Review: Covertec Luxury Leather Flip Case for Palm Pre 13

The Covertec Luxury Leather Flip Case for the Palm Pre is a solid combination of a leather flip case and a hard snap case, providing protection and class in a single package. Inside is the bottom half of a snap case, serving as a mounting point for the Pre, while the outside is wrapped in soft fine grain leather with tastefully contrasting stitching. This flip case strikes a balance between protection and style that few cases have, but it is not without its faults.

Functionality

First and foremost in an examination of a case is how well it will protect the phone. In this area the Covertec Luxury Leather Flip Case scores well, with a solid high-impact plastic cradle for the bottom half of the Pre and a top flap with leather on both sides with both padding and stiffening stuffed between. The plastic cradle base is essentially the bottom half of any hard case, though it is significantly more stiff than most on the market. That stiffness, while good for keeping the Pre in and protecting it, also makes it very difficult to both put the phone in and remove it.

The top flap is secured by a magnetic tab that wraps around to the back side. While the tab magnet will connect with any point of the nickel-sized plate on the back, it is designed to fit into a divot in the plate’s center. This connection will lock the tab into place and makes it near impossible to significantly dislodge the flap to either side. When opened, the top flap can be folded over on the back and the magnetic plate comes into play again, this time grabbing onto a metal ring on the front and holding the flap open.

The back of the case sports a mounting point for the optional belt clip attachment. The circular mount is secured with a screw (oddly, a slot-head mini-screwdriver was included to for the Phillips-head screw). The belt clip itself is quite large and sports a two-sided squeeze mechanism to secure and release the case. Once in, the case and phone stayed securing attached, though they did swivel freely. If you choose not to use the belt clip, be thankful that the mounting hole on the case is low profile, only adding a slight hump (disguised by a raised circle of stitched leather) to the back. In case you’re wondering, no this case is not Touchstone compatible - it is far too thick.

Up top is a hole for a pair of headphones, but as you might expect problems are quickly encountered if you try to transition from closed music listening to actually using the phone. The back of the case has cutouts for the speakerphone and camera. Due to the depth needed for the clip mount, leather, the plastic base, and another layer of leather inside the base, the camera and flash are surrounded by a quarter-inch deep wall that butts right up against the chrome ring. This leads to the edge of the cutout becoming visible in every shot, as demonstrated below (illuminated by the flash).

Style

The protection the Covertec Luxury Leather Flip case provides comes with a  tradeoff: it’s thick. From front to back, the case measures nearly an inch and a quarter thick, more if you include the tab. Covertec has artfully hidden that thickness by lining the inside of the case with a light tan leather while wrapping the outside in dark brown leather. The whole kit is held together with stitching that matches the interior and thus contrasts nicely with the exterior. Even the hard plastic base has been textured such that it nearly matches the leather, and its edges have been inconspicuously tapered such as to not provide too much of a distraction when holding the case and phone.

Conclusion

Despite its thickness, the Covertec Luxury Leather Flip Case is an attractive way to protect and carry your Pre. With options like the detachable belt clip and a magnetic flap that secures both open and closed, the case is very versatile. Sadly, the case is so thick that it is difficult to use with wired headphones and the small camera cutout means that the case will appear in all your photos.

The Covertec Luxury Leather Flip Case is available in the PreCentral Store for $34.95, a savings of $5.00 (13%) off the list price of $39.95.

 

Pros

Very attractive design

Cons

Very thick