmade. case(s) are well constructed, solid and sturdy. Although both cases did not provide camera port, iPad2 can be taken out easily and can be placed on the stand cut-out if you want to capture a photo (on the bottom left). As for the rubbers on four corners, it look like it will stay there for a long time, as it has been put on screw together with the frame.

These are germanmade. case features once again:

• Magnet – for auto wake/sleep feature
• Wide variation of materials, English Buckram, Faux Leather and Leather
• Engrave option
• Shipping is done via DHL

You can check out germanmade. website here. Drop me a comment here if you have a further question regarding g.1 and g.2 Germanmade case(s)  and please do share your experience here as well if you’ve bought your iPad case with germanmade.  :)

PS: Watch out for my next review, I’m going to do comparison between Germanmade case, Portenzo and DODOcase.

It won’t be a very long review, everything looks good with this Portenzo case, I hope with this review it will help you in choosing the best case for your iPad2 or iPad1.

I’ve been looking for a different color case and kind of bored with the black color. My search for different color case started one week after I received my DODOcase. I found about Portenzo in one of Youtube comments (I was watching for iPad case review videos at that time).

Portenzo is based in Saint Louis, Missouri, USA and one of the companies that sells an iPad case that looks similar like a Moleskine notebook. Without further hesitation, I placed my order and I had a custom order which is to have a different color for exterior and interior. The best part is Portenzo didn’t put an extra charge if we want a different color unlike some other seller. So, I’ve decided to order for my Notebook Style Portenzo Case, with Chocolate Brown color as exterior and Orange for interior.

Why do I choose Chocolate Brown and Orange for my case? I need to have a case which look like the same branding with my business card and my website.

I used Express shipping option and it took 10 days to reach Malaysia and best of all no customs duties is being charged for my order. What a relief!

I’ve also added three more features for my case which is to have these options below:

Magna-Grip Cover – cover is enhanced with super strong magnets to keep the cover closed, as an alternative option for standard elastic strap.

Camera Port

Frame with Stylus Holder

I really like the frame surface, feels really smooth. Portenzo is using American Maple for their frame. The case is also equipped with Exclusive Audio Flow-Sound Chamber which enhances the audio quality and enhance it toward user. Well, it truly does!!

Portenzo does an excellent job in producing the case for iPad2. When I place my iPad2 in the case, it fits my iPad2 very well and does not fall off after a few shake tests.

Here are the pros and cons to help you, the reader, to purchase this product.

Pros
- Look like a Moleskine notebook
- Very smooth frame (love it!)
- Camera port and stylus holder feature, not to forget the sleep/wake magnet feature
- Can customize the color for exterior and interior with no extra charge! (please email them for further info)
- Two options of shipping for International clients (Express or standard)

Cons
- Waiting time (but I can wait for a good quality case!)

If you ask me which case is better? DODOCase or Portenzo? In this case, I will have to say Portenzo because the frame holds iPad more secure and I don’t have to worry in getting the replacement pads.

If you have any question, feel free to send me an email or comment. I would love to hear your feedback if you have purchase this case

Germanmade, as the name portray, is a 100% product made from Germany. Germanmade comes with three options for the exterior, English Buckram, Faux Leather and Leather and 11 colors for you to choose from.

Apart from that, customer can choose their preferred frame.

(Click on the photo thumbnail to view larger photo)

• g.1 iPad2 case : No extra compartment

• g.2 iPad2 case : g.2 provides more compartment , easy for you to store the charger, pen, and your business card. Suitable for those who prefer to place them in one place.

The frame looks similar like pages of book from far and is made from several massive wood layers and that’s make it different from other cases.

This case also comes with few holes that act as the place where you can put the iPad in vertical stand. You can consider this as a multi function case.

I do not own any of Germanmade iPad case, but I’m sure this is one of great cases outside there which should not be missed! and worth your money. Seriously, this case does suit my taste as I can keep my business cards inside the case as well.

You can watch this video to have a closer look on how Germanmade iPad2 case being made. It is very attentive to detail. I like the part where they tested the case by placing the iPad inside the case and flipping it down, it shows that your iPad will stay secure and won’t fall down.

PS: This case color seriously caught my eyes! Awesome color combination!!

See?? You can even put your iPhone in this case and it even has the sleep/wake functionality

They do provide shipping to international customers via DHL, so what are you waiting for?? Grab this case and you won’t regret it

You can visit their website here.

If you have any question, feel free to send me an email or comment.

(Photo credit : DODOcase)

Dodocase Intro (taken from their website)

Made from black Moroccan cloth and constructed using traditional book binding techniques, the cover of the DODOcase Classic for the iPad 2 is designed to fold back to be used as a stand. An elastic strap keeps your iPad2 protected while on the go. Offering a new solid core bamboo, complete with a four-piece tray design, the DODOcase Classic perfectly matches the curvature of your iPad2 while providing access to all buttons and ports.

I spend few minutes exploring this website and have decided to order Dodocase for my iPad2. I ordered mine on September 15, 2011 and my shipment arrived on September 20, 2011. Pretty fast right? For those who live outside US, you won’t have other shipping option but to purchase the Fedex Express option, which cost me around $34+ to reach my country, Malaysia.

Bear in mind, you also have to pay Customs Duty Tax fee, the fee maybe different for other countries. It costs around MYR 74 (which equals to USD 24).

The case arrived in two layer of boxes as you can see from the photos below.

I wish there could be a “Thank You” note from them when I open this box, but couldn’t find any

Dodocase is made from Black Moroccan Cloth and the tray is made from solid core bamboo (not the bamboo which pandas eat!) The price is $59.95 but it is only available for Red, Sky Blue, Charcoal, Green color. For other color, you will have to pay $64.95.

On the right side, the bamboo frame has a cut-out to allow access to the screen rotation lock switch and the volume toggle.

There is elastic strap to hold the case shut. I prefer if it’s come in different color apart from black.

My iPad looks good on the case and I did the famous “Shake test” for both of the cases. My iPad2 still stay in it’s position in one of the cases and does not fall out, which is great! However, I try the second case (since I ordered two) and did the shake test again, surprisingly it falls out. I contacted their support team and they mentioned that this problem was caused by improper size corner pad. At first they recommend me to fill up for the replacement pad order form. However, it was not relevant for me to fill up the form and wait for weeks to receive the pads as I’ve paid Express shipping and have to pay for the extra customs duties fee.

After communicating via email for one week plus, finally they have decided to send me a replacement case. It’s good that Dodocase has created a proper support contact platform, as I believe I’m not the only one who experience this type of problem.

Personally, I like this Dodocase in terms of style and look. Here are my summary in points and I’ve categorized them under Pros and Cons.

Pros:

• Look very similar like a Moleskine notebook, which is an advantage.
• Fast shipping
• Friendly feedback from Dodocase support team, but sometime it take 3-4 days for them to reply the email

If you like DODOcase, you can purchase it  from their website.

If you have any question, feel free to send me an email or comment.

Photoshop actions are simply pre-recorded tasks that you can save and reuse anytime. Photoshop actions commonly have an .atn file extension. Installing a Photoshop action for more recent versions of Photoshop is easy: simply drag the .atn file onto the Actions palette or place it directly inside your Adobe Photoshop\Presets\Photoshop Actions folder.

Here are the steps on using Photoshop action.

Step 1: Download a Photoshop action. In this example, download this action.

Step 2: Install the action you have downloaded to Adobe Photoshop\Presets\Photoshop Actions

folder.

Step 3: Once you have install the action to the folder, open your Adobe Photoshop software. It doesn’t matter which version you are using. In this example, I’m using the CS4 version.

Step 4: Open an image for you to test the action. I am using the image in the Pictures folder in my PC.

Step 5: Go to your actions panel. If there is no action panel on your screen, go to Window > Action on the toolbar or click Alt+F9. You will see something like this

Follow the step below to use the installed action. The action I’m using for this example is 23 (this is the action which you’ve downloaded in the earlier step).

If you didn’t see any of the action, do load it manually. You can do this by clicking on the Load Actions. Search for your action in C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop\Presets\Photoshop Actions folder. Once you’ve found it, click on Load.

Step 6: Run the action by following the steps below. Click on action 1, below the 23 folder. Then click on Play button, below the action 1 layer.

You should see your photo has changed into this

I would love to read your comments and know what tasks do you like most to use Photoshop Actions with.

This is just a short tutorial from me, and I expect all of you has an idea of what Adobe Photoshop is and how to use it. For those who are still a beginner, I recommend you to go to this website- Pixel2Life to view Photoshop tutorials for a beginner.

Here is the scrapbook:

Open the .PSD file which I’ve provided for you. Click here to get the .PSD file.

When you have opened the file, you will see something like this:

Where can I get the coffee, pen, pencil, polaroid, background, image?
- deviantArt / stockphoto

Where can I get the Adobe Photoshop software?
- from Adobe‘s website, but they only provide the trial software

Where can I get the font?
- dafont

A few things you need to know while doing this scrapbook design.

Each layer represent an image, do explore on it.

Last but not least, do save your file in .PSD and .JPG/ /PNG

I hope you enjoy designing your own scrapbook although this is just a short tutorial.

PS: Do not hesitate to ask me if you have any further question on it. Please drop your comments and questions in the post comment form just below this post.