With back to school just around the corner, we thought it would be appropriate to take a case aimed at the student demographic for a spin. The ZooGue BinderPad for iPad 2 takes your iPad and puts it in the place that would probably be most useful to students — their binders.
Right off the top it was pretty evident that the case would polarize opinions on its effectiveness. For some, being able to cart your iPad around from class-to-class will be worth the price of admission, but for others, it could be a dangerous proposition, especially if you find yourself on the receiving end of some bullying by those chest-thumping jocks from time to time.
Table of Contents
So, here we go: prepare for our thoughts.
[twitter style=”vertical” float=”right”]The polyester case is only a half-inch thick with the iPad in it, weighs only 3.3 ounces, and fits nicely into any three-ring binder you have on your shelf, which makes it the perfect size for your school binders.
The case also gives you access to all of the buttons and plugs on the device. So charging your iPad, turning up the volume, and getting to your home screen will not be a problem. ZooGue has also punched a hole in the backside of the case so users can still access both cameras on the iPad without having to remove the case from the device. It’s a nice little attention to detail that makes the case just a little bit more useful.
If you’re at a school where the iPad plays a dominate role in your learning, then this case easily trumps others on the market. Fitting into any three-ring binder is something no other company has done to this point. There’s clearly a need, and students are obviously looking for the easiest way to get to and from class with their iPads. The ZooGue BinderPad lets students move around campus carrying things they’ve traditionally relied on, without having to worry about carrying another case or sleeve for their iPad.
The less stuff having to go from class to class the better.
Why it may not exactly be the best option for class
Things may have changed since I was last in highschool over twelve years ago, but if I recall correctly, most students would take a new binder to class for every new subject. There were a couple of kids who would use one binder for all of their classes, but for the most part, everyone would go through between 4 and 8 binders per day. I guess what I’m trying to say is that that the ZooGue requires you to take your iPad in and out of binders all day long while heading from class to class.
Things may have changed, and maybe you’re at a school where students use laptops, or better yet, iPads, all day long. If that’s the case, then this won’t be a problem. But, i’m sure most schools are still relying on pen and paper when it comes to taking notes during lectures. If that’s the case, the constant moving of your iPad could get a little monotonous as the school year rolls along.
What’s Magasmic
It’s a binder case for the your iPad. It’s pretty obvious what the benefits would be at this point. Having to carry around binders from class to class as well as an iPad and case is cumbersome. There’s only so many things students can take to class. By putting the iPad in a binder, there’s room for one more thing in a student’s bag.
If I could go back in time and relive some highschool days, I’d probaby try to eliminate most of the things I lugged around in my knapsack on a daily basis: portable cd players, CDs, binders, calculators, and all those other things that seem to be on the cusp of becoming archaic.
An iPad, in a binder, along with some lined paper seems like the perfect solution to me, and the ZooGue iPad 2 BinderPad certainly makes accomplishing that just a little bit easier.
What’s not
The BinderPad, in its current iteration, lacks a front cover, or even a screen protector. That’s pretty important for students when we stop and think about it for a moment. How many times have you broken a pen and gotten ink all over your binder? I can think of at least two or three times that I did it, and it happened to me over 12 years ago — don’t ask.
Should ink make its way onto your iPad, it’s a little more difficult to fix than, say, replacing a sheet of paper.
In the same vein as the aformentioned problem, staples, paper clips and any other sharp metal materials may find their way into your binder and could potentially scratch the glass of your device. Keep this in mind, should you actually buy one of these cases.
Final thoughts
We’ve taken a lot of effort to point out the pros and cons from a student perspective, but in all honesty, this case could be used in a multitude of professions and day jobs should you ever find yourself carrying a binder and iPad.
Also, It would be pretty awesome if ZooGue provided a shell or binder of its own for this pouch, maybe something that we could use when we no longer need to lug around a binder.
The Giveaway
[twitter style=”vertical” float=”right”]Entry is simple,
- First, tweet this post by clicking on the Twitter button at the beginning or end of this post.
- Second, in the comments below, provide us a link to your tweet.
- Third, because you love us, participate more in our comments. We love having discussions with you guys! Let’s make our comments the best on the Internet.
- You must follow us on Twitter. How can we contact you for your address if you’re not following us!
We’ll have to take you at your word for #3, but the first two, and last rule will be double checked before we draw the winner. The winner will be selected at random.
This giveaway will close Sunday, August 8th, 2011, at 11:59PM EST.
