Pros: Leather case available in four color choices, each with an included lanyard, clip and USB dock alternative so that you can recharge and sync shuffle while still in case—the first such pack-in of its kind. Aggressively priced.
Cons: Unimpressive protection, leather quality, and workmanship for the case. USB key has issues with Mac computers.
Great iPod shuffle cases aren’t easy to find. Instead of designing one, Capdase has introduced the Leather Case and Syncha for iPod shuffle 2nd Generation ($13 plus shipping), a mediocre case with one unusually redeeming pack-in, namely a USB synchronization dock that enables you to recharge the shuffle without removing it from Capdase’s simple leather sleeve. You’ll have to decide whether this dock will inspire you to make a purchase, or whether you’ll just add a similar product to your choice of better-designed shuffle cases instead.
Though we try to be as objective as possible when reviewing products, Capdase’s Leather Case was a disappointment from the moment we opened its package.
From its cheap-looking leather to unsteady stitching and an unattractive overall design, the leather shuffle holder just looks and feels unremarkable. Though it’s available in four different colors, users should note that the lighter colors, particularly white, show dirt and scratches fairly easily, and the other colors don’t look especially pure straight out of the box.
The only integrated offset is a decent spring-loaded metal hook, which can be linked to a matching lanyard necklace. Not surprisingly, the coordinating lanyard’s relatively small hook looks strange when paired with the case’s giant hook, and the package feels like it was slapped together from spare parts Capdase had sitting around in its factory. It’s yet another Capdase design where the case looks inconsistent with the coordinating accessories, an issue we hope is remedied in future products.
Functionally, and by comparison with some of the better cases we’ve seen, the Capdase Leather Case does not provide the shuffle with what we feel to be adequate protection.
Oversized openings in all four corners leave the shuffle unnecessarily exposed, allowing its edges to be easily scratched. While the larger holes do allow for larger headphones and the included USB dock to be used with the shuffle, there is too much open metal to use this case safely in a pocket; it’s really only useful if you want to dangle the shuffle from the hook and aren’t concerned that it might fall out of the open edge.
One smart decision that Capdase made was to include a USB key—a miniature iPod shuffle dock that can be used to recharge the shuffle while it’s still inside the case. Capdase calls this a Syncha, and glosses it up beyond Incipio’s earlier IncipioBud by adding a blue power LED and a larger hole for attachment to a keychain. Unfortunately, a recent software update has compromised the Syncha’s compatibility—as well as IncipioBud’s—with the Mac computer. Three out of the four times we tested the Syncha with two different Mac computers, we received an error message telling us that the Syncha was consuming too much USB power, and that the Mac OS was going to disable the USB port as a consequence.
