RhinoPak Review

The RhinoPak by Rhinoskin is a cordura zippered belt case for your Pilot or WorkPad. The case comes in two colors. Black/Tan or Black. The
inside of the case is lined with a soft knit material.  The front of the case which should face the Pilot’s screen is reinforced with a plastic insert. The RhinoPak has two mesh pockets. One on the outside of the case and one on the inside front of the case. The RhinoPak is made quite well. The material and stitching were both high quality. I did have a bit of trouble with the dual pull zippers getting stuck halfway down the sides of the case. I don’t think this is a problem with the zipper but of the nylon pull tabs cords. These pull cords have a tendency to angle the metal part of the zipper into the teeth of the zipper causing it to get stuck. When I say ‘stuck’, I mean that the motion of the zipper was not a smooth motion.

On the back of the case is a nylon webbed belt loop. This loop can accommodate up to a 2 1/4 inch belt. This is the type of case that once you put it on your belt, you leave it there (unless you unfasten your belt). Since the belt loop is quite large, I found that the case wanted to wiggle around when I needed to insert or remove the Pilot. I’ll admit though that the belt that I was using it with was just 1 1/4 inches wide.

The Pilot or WorkPad is held in the case by four elastic bands. These bands hold the corners of the PDA. I didn’t really like the bands and didn’t use them. They were too inconvenient to work with when inserting and removing the Pilot while on my belt. If you wanted to use this case without attaching it to your belt, the elastic bands might be easier to work with.

Inserting and removing the Pilot while it is on your belt can be a little difficult. It’s a two handed operation.  The somewhat difficult part is managing the Pilot, elastic bands, and zippers while the case is sliding around on your belt. Also, I found that when I tried to insert the Pilot into the RhinoPak that it would get caught on the inside mesh pocket. The mesh pocket also lays against the Pilot’s screen when the case is
closed which makes me a bit concerned about screen scratches.

If you leave your Pilot in this case all the time, you’ll want to use the hotsync cable or The Bridge (turn your Pilot upside down in the case)
to hotsync.

I personally would rather use this case off my belt rather than on it. It’s easier to handle that way in my opinion. Being honest, this isn’t a case that I would use every day or probably even buy as I prefer a ‘play through’ instant access type case.