As Steve put it, "Hell froze over" - We are looking to make an iPod case

[Darcy]

Many of you have asked us when we were going to do it. I've asked that question myself. It finally is happening - we're probably, maybe, definitely, possibly making a Tom Bihn iPod case.

There are lots of iPod cases already out there, so what's going to make ours different?

1. It's going to be attractive with the same styling as all of the other Tom Bihn products.

2. It's going to be functional. During the design process I will be testing the prototypes with my iPod to make sure of that.

But we'd like to hear from you - what could we do to make this case unique? What features would you like to see that you haven't in an iPod case? Do you want just a simple case to house the iPod and the earbuds, or a whole system to carry the docking station, battery, remote, and new audio recording and iPhoto accessories?

[kdunnett]

Well, some of the key features of the ipod case would be:
-be able to attach it to the current and future line of tom bihn bags.
-some kind of attachment to add it to other bags (on the shoulder strap), but not intrusive.
-easy access to the ipod controls while attached to bag.
-some kind of protective plastic for the ipod screen.
-maybe some room for the ear buds (but has to be functional and unique).
-enough protection that if you dropped the ipod, that it would be ok (hard to test).
-and if you needed to get the ipod out of the case quickly, it should be easy, no struggling.
-have size options for all generations of ipods.
-and this would be a bonus... to have the case water resistant even with the ear phones plugged in (no one has this as an option yet, from what I can find).
-and the most important, it has to look unique and have that 'awe effect' when you see it.

Well, this is the list that would make the ipod case of my dreams.
Kris

[Rajan]

I think kdunnett's pretty much mentioned everything.

The features I'm most interested in are protection for the screen and easy access to controls. Also, since the new iPods utilize a dock, if the iPod could easily be removable or have room to place it in the dock and attach all cords, that would be a big help as well.

[Darcy]

kdunnett, Rajan, and anyone else -

A couple questions:

What's more important - padding & protection for the iPod or a case that's as small as possible?

Would you be interested in an optional shoulder strap/sling for the iPod case?

[kdunnett]

Darcy,

In response to post... I would prefer a case thats smaller to one that has lots of padding. I put that suggesting there as a possible option, but would prefer the case to be small (something that could attach to a strap on a bag, but it should look like it should belong there).

My ideal case would be primarly attached to the strap on the bag, then be able to be unattached easily so that I can use the ipod (within the case) at my desk or something like that.

Kris

[Rajan]

I'd have to agree. I think as long as it protects the iPod from scratches, it will be okay. One of the best things about the iPod is its portability and I often throw mine into whatever bag I'm using and don't want it to take up too much room.

As to the strap, I don't think I would use one, unless it was to attach it to a bag or belt.

[mhoefer]

agree on the little built in pouch for earbuds... I hate wrapping those around the ipod, so inelegant.

[AntoineD]

please, make it as sleak as possible ! :D
In the same time, something to attach earbuds would be nice for we would avoid let'em go apart in bag...

But a simple fact is : ipod's small, so there's no point having a pouch that make it three times bigger, don't you think ? :p
I mean, a bag's usefull but cannot be too big.

[doh9022]

In my opinion it would be best to have a sleek bag with a sturdy belt clip. The advantage of the Ipod is the small size and the bag should not increase the size by much. I am looking for a case that offers dust, durt and scratch protection. It should also have the abilitty to accomidate my Itrp in some way. Thanks,

doh9022

[miri]

One of the things I would like is some sort of elastic band so that I could hook the iPod on my hand. I walk with mine every night and when I hook it on my waist with a belt clip, it sometimes has problems with skipping. Apple suggests holding it in your hand when you jog or walk, but I'm so afraid I'll drop it or something!

[sp0rk0]

Clips should be removable for those people who want to keep as small a footprint as possible.

Maybe you could make something similar to the Brain Cell/Monolith - but for the iPod? Some sort of "sheath" product for the iPod that would be usable on its own but would fit inside or somehow attach to other products?

[doh9022]

The case that I would buy if a Tom Bihn case did not come out would be the podpaqo14 by booq bags. You might want to look it up. I feel that it offers the most protecton currently offered. It doesn't completly cover the Ipod, leaving room for dust to get in. It is fairly small and seems not to increase the foot print too much. An improvemnt would be to fully enclose the IPOD and to make sure that the screen, buttons and wheel all have a protective cover out of plastic. I believe that the touch pad like wheel aand buttons will still work through certian plastics.

I agree that removeable clips and a elastic hand band of sorts would be best. Most of all I am dying to upgrade from the worst case of all that apple included with my Ipod

Thanks,

Devin

[eristick]

You probably already know this, but I would suggest going to iPodlounge (http://www.ipodlounge.com/reviews.php)
and checking out the reviews of all of the cases. The reviews are well-written and the products are well road-tested; learn from everyone else's mistakes!

My only request is that you don't forget those of us with an iPod mini. You'll have to make the cases in multiple sizes.

I'd love something that can be securely attached to the strap of my new ID -- like a removable version of the iPod/cell phone pocket on the Buzz.

I'd also love a solution to the "where to put the earbuds" problem, but eesh...good luck.

[tprice1973]

I think that one major problem with making an iPod case is that apple updates the design every year. In fact, the new design was just released last week. All four generations of iPod have featured different control surfaces (1G = mechanical scroll wheel, 2G = touch scroll wheel, 3G = touch wheel with satellite buttons, 4G = click wheel) and different thicknesses.

A quick scan of the apple website reveals that the 20GB and 40GB "new" 4G iPods have DIFFERENT cases. This causes a major fit problem as well.

Thus, one important feature would be, in my opinion, ELASTIC sides to accomodate different thicknesses of ipods. This leads to a materials problem of course. But elastic sides and a versatile design for the face of the case would allow you to provide different versions for the different iPods out there. If you designed it so that you could interchange faces to the customer order (pre-build the general case, and then sew on the appropirate face per customer order) it would help a lot.

In summary:
1. Elastic sides accomodating different generation iPods.
2. Factory-interchangeable case face for customer iPod type.
3. Additionally, a flip cover to cover the case face if it is made of non-durable (i.e., soft clear plastic) material.

-- Tom P

[azdude]

This thread is *way* old, so I might not even need to say this, but...

...From a business perspective, it may not even be worth it, IMHO. The iPod case market is completely saturated.

I myself have written a half a dozen case reviews for iPodlounge, and have come to realize that the market is getting a little ridiculous. :D I've seen great cases, and bad cases. I've seen travel cases, and around the house cases. Artsy cases worthless for protection, and ugly cases built like tanks. Armbands, belt clips, neck straps. Waterproof, shock-resistant, and cases that act as a desk stand. Canvas, Rubber, Steel, Plastic, Leather... the permutations are endless.

I have a PodPaq014 that I use regularly... and it's about what I'd imagine Tom Bihn coming up with in terms of style.

If you remain interested in making a case, make sure it's unique, marketed, functional, and appealing. You have a VERY diverse, VERY large population of competing products. HUGE. :D

That said, you have quite a following here, and the iPod userbase is still growing exponentially. Who knows. :D

[Darcy]

Thanks for the input, azdude.

I know you're right...and part of the reason we haven't made an iPod case yet is that right now, with the sewing machines we have, it's hard to make such a tiny case. It's also incredibly hard on the seamstresses to make such a tiny case.

Of course, working for Tom Bihn I'd like to have an iPod case made by Tom Bihn, not another company!

Maybe something like what eristick described would be good -- a case that's functional on its own but also attaches to our messenger bags, sling bags, etc. And suggestions like tprice1973's would make it unique.

I did go to iPodLounge and the case I favored out of all of them is the Waterfield Designs case and I think it's the one I will buy if we decide not to do an iPod case. Anyone have any experiences with that one?