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TUAW Review: The Haptique hard shell case

by Chris Ullrich Mar 4th 2009 at 5:00PM

As someone who usually likes to go "commando" with his tech, I was highly skeptical as to the usefulness, at least to me, of the new Haptique hard shell case for the 13" aluminum MacBook. Made by the good folks at Uniea out of ABS plastic and designed to be hard on the outside, but soft and protective on the inside, this product is made to help keep your precious laptop from getting any dents, scratches or other blemishes that a somewhat soft and shiny Mac can get while in use.

After using the product for a couple weeks and it most-definitely providing protection for my MacBook in several situations, I'm happy to say that my reservations about it were completely unfounded. In fact, this product has the virtue of being not only very useful, but rather unique in that it works exactly as advertised -- not something you always see with products these days.

Removing the Haptique from the packaging and attaching it to my shiny aluminum MacBook could not have been easier. You just slide the MacBook into the bottom piece, then attach the top piece and that's it. Once done, your MacBook fits snugly inside its hard protective case ready for the bumps and grinds of your daily life.

The designers have, of course, seen fit to include spaces for all of the ports on the side of the MacBook and for the optical drive. Plus, they've made sure to provide ample holes for ventilation in the rear so your Mac doesn't have a problem with overheating. All in all, the Haptique hard shell case is a great product made all the better by its simplicity. Much like Apple products, it just works. And really, that's all you can ask.

The Haptique from Uniea comes in several colors including blue, green, black and pink and retails for $49.95. That may seem like a lot to some, but to protect your investment in a MacBook that sells for at least $1299.00, its a rather small price to pay for this level of protection. Check 'em out.

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As someone who usually likes to go "commando" with his tech, I was highly skeptical as to the usefulness, at least to me, of the new...
 

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11 Comments

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dino

The aluminum case is a passive cooler. Putting a non-conductive material over it like this is going to cause your laptop to run hotter and/or throttle back to avoid over-heating.

March 06 2009 at 2:21 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
finchburg

I've been using the Incase shell for the new alum 13" MacBook and one thing I can see in contrast to this case would be how Incase honors the curved edges of the new model. I don't like how this case makes the MacBook way boxier than it really is.

March 06 2009 at 8:54 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Nick

Is this a paid advert or a badly written blog post?

It's hard to tell.

March 05 2009 at 5:35 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Tim Roth

Wow, is Chris Ullrich being paid to write this elementary article? Sounds like a Haptique shill written by an 8th grader.

March 05 2009 at 3:30 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
nfidel

The Speck one feels cheap and the design is hardly "Apple-like". For comparison check out the Incase hard covers. Excellent quality, design, and feel.

March 05 2009 at 1:06 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Tim

I have a Speck case on my MacBook- a deep red one with a light sueded feel to the plastic.

I love it, except for one thing:
In the manufacturing of these cases, they seem to make two notches in the plastic right along the edge of the palm rests. When I rub my fingers across these notches, sometimes it feels just sharp and I think I've cut myself. Its a distinctly unpleasant feeling.

I took it back to the Apple Store where I got it, and they checked their stock, and all of them had the same notch. So I emailed Speck about it, but surprise of surprise, I never got any response to my query about it.

I'd be curious if the Haptique has the same problem.

March 04 2009 at 6:36 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to Tim's comment
bshigenaka

Tim, my wife has the exact same case on her MacBook, too, and I just checked it for those notches. Yup, they exist, and boy are they alarmingly sharp for as subtle as they appear.

I am sure there's a way to file those down a little. She has the case because I've been using Specks on my MBP for a long time now, but not these new Satin cases. I use the standard cases that have a shiny exterior. No notches to speak of, and I am surprised to hear that you haven't heard back from them. I was an early adopter, and when I emailed them about some early-model defects, they refunded my money on the spot! Not saying they would do the same for you, but no answer is a 180 degree turn.

I can't recommend the Speck covers enough - the ones I'm using on my MBP, anyway. They have kept my MBP immaculate over the years, to the point that I was able to identify a dismaying lack of proper handling on the part of AppleCare in Texas. I sent my machine in, and it came back with some bad scratches. I'm not sure I would have seen them if my exterior wasn't in pristine shape before I sent it in. I was able to convince Apple to replace the exterior of the laptop as a result. If only for their impact on resale value, these cases are worth their price many times over.

March 04 2009 at 11:39 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
David Moss

itsmemorphious has already reviewed this on youtube, said the only problem was the the top bit didnt fit 100% great cause of a bowing effect on the top. plus this case is cut like a box, not cut to the macbooks contoured body.

March 04 2009 at 6:20 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
homan2

How is the material compared to the Speck hard cases?

March 04 2009 at 5:49 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Victor

god that's farking ugly as hell. Get a bodyguardz cover if you really can't stand the thought of your macbook getting dirty. Sort of defeats the purpose of keeping your macbook clean and protected if the solution is to cover it with a gaudy, cheap piece of plastic. I'd rather have a dirty macbook than this.

March 04 2009 at 5:27 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Darren Baptiste

I see you mentioned the openings at the back, but isn't the shell of the machine itself supposed to act as a heat-sink?

Does this product impact the ability of the machine to release heat through its base?


March 04 2009 at 5:21 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
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