Well that is a photo from Apple's website, not my actual case! The scratching was on the back where the case sat on my desk. The front never scratched, but it never made contact with anything but my hand. My desk is wooden and has a smooth surface, but the case got several small scratches and was starting to get a couple of dark spots/smudges near two of the corners. The Poetic cases I've owned for other devices look and feel very similar to Apple's Smart Case, but they have a plastic bottom wherein the device snaps in. They don't scratch and they cost $20 or less.