Is the bookbook for me?

December 27, 2012 4:36 AM

Does anyone have experience with the bookbook iPad cover? I desire something both beautiful and durable.

The bookbook is beautiful, and I lust, but I am VERY hard on iPad cases. I have a leather one now (with no zipper), and in less than a year, it has completely come apart at the seams from repeated opening.

My usage: my iPad and I are joined at the hip. Ashamedly, I must confess to often sleeping with it in the bed. I probably open my iPad case 30 or more times a day. However, although I am hard on cases, I am pretty good to the actual machine, and I don't feel I need a "hardened" case to prevent damage from frequent dropping and the like. I desire durability, not impregnability.

I must have a case with a stand, and would prefer a case with lots of angle possibilities, though the two that the bookbook has seem be adequate, though not ideal, for my purposes. I would prefer a case that has opening for all ports and does not have to be removed for charging or similar tasks. I don't require one with a magnet that serves to turn the machine off when closed. I would rather go with leather than another material, but I am open to suggestions if you've found a good alternative.

So, if you have experience with the bookbook, would you say that it is fairly robust? How quickly would I totally wreck the zipper? Do you love yours? I am also open to suggestions for alternative cases and I have looked at the suggestions in this thread. but of course all of the manufacturers claim the case will last "a decade or more!" when they've only been making the things for a couple of years, and they haven't seen the abuse I dole out.

Do you think perhaps that I would be better served by buying cheaper cases and just expect to replace them frequently? What I don't want to do is buy another $80+ case and have to replace it in less than a year.


Sent from my iPad :)

posted by thebrokedown to shopping (12 answers total)

Good timing! I just got one for christmas. So far it seems very durable - certainly more so than my rubber case. It opens up easy and the zip feels solid.

Course, I've only had it 2 days now so I can't really comment on how it holds up over time but so far it feels very sturdy and looks very cool.
posted by Silentgoldfish at 4:54 AM on December 27, 2012

I can't comment specifically on the iPad case, unfortunately. But I have had a bookbook iPhone case since I got an iPhone 4s almost a year ago. It's taken a LOT of abuse (including dropping the phone on hard floors a couple of times) with no damage to the phone and little more than a scuff or two on the case itself.
posted by hanov3r at 6:50 AM on December 27, 2012

I have the older version of the BookBook and I love it. Wear and tear just makes it look more like an antique book. It holds up pretty well. The flaws it has are fixed in the new version, as far as I can tell.

(Mine was the very very last one in stock at a local Barnes and Noble -- it was beat up already by customers and one of the corner pieces had ripped off the backing. This was a common failure in the original BookBooks, but it is not an issue in the redesigned new ones. I sewed it back on -- a fiddly job, but not too hard -- and now it's perfect. I got it at a discount because of its condition. So I am pretty happy with it.)

Mostly I wanted a case that looks like a book. I previously had a Dodocase, which wore out too quickly. I now have a Dootle, which is nice, but too bulky for regular use. So my regular case is the BookBook. It's just so darned pretty -- and fits all my needs better than the other cases, really.
posted by litlnemo at 7:51 AM on December 27, 2012

I've had both the BookBook laptop and iPhone cases, and they've held up reasonably well. The laptop case, after about two or three years of use, is worn but intact. The iPhone case, which I bought a year ago for my 4S, has fared less well - the leather is separating from the plastic backing in places and has needed to be superglued together. Still, I think it was worth the cost, and I know the laptop style case - which the ipad case is more similar in construction to - has been a winner.
posted by gyges at 9:12 AM on December 27, 2012

I tried both the old and new versions of the BookBook for my iPad 2, and the newer (volume 2) version is nice, and as was said above, scuffs give it charm.

What I didn't like was the fact that it is bulky, makes using the rear camera clumsy, and I grew tired of having to keep zipping and unzipping it.

That said, I sold my iPad 2 and have ordered an iPad mini, and I may give the BookBook another try.
posted by 4ster at 9:22 AM on December 27, 2012

I have something very similar, and I am equally hard on my beloved IPad 2. That case already has noticeable scratches.

This case, however, seems indestructible and does most all the same stuff as the BookBook. All buttons etc. are easily accessible and it isn't crazy bulky. I get a lot of compliments on it. (I have the red crocodile version.)
posted by bearwife at 9:34 AM on December 27, 2012 [1 favorite]

I have had the ipad bookbook vol 2 since October. It is bulky, but I feel confident about its ability to protect the ipad if I stick it in a backpack or purse. It takes a little manipulation to get the charger around the leather into the charging port, though, and the side buttons can be a little harder to access.
posted by zepheria at 10:46 AM on December 27, 2012

oh, and the zipper - I find I don't zip mine unless I'm packing it up. You have to kind of work each zipper into the hinge to keep it from being overstressed if you flip the case so that the cover is underneath. Some people might find this fussy.

The camouflage feature is a real bonus if there is any risk of theft in your workspace - left on my desk with other books, you'd never know there was an iPad there!
posted by zepheria at 10:53 AM on December 27, 2012

I've had mine exactly a year and I love it. It has held up very well, looks awesome, protected the ipad during a drop (unzipped even), and, well, I just love it. As others have said, I don't actually zip it unless I'm taking it away from home. The ipad stays in there unless you're actively carrying it upside down and maybe doing jumping jacks. My only (slight) beef is that I wish there was better access to the volume control. Also, I almost never use the string thing. I find it stays upright pretty much anywhere without, I have it threaded behind the ipad and haven't taken it out in almost a year.
posted by upatree at 11:05 AM on December 27, 2012

Pics of zipper in open position and charging port - that first half inch of zipper movement consumes my full attention for 15 seconds or so when the case is opened or closed.
posted by zepheria at 11:16 AM on December 27, 2012

Like others, I rarely zip mine up. Works fine without it. I'm amused at zepheria's photos and comments because, until now, I never even thought about what the zippers on mine were doing when I fold the case inside out. I looked just now and it looks similar, but I've never had to work each zipper into the hinge -- they seem to get there easily enough that it's not an issue. So perhaps the zippers vary in their ease of use and Zepheria got a fussier one.

bearwife, I can't speak for the OP, but in my case I felt the case you linked to wasn't equivalent to a BookBook because it doesn't look right -- it looks like a tablet case, not a book. But I was very picky about what I wanted.

One thing to be aware of if you plan on buying one at Amazon -- in reading some of the reviews there, it looks like some third party sellers have been shipping out counterfeit BookBooks. The counterfeits appear to be worse quality, though they look similar. Be careful where you purchase yours if you get one.
posted by litlnemo at 3:19 PM on December 27, 2012

litllnemo. I agree. My other case (the one that is made of leather and got scratched fast) does look just like and work like a book. But the OP asked for something "beautiful and durable" and despite the really low price the case I linked to meets those requirements. Plus allows the Ipad to stand either vertically or horizontally and is a snap to close.
posted by bearwife at 12:43 PM on December 28, 2012