The iGlaze with VersaCover from Moshi has a hard shell back and a microfiber cover that can be folded to create a stand.Covers for the iPad are more common than flies at a summer barbecue, but most are either too bulky or too simple.
Moshi, a maker of fashionable accessories for tech gadgets, has designed the iGlaze with VersaCover, a case for the iPad that tries to stand out from the crowd by integrating design and function.
The case, which sells for $60 at Moshi’s e-commerce store, looks similar to Apple’s Smart Case; its slim front (the VersaCover part) has a soft microfiber lining that protects the screen and includes built-in magnets that trigger the iPad’s auto awake and sleep modes. It also incorporates a thin polycarbonate shell (the iGlaze part) to protect the iPad’s aluminum back from scratches.
But where the Moshi case outsmarts the Smart Case is its unique front, which folds like origami to create a stand capable of propping up the iPad in portrait or landscape mode. Those magnets come in handy here for keeping the cover in its folded position.
The folding takes only a minute to get used to; you have to pinch the cover in the right spot to get the right fold. Once that’s achieved, it can support the iPad at three different angles, for movie watching, reading or typing.
The case comes in three colors, black, white and translucent (that’s a color, right?), and is designed for the new iPad, but is also compatible with the iPad 2.
The design of the case is sleek and minimal, so much so that I often could not tell which way it opened. The instructions say to hold it with the iPad’s home button facing you, but it’s hard to tell where the home button is when the cover is closed. A tiny finger tab on the front would help. But that’s a minor quibble for an otherwise beautifully designed case.