It's not often I go gaga over a case, but the
Extreme Limit Body Suit is a very neat case. No wonder they
can't keep it in stock! The looks are stunning, and let's
face it, while most cases adequately protect our PDAs, the
other reason we buy a case is for its good looks. We received
the revised version of the Zaurus Body Suit, which replaces
the older version that may still be pictured on Extreme Limit's
site.
The case is made of black Italian leather and
has a trendy, geek chic design that speaks of serious protection.
The top and bottom covers are extremely rigid, and the outer
faces have embossed ridges that add to the look of the case
and provide grip holds. The case is overstitched in red and
the top cover has a white Zaurus logo identical to that used
by Sharp. All edges have a reinforced leather overwrap and
there are cutouts to make it easy to access the CF slot and
jog dial.
While most cases for
clamshells open from the front, the Zaurus sits "backwards" in
the Body Suit, which means you'll wrap the top cover under
the unit to use the PDA. I'm not terribly fond of this,
though it is easy enough to wrap the top cover under. While
the other two Zaurus cases in our review require that you
remove one of the snap-on plastic extended battery cover
retainers, the Extreme Limit case does not. Removing that
piece is easy enough, but when it's not in place the battery
cover is a bit loose which is annoying if you also use
the Z out of the case. Good going, Extreme Limit!
Inside the flip cover you'll find 2 slots for
SD cards, and two slots for business cards, credit cards
or CF cards. There's also a large pocket where you can stow
cash or papers. There's a spare stylus holder in the spine
area and all inner surfaces other than the card holder area
are covered with a soft fabric. The case has a large tongue
and loop closure.
Your Zaurus is held in place by raised metal
reinforced surrounds that firmly cover the edges of the bottom
clamshell. You can bend these to adjust the snugness of the
case. All ports and slots are unblocked for easy access.
While this case is a bit bulkier than the other
two in this review, it does offer great protection, excellent
rigidity and a lot of style.
PDair makes affordable quality leather cases
for a variety of PDAs. You can read reviews of several PDair
cases for other PDAs here.
The case is made of medium grain leather and comes in black
with white overstitching. Despite the low $29 price tag,
the case looks like a high quality product and will add a
touch of class to your Z.
It's a tad thicker than the Xigma case reviewed
below thanks to the thin layer of padding inside both the
top and bottom covers. The padding provides added shock protection,
feels nice in the hand and adds relatively little bulk. The
bottom cover is extremely rigid and the inner surface that
touches the bottom of the Z is soft suede. The top cover
is a bit less rigid but nonetheless stiff and well padded
enough to protect the Zaurus even with the screen flipped
open to portrait/tablet mode. A wide band of finished black
leather joins the top and bottom covers, and the case has
a belt and loop closure.
Inside the top cover you'll find 2 SD card
slots, 3 credit/business/CF card slots and a large slot that
is suitable for cash or other papers. The mid-grain finish
is soft and smooth and won't scratch your Zaurus when closed
in clamshell mode. All ports are easily accessible on the
Z, but this is the only case in our roundup that doesn't
have cutouts on the bottom cover for the CF slot and jog
dial. Despite the lack of cutouts, it isn't terribly hard
to use the CF slot or jog dial, but it would be nicer to
have them.
The Zaurus is held firmly in place by plastic
hooks that latch into holes on the bottom of the unit. You
will need to remove one plastic clip that holds the extended
battery cover in place. Don't lose this small clip! If you
intend to use the Zaurus both in and out of the case, you
may be annoyed by the small amount of play in the battery
cover when the clip isn't in place.
PDair's Zaurus case is absolutely wonderful
for the money. It looks like a much more expensive case,
is made of well-finished leather and is quite protective.
Its rigid padded covers should keep your Z safe in style.
Xigma, located in Japan, makes lovely leather
cases for a variety of PDAs and they ship to the US. From
their striking metallic leather case
for the Sony Clie NZ90, TG50 and iPAQ 5000 series to
their pastel cases and more staid designs, Xigma offers it
all. Their case for the Zaurus C760 & C860 comes in all
black, black and tan (which we received), brown, red white
and even in pastel colors.
The case is finished
in fine-grained cowhide leather with white contrasting
stitching. The inner surfaces are cream colored tightly
grained cowhide leather. The bottom of the case is very
rigid yet thin, and the top is somewhat less rigid yet
strong enough to offer great protection. The edges of the
case extend about 1/4" beyond the Zaurus
for added protection. There's a cut out for easy access to
the CF slot and a smaller cutout for the jog dial.
A magnetic snap closure holds the case shut
and a band of leather joins the top and bottom case planes.
As with the Extreme Limit case, under the top cover you'll
find 2 SD cards slots, 2 credit/business/CF card slots and
a large slot where you can store cash or other papers. As
with the PDair case, the Zaurus is held firmly in place by
plastic hooks that latch into holes on the bottom of the
unit. You will need to remove one plastic clip that holds
the extended battery cover in place. Don't lose this small
clip! If you intend to use the Zaurus both in and out of
the case, you may be annoyed by the small amount of play
in the battery cover when the clip isn't in place.
The Xigma case is the thinnest case in our
roundup, adding little bulk to the PDA. Though it's thin,
the rigid top and bottom covers and slight overhang should
offer good protection for your Z. The case is attractive
and sharp looking (no pun intended).
Xigma's English site is at www.xigma.com/en Price
~ US $55, 5980 Japanese Yen
If you'd like to charge and sync your Z on
the go via USB, the iPDA retractable cable offered by Brando
Workshop will do the trick. The ribbon cables retract completely
into the compact plastic housing for storage, with only the
connectors extending from the housing. Fully extended the
cable is almost 3 feet long. The Z syncs perfectly with this
cable and is charged via USB. Since the Zaurus has a slow
1 amp charger and a large capacity battery, it isn't known
for its quick charge times. The USB charger is decently quick
to charge in comparison, not taking terribly long to bring
the battery level up.
Our Zaurus C7xx machines come with a compact
charger meant for Japan. Since we use the same prongs in
the US, and have very similar voltage (100V for Japan at
50-60 Hz and 110V for the US at 60 Hz), the included charger
works fine in the US. Charging circuitry can deal with a
10% variance in voltage levels, so we're still looking good.
However, some folks worry about voltage mismatch, or more
importantly need to use their Zaurii in Europe and other
countries. The Micro Power Adapter from Brando Workshop is
the answer. If you thought the Sharp EA-72 charger included
with the C760 and C860 was compact, the Micro will surprise
you because it's even smaller! This charger runs at the required
5V, 1 amp rating and supports input voltages from 100 to
240V at 50-60 Hz. In other words, it's incredibly small and
works just about anywhere in the world. It supports the Zaurus
SL- C860/C760/C750/C700/A300/B500 models.
We don't usually review styli, but the PDair
sent us their stylus for the Zaurus C700/C750/C760 and C860
and I loved it. Sharp gives us an all-plastic lightweight
stylus that's uninspiring (hey, it's still better than Sony's
Clié styli). The PDair stylus has a metal shaft which
adds weight, making it feel much better in hand. The well-polished
plastic tip won't damage the Z's screen, and it unscrews
to reveal a reset pin. Not that you need one for your Zaurus,
but if you happen to also own a PPC it can come in handy .
The tail end of the stylus is also plastic and you can pop
it off to use the ball point pen hidden inside. Very nice.
.
The tail end of the stylus is also plastic and you can pop
it off to use the ball point pen hidden inside. Very nice.
