Reviewed by: Greg Gaub

Check out the Handipak web site for ordering info.

What do you want in a PDA case? If the natural feel of real leather, and the ability to clip the case to your belt are important, then you should consider the Handipak from PDALife. Not only is this beautiful case made of some top quality, soft, and supple leather, but its built-in belt clips make it a pleasure to wear.

As you can see in the photograph above, it's a simple pouch design with two belt clips on the back. The opening of the pouch is on the long side to go with the way the belt clips hold the pouch to your belt in a horizontal orientation. This makes the pouch somewhat "holster" like, in that when you need to use your PDA, you merely reach to your side, pop the flap open with your thumb, and pull your PDA out of the pouch. It's a wonderful feeling to reach into real leather to pull out your PDA.

I keep referring to the general term of "PDA" because this case is not specific to any particular PDA. In fact, it can hold almost all of the current slew of Personal Digital Assistants, including (I think) ALL the PalmOS products, from Palm branded devices to Handspring, TRG, and Sony. I even managed to cram my PalmV still in it's Scribble ChameleonV hard case into this case, and my PPK almost fits. With some time and stretching, this would make the perfect pouch for the PPK. Oh, yeah, it also fits many of the PocketPC devices. :P (the photo above even shows my wife's HP Jornada 548 PocketPC)

What's really nice about this universality is that many people use Palm devices that have covers of some kind already. The Visor line, the PalmIII line, even the PalmV with the Palm hard case, all fit wonderfully into this case... er... pouch. If I wanted to carry my PalmV in the Palm hard case, but didn't have a shirt or other pocket to carry it in, I'd slip the combination into the Handipak, clip it to my belt, and hit the road, knowing that my PalmV was doubly protected and easy to access.

Let's move on to the security part. As I said, it clips to your belt with two built in clips on the back. These clips are covered with the same leather that the case itself is made from. Not only are the clips themselves very strong, but also the leather has a "grip" to it. Even though the clips don't have the "tooth" at the bottom, I don't think they need it. I had a hard time getting the thing on and off my belt when I wanted to. I'd be REALLY surprised if it came off accidentally. It's possible that with extended use, the leather on the inside of the clips could wear down and smooth out, reducing it's gripping power, but I'm confident that the strength of the clips alone is enough to hold the case to most belts in most low impact situations.

What about that quick access? Well, the opening for the pouch is on the long side, on top when on your belt. It's held shut with two, high quality magnetic catches. These catches aren't just magnets, but have a button and socket configuration, to prevent the magnets from slipping apart. As a result, you have a flap that stays shut under most uses. No, you can't go rubbing up against chain-link fences and expect it to stay shut. By the same token, though, your PDA is unlikely to come flying out even if the flap did come open unexpectedly. When you want to retrieve your PDA, all you need to do is reach for the pouch, pop open the flap by pulling it away from its magnetic hold, literally reach in and take out your PDA. The case is soft and flexible, making it very easy to get your thumb and fingers around your PDA to remove it from the case. And with the grip the case has on your belt, it stays put on your belt while you remove your PDA.

Features aside, though, this is a very well made case. As a leather artist and craftsman myself, I can attest to the workmanship in this case. Yes, it's sewn on a machine, but with multiple layers and panels of construction, backstitching where needed, and quality materials, this case will likely last a very long time, even under heavy usage. That's what's great about leather, anyway, right?

This case is available in three colors: Black, Natural and Mocha. The one I have is the Natural color. It comes with velcro catches, and the Magnetic adds $5, but it's well worth it. Velcro is noisy, and can wear out over time. There's no worry of data corruption with these catches, and they should last longer than your use of the case. The case also has a small embossed PDALife logo (the PL thing) which is tasteful and unobtrusive. Running for about $40 depending on options and sale price ($34.99 as of this writing), it's a good value for a quality case.

Likes

1. Quality materials and workmanship
2. Well designed case, fits most current PDAs
3. Secure clips and easy access to PDA
4. the wonderful look, feel, and smell of real leather
5. would work well to carry accessories, such as a folding keyboard or Springboard modules
6. good value

Dislikes

1. some might think it's expensive for a simple leather pouch, but the quality and design speak for themselves. As a leather craftsman, if I were to make one of these for a customer, it would be well over $100.
2. can be somewhat difficult to attach and remove from belt, but that will likely improve with use.

Rating: 5 needles (out of five).

If you would like to add any comments or corrections to my review, please contact me at flux@snapbag.com