Gadling’s 10 days of gadget giveaways – day 5 – Otterbox iPod or Blackberry case

Welcome to day 5 of Gadling’s 10 days of gadget giveaways.

Today is your chance to win an Otterbox case for your iPod or Blackberry smartphone.

Otterbox cases were recently featured as one of the best travel technology products of 2008 in our top 25 lineup.

These sturdy cases provide an amazing amount of protection and are available in several versions.

Otterbox offers iPod and Blackberry cases for almost every model, including the new Blackberry Bold.

  • To enter, simply leave a comment below telling us about your worst gadget accident.
  • The comment must be left before Friday November 28th 2008 at 5:00 PM Eastern Time.
  • You may enter only once.
  • Three Prize Winners will be randomly selected to each receive one Otterbox case for the iPod or Blackberry (If you win, you will be contacted to confirm your selection).
  • Open to legal residents of the 50 United States, and the District of Columbia who are 18 and older.
  • The total value of each prize is between $19.95 and $49.95 depending on the requested case.
  • Click here for the complete official rules of this giveaway.

Product review – OtterBox gear protection cases

In this product review I’m going to introduce you to OtterBox. OtterBox has been producing cases for gadgets for quite some time, and I remember purchasing my first OtterBox case back in Europe almost 10 years ago. Their products are different from most cases you are used to, because they provide a level of protection that goes way beyond just keeping some minor scratches off your precious gadget.

The OtterBox lineup consists of several levels of protection, varying from basic scratch and bump protection, all the way up to full waterproof protection, with enough strength to survive a drop on a concrete floor. All OtterBox cases come with a no hassle lifetime warranty.

To help introduce you to their cases, I’ll give you a closer look at three different styles of OtterBox case, each with a different level of protection. First up will be an OtterBox defender series case for the iPod Nano, second is an OtterBox Defender case for the Blackberry Curve, and finally I’ll show you my 160GB iPod Classic underwater in the sink in an OtterBox Armor case.

OtterBox Defender series case for the 3rd generation iPod Nano

The OtterBox defender series cases are designed to protect your device from the kind of mishaps that happen when you carry your device. The case consists of three parts; 2 form the shell around the iPod, and the third is a rubber “jacket” that slips over the shell. The rubber protects the device, plus it guards the ports from letting any dust in.

Unlike most cases, the Defender case does not leave the scroll wheel unprotected; OtterBox has developed a patented “thin film membrane” to keep dirt and dust out, but still allow you full control of your player.

OtterBox Defender cases for the iPod are available for the 3rd generation Nano, the iPhone, the iPhone 3G, the iPod Touch and the iPod Classic. The cases cost $29.95 for the iPod, and $49.95 for the iPhone. OtterBox also make 2 iPod Defender cases in pink, to benefit the Avon breast cancer crusade.


OtterBox Defender series case for the Blackberry Curve

The OtterBox Defender series case for the Blackberry Curve consists of 5 separate pieces; the first piece is a plastic film that wraps around your Blackberry, 2 parts form a hard plastic shell for around the device, a rubber bumper fits around the entire case, and finally, the whole thing fits in a holster with rotating belt clip. This case turns your fragile little Berry into what can only be described as “a tank”.

Despite being encased in layers of plastic and rubber, you can still access the keyboard, trackball, USB and headphone ports and there are even special dust filters protecting the earpiece and speakerphone from the elements.

The phone slides into the included holster with a reassuring “click”, and the holster even has a magnet embedded to activate the Blackberry sleep mode.

Defender series Blackberry cases are available for the Curve, 8800, Pearl and Bold smartphone lineup. They cost $49.95 each.

OtterBox Armor series case for the iPod Classic

The final case in my review is also the toughest. The Armor series cases provide the most protection in the OtterBox lineup, and have been rated waterproof up to 3 feet/1 meter. Of course, this review would be worthless if I didn’t put that to the test! I put my faith in the designers at OtterBox and submerged my $350 iPod Classic in the sink. Thankfully they were not lying, because my iPod came out of the case bone dry.

The Armor series case has a similar thin membrane as on the Defender series, so you still have full control over the device, but in order to plug your headphone in, they have included a headphone pass-through jack inside the case. When you slide your iPod into the Armor case, the iPod plugs into a headphone jack, and on the outside of the case is another headphone jack, ready to be used with suitable waterproof headphones.

On the back of the case is a removable belt clip, which doubles as a headphone cord wrap.

The Armor case has a silicone seal and a pretty sturdy clip to hold the hinged portions together. With this kind of protection, you’ll be able to take your music to the beach, and not have to worry about sand, the ocean or sun block getting anywhere near your iPod.

The Otterbox Armor series cases are available for the 3rd generation iPod Nano ($29.95) and the iPod Classic ($39.95).

Product review – iStik iPod Nano case

In this product review, I’ll be offering you a closer look at the iStik iPod Nano case. It takes a lot to get me interested in an iPod case nowadays, so rest assured that this case is different from anything you’ve ever seen.

The iStik case consists of three pieces; 2 parts form the case for the iPod itself, and the third part is a magnetic plate that holds the case in place on your jacket, shirt or pants or any other fairly thin object.

The case and back plate each have 4 extremely strong “neodymium” magnets, there is no clip on the case, so to attach it to yourself, you simply put the back of the case behind your garment, and the magnets hold the case in place. It’s a brilliant concept, and in the world of iPod cases, the first time I’ve seen this method used.

As I mentioned earlier, the magnets are extremely strong, and I had no problem keeping the case stuck in place on a shirt, or even a thin jacket.

The magnets themselves are very smooth, so there is no risk of damaging your garment. I’m not much of a runner, so I had to jump around like a maniac to mimic jogging, and no amount of action could dislodge the case. The back plate is also quite smooth, so when I attached it to my t-shirt, having it on the inside did not bother me that much. It would have been nicer if they had made it out of a softer plastic.

The advantage of being able to stick your case where you want, is that you actually can stick it anywhere you want. You can stick it on your sleeve, or even on your collar if you want it at eye height.

The case itself covers the screen, and leaves an opening for the scroll wheel, the bottom is also open for access to the headphone jack and docking port.

The maker of the case warns against using it if you have a pacemaker or ICD, and with magnets this strong I’d also suggest keeping it far away from your wallet or hard drive, the magnets can not damage flash media, so your iPod Nano is perfectly safe.

The iStik case is currently available for the 2nd and 3rd generation iPod Nano. The 2nd generation Nano case costs $19.95 and the 3rd generation case is $26.95. Both models ship for free, including orders to international destinations.

The iStik cases are available from the manufacturers website.

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Product review – iFrogz Audiowrapz for the iPod Nano

If you have been keeping up with my reviews, you’ll have realized that I love taking my music with me on the road. Previous reviews have looked at a portable speaker, an iPod battery pack and a pair of noise canceling iPhone headphones. Clearly, you will have seen the trend by now; I love gadgets like this.

My review today is no different. The iFrogz Audiowrapz are the first iPod case with built in passive speakers.

The Audiowrapz are made for the newest generation iPod Nano, and provide a dual function; they protect the iPod, and they turn your little Nano into what we used to call “a ghetto blaster”. The audiowrapz case is made of silicone rubber, but it has been treated with a non-stick coating to prevent dust and other debris sticking to it.

To use the case, you simply fold the back down, and slide your iPod Nano into it. The case connects to the headphone jack on the bottom of your iPod. If you want to listen to your headphones, you can use the “pass through” jack on the bottom of the case, when you insert your headphones, the speakers turn off. When your iPod is in the Audiowrapz case, you will not have access to the dock connector on the bottom, so you will need to remove it for charging or syncing.

The speakers in the audiowrapz case are “passive”, which means they don’t require batteries. Of course, with passive speakers, you won’t get the same volume as a set of powered speakers (yeah, I was just joking by comparing it to a ghetto blaster), but the sound is more than enough to provide some nice background music, or even to wake you up in the morning if you use the alarm setting on your iPod.

Included in the package is of course the case, but you also get an iPod screen protector. The iFrogz Audiowrapz are currently on sale for just $14.99, and you can select one of 8 colors, varying from boring gray, to bright pink. The Audiowrapz were the only case to be voted “best of show” at the 2008 Macworld and CES trade shows by iLounge and iProng magazine, so don’t just take my word for it; this case rocks!

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