While the practicality of Substrata’s Artisan Stripe Case for iPad 2 ($225) is questionable, the look and feel are very cool. The pre-production unit that we received for early evaluation is a wooden shell that completely encapsulates the iPad 2, with a hinged top and two sliding dowels at the bottom to hold it shut. Once opened, there is a recessed area to hold the tablet, and a felt pad protects the metal back from the hard wood. Somewhat odd is the placement of two pass-through holes on the bottom, requiring you to choose whether the iPad 2’s headphone port or Dock Connector will be exposed for access — they can’t both be used at the same time while the iPad’s inside the case. The top cover can be folded under to move the iPad 2 into a portrait viewing angle. There is also an dowel included that can be positioned in a machined hole in the case and used to stand the device up in landscape orientation. Substrata has said that there will be magnets to activate the automatic locking feature in the final unit.
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Our Rating
Company and Price
Company: Substrata
Website: substrata.net
Model: Artisan Stipe Case
Price: $225
Compatible: iPad 2