Due to its experience in creating similar cases for iPhones and iPod touches, Incipio was in the perfect position to dazzle with its iPad version of Feather ($35), billed as a less than 1mm thick hard plastic shell with soft touch rubber on the outside. Bundled with a glossy screen protector, cleaning cloth, and applicator card, Feather is actually capable of fitting inside Apple’s official iPad Dock and iPad Keyboard Dock — two accessories that were seemingly designed to be used without cases or other protection, a pretty impressive feat.
The only consequence for users: like so many of the ultralight, ultrathin shells released for other Apple devices, Feather doesn’t provide the sort of comprehensive button or bezel protection found in other cases, leaving fairly significant parts of the iPad’s sides exposed. That said, it looks very nice, and five colors are available.
On May 13, 2010, iLounge published The Complete Guide to iPad Cases and Protection, a multi-page comparison of over 70 different iPad cases and film protectors, sorted by genre.
The following details were added to this piece by that comparison article; please click on the link above for additional comparative discussion of similar protective options.
As the first shell out of the gate, Feather has two advantages over some rivals: included screen protection and a variety of different color options. While the soft touch rubber finish is only so-so—it tends to show finger smudges easily, like the screen protector—and neither the top nor the bottom of the case have the sort of added protection found on SwitchEasy’s Nude, the sides of Feather are very protective by current shell standards, and the case’s wide open ports are more accessory-friendly than Nude.
