SwitchEasy’s new Monsters for iPod touch 5G ($20) is heavily based on the iPhone 5 case of the same name. The silicone rubber case comes in five different colors, each with a distinct, raised, monsterish face on the back. The iPod touch version keeps roughly the same level of coverage, but has obviously been modified to fit the slimmer body. Because they’re so similar, this piece borrows heavily from our earlier review.
Despite Monsters’ silliness, the case design has elicited pretty positive reactions. Most of our editors and others who saw the case reacted with “that’s cool!”—not the sort of response such an unusual design would normally receive.
Each of the five versions of the case is a silicone skin similar to Colors. The big difference is that molded on the back of each is a different raised mouth and accompanying designs, such as hearts or scratches. Monsters’ designs are all goofy and fun. Plus, the texture’s neat and doesn’t add a significant amount of bulk.
Like Colors, Monsters offers about as much body protection as a silicone rubber iPod touch case can. Of course the back and sides are covered, but so is the bezel underneath the screen with a raised Home Button protector.
It provides great tactile feedback, although if the iPod is laid with the screen laying down and any pressure is applied to it, Siri can be activated unintentionally; this happened to us on a few occasions. The other buttons are equally well-protected, without sacrificing any of their clicky feeling. Along the bottom, there are three separate openings: one for the headphone port, another for the Lightning port, and the third for the speaker. Color-matched port protectors are included. The only other real change is the addition of a hole for the loop button and strap.
