Booqpad for iPad Air – Accessory Review
A while back, I got my hands on several iPad sleeves and two iPhone 5 covers from Booq. Overall, I quite liked those covers as they were sturdy, made out of high-quality material and were not lacking in the looks department either.
This time around, we’ll take a look at the Booqpad of iPad Air, Booq’s new sleeve that goes with Apple’s latest tablet.
Booqpad for iPad Air
First of all, I have got to mention how this package is more complete than the Booqpad’s iPad 2-4 counterpart. You still get a sleeve accompanied by a notepad to help you during important meetings, but this time a cleaning cloth and protective screen film have also been included.
Another difference compared to the original Booqpad, can be found in the way your iPad Air is held into place. Originally, you had to slide in your iPad into a sub-compartiment of the sleeve, where it was held into place. Not so in the Booqpad for iPad Air, which has you firmly clicking your device into a plastic placeholder. The pen-holder in the middle of the sleeve and the small space to store cards and notes in, are absent this time around, though, so be mindful of that. Yes, there are some openings underneath the notepad, but they’re not practical enough to use them for more than storing folded notes from the sleeve’s own pad.
The Booqpad for iPad Air that I got to try out, is almost entirely made of premium PU leather, which means it feels quite similar to the real thing, but didn’t require the mass slaughtering of several herds of cows. Though, while it certainly feels nice to the touch, it’s a much blander look than what we’re used to from Booq. The lack of relief or any form of visible texture, makes this a simplistoc looking product, one with less character to its looks. There is also a version made of genuine leather, although it is more expensive and seems to suffer from the same problems.
In terms of usability, there are certainly things worth noting. First of all, the placement of the iPad-placeholder and the notepad have been switched around. Where the original Booqpad, placed your tablet on the left and the notepad on the right, the iPad Air version switches things around.
In practive, this does mean you’ll be resting your arm on your iPad’s screen, leaving it a hapless victim to unwanted strokes and touches.
Furthermore, some of the same gripes I had about the original Booqpad haven’t been solved entirely. You see, the weight of an iPad makes it extremely difficult to keep the Booqpad succesfully opened in portrait-mode. There’s no problem when using both hands, of course, but if you’re going to use this sleeve for its intended purpose; taking notes during a conference or presentation, while still having access to apps, mail and the internet, you’ll no doubt find it too cumbersome to be of much use.
I truly think it’s a shame this kind of set-up just doesn’t seem to work out, as it would solve many problems for professional users. As it stands, though, w’e’re just left wanting.
For all specifications, click here.
Booqpad for iPad Air - Accessory Review,
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