Innopocket Aluminum T3 Case

Gadgeteer Hands On Review by Dwayne Wilson

December 26, 2003

Product Requirements:
Device:
PalmOne Tungsten T|3

For those of us who NEED a heavy-duty, protective case for our PDAs, Innopocket and Proporta have stepped into the role that Rhinoskin used to occupy. In all fairness - the supplier of the aluminum cases for Innopocket and Proporta seems to be the same supplier as Rhinoskin's these days - but Innopocket and Proporta are much more visible within the market. As a police officer, I use my Palm on duty and off and need the strongest, safest case I can find to protect my PDA. A metal case of some kind with shock and impact resistant features is mandatory. The first case to reach the market for the T3 was the Innopocket. Metal Deluxe Case.

I received the Innopocket Metal Deluxe Case in a very nice clamshell package that was very easy to open. The belt clip was included separately from the clamshell packaging in a small piece of bubble wrap. Make sure you look through your box when you get it and don't throw it away by mistake!

The case is very small, 113 x 84 x 22 mm and weighs: approx. 73g.

The case itself is a very nice pewter/titanium finish that very nicely complements the silvery color of the T3. The textured finish of the anodized aluminum is very nice - but is also very slippery.

The case is designed to open from the left to the right in a book style. It has openings for the voice recorder, microphone, stylus, IR port, SD card, speaker, power button and Universal Connector. . It also has slots for two SD cards in the cover. It seems like they thought of everything! (they didn't) All nice touches and very well thought out - but for one exception, which I'll mention a bit later

The T3 is held in place by friction and two back latches. The lower part of the case grips the T3 very tightly and is slightly adjustable by moving the two side arm clamps if need be. There are also two back latches that lock into the accessory slots on the back of the T3. The T3 is held very firmly in place and should not be subject to dropping out of the case..

Here you can see the PalmOne T3 held in place within the case, both in closed and extended positions.

A look at the back of the case with the closed and open T3, shows the removable post hole which is very small and not very noticeable until the post is placed securely inside it. Two silicon washers are included with the post to ensure it is held firmly in place.

The belt clip included is of the standard variety belt clips. The post is inserted securely in the slide and released from the slide by pressing the top release mechanism which 'unlocks' the post and allows it to be slid out.

One of the few faults with this case that I've found is that the reset button is completely inaccessible while the T3 is in the case. In order to access it, you must slide the T3 almost completely out of the case. You can see this depicted in the pictures above.

With all the nice touches Innopocket included by making everything accessible, even the nice touch of speaker holes, you would think they would put a small hole in the back to reach the reset pin when the T3 is slid open.

Another very noticeable omission was the lack of neoprene lining at the bottom of the case. The metal that contacts the bottom of the T3 where the Universal Connector lies, is completely bare - no neoprene at all. I have owned many metal cases over the years, including the Innopocket aluminum case for the Zire 71, and they all had neoprene where they came into contact with the device. I am not sure why Innopocket chose to omit this small amount of neoprene in a vital area such as this, but it isn't there. I looked back at Judie's review of the Proporta T|T case, which is essentially the same design, but couldn't tell for sure if the neoprene was on that model or not. It looks like it wasn't there either, but I can't tell for sure. In any case - in my opinion, they should have some sort of shock protection all around the case.

In order to defeat the slipperiness of the case, I installed a fresh set of eGrips provided to me by Fred Antonini of eGrips. He sent a set of 4th generation eGrips in a black sparkly finish. They perfectly complement the dark grey/pewter look of the Innopocket and completely defeat the slipperiness of the metal. The Innopocket is securely held in your hand now, and feels very comfortable to use.

You may notice that I installed the egrips upside down to their normal orientation on a T3. That is so I could use the "GetBack" slot area to put the post connector through. It fits perfectly and allows full access and use of the post and belt clip.

Of special note - you may see how the 4th generation eGrips installed on my T3 fit inside the Innopocket case in most of the above pictures. Let me clarify one thing - they fit fine. They seem to cause no problem at all with too much friction between the eGrips and the neoprene.

If you don't want to use the post/belt clip system included with the Innopocket, I highly recommend obtaining a pouch of some sort. I use the Rhinoskin ClipPack which is very handy and fits perfectly. I use this on my Sam Browne uniform belt and off-duty as well. It also adds some shock protection to the case as the ClipPack is very well padded. This is a nice option to get if you aren't comfortable with the post/belt clip system.

All in all this is a very well thought out case with only a few minor drawbacks which in most instances can be worked around. This case will provide very solid protection to your T|3 and enable you to carry it daily with complete confidence in its safety.

Price: $34.90

Pros: 
Great protection for your T3
Well crafted case, solid and sturdy
Very reasonably priced
Thoughtful addition of belt clip and removable post
Nicely thought out accessibility for T3 buttons, stylus, SD card, etc. except for lack of reset hole access - see con below

Cons: 
Slippery Case
No neoprene on bottom inside edge of case
Have to take T3 almost all the way out to access reset button - very inconvenient - should have had access hole
Have to use a hotsync cable to synchronize