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Musubo's Diamond, Chamfer iPhone 5 cases: review and giveaway
Musubo is a Hong Kong-based manufacturer of smartphone accessories, and the company recently released a flurry of iPhone 5 cases to meet the demand for protection of Apple's flagship phone. Today I'll take a look at the Musubo Diamond (US$32.99) and Chamfer (US$24.99) cases, and then TUAW readers have a chance to win one of three Musubo iPhone 5 cases we're giving away. Design I'll start off with the least exciting of the Musubo cases, the Chamfer. The name describes the design perfectly -- it features a wide chamfered edge around the back side of the case. Made out of tough polycarbonate material with a soft-touch feel, the Chamfer comes in red, blue, green, pink ,purple, silver and black colors. The company includes some goodies with every case, so the Chamfer has not only a screen protector in the box, but a small foldable video stand and a screen cleaning microfiber cloth as well. Not bad for a $25 iPhone 5 case! Moving on to the flashier Diamond case seen at the top of this post, we find a design that is sure to attract the fashionista in your family. A soft thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) shell gently cradles the sides of the iPhone 5, while a hard and glossy diamond-patterned back protects the back of your phone. That transparent diamond design really stands out as different, and has a very three-dimensional look to it that transforms this relatively inexpensive iPhone 5 case into something special. The Diamond is available in black, purple, red and blue. Functionality Both Musubo cases do a fine job of protecting the iPhone 5 sides and back, and the included screen protector helps to keep your screen scratch-free. I found the little foldable video stand to be quite useful and a welcome addition to the Musubo cases. The TPU shell on the Diamond case makes installation a snap, as the material flexes enough to facilitate squeezing the iPhone 5 into place. However, I found the polycarbonate construction of the Chamfer a little stiff, really requiring a good push to put the iPhone 5 into the case. Conclusion Musubo has proven to "think outside the box" when it comes to case designs, as you can see from this 2012 TUAW review of the totally unique MatchBook Pro and several other iPhone 4/4S cases. With the Diamond and Chamfer, the company continues its mission of supplying stylish and inexpensive protective cases for Apple's latest smartphones. Pros Relatively inexpensive for "style" cases Diamond's design is quite novel and fun Cases ship with free foldable video stand, cleaning cloth, and screen protector Cons Chamfer case was a little difficult to install and remove due to the stiffness of the material it is made from Who are they for? Anyone who wants an fashionable iPhone 5 case without spending a lot of money Giveaway We have three Musubo cases to give away -- two of the Diamond cases (black or purple) and one of the silver Chamfer cases. Here are the rules for the giveaway: Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older. To enter, fill out the form below completely and click or tap the Submit button. The entry must be made before April 14, 2013 11:59PM Eastern Daylight Time. You may enter only once. Three winners will be selected. One will receive a Chamfer case valued at $24.99 while two will receive a Diamond case valued at $32.99. Click Here for complete Official Rules. Loading...
Musubo's stylish iPhone cases bring fun and flair to a crowded market
In my daily work for TUAW I see a lot of iPhone cases. For the most part, it's hard to distinguish one from the other, so when Musubo offered to send me a set of their new iPhone 4/4S cases I took a quick look at them first. It's a good thing I did, because what I found was a set of fun and stylish cases that really stand out from the crowd. Read along as I review this set of cases, and then enter our giveaway for a chance to win one of these five cool iPhone cases. MatchBook Pro The first of the cases, and the one that originally caught my eye, is the MatchBook Pro (US$34.99). It's cleverly designed to look like an open book of matches, and the matches actually fold out into a built-in video stand for your iPhone. The hard case is made of polycarbonate for protection, while the "matches" are made of a silicone rubber. The MatchBook Pro comes in five different color combinations, with the cases available in black, red, white, a golden yellow, and a grassy green. The "matches" vary in color depending on the case color. It's hard not to like a case with a name that's also a play on "MacBook Pro". Rubber Band The next unique case from Musubo is the Rubber Band ($29.99). As the name implies, the Rubber Band makes your protected iPhone look as if it has been wrapped with a box of rubber bands. The Rubber Band is nice and grippable, and comes in a variety of colors -- yellow, light blue, blue, black, green, orange, red, pink, and magenta. If you're a fan of the Rubber Band but would like a video stand, don't worry -- Musubo includes one in the box. It's quite clever (see below), and included with every one of these cases with the exception of the MatchBook Pro. Ripple This case gets its name from the gentle ripple pattern that extends out from the camera cutout. The Ripple ($29.99) is made of TPU (Thermoplastic Polyurethane) for protection, and the pattern provides a nice surface for gripping. The Ripple comes in black, light green, dark green, red, yellow, purple, magenta and midnight blue. Retro The Retro ($34.99) uses a glossy polycarbonate exterior designed to look like an old microphone, with a soft silicone interior to cradle the iPhone. Perhaps the most effective case color for the Retro is silver, since it really accentuates the mic-like design. The other colors include black, red, blue, white and yellow. Sneaker The innovative Sneaker ($34.99) uses a soft TPU bumper in one color, then includes two different colored "soles" that snap into the back of the case. The soles are patterned like the bottom of a sneaker, hence the name. With the black bumper you get the choice of black and white soles, red and yellow soles, or lime and purple soles; with the white bumper, Musubo provides the choice of either rose pink and baby blue or brown and olive soles. Note that there are three more case designs -- the Sexy ($24.99), the Eden ($34.99), and the Double-X ($29.99) -- that aren't covered in this review or giveaway, but can be viewed on the Musubo website. Giveaway So now here's your chance to win one of these five innovative and fun iPhone 4/4S cases. All you need to do to enter is fill out the entry form completely and press submit. We'll pick five random winners, and you'll each get one of the Musubo cases. We can't guarantee that you'll get the one you want, but we'll try to match up the winners with the cases if we can. Here are the rules for the giveaway: Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older. To enter, fill out the form below completely and click or tap the Submit button. The entry must be made before May 11, 2012 11:59PM Eastern Standard Time. You may enter only once. Five winners will be selected and each will receive a Musubo iPhone 4/4S case valued at either $29.99 or $34.99. We cannot guarantee that the winners will receive their choice of a case. Click Here for complete Official Rules. Good luck! Loading...
