Aura HD Alternative Cases for the Aura HD?

[meson1]

The only other cover that I've come across in brown that looks anything close to decent quality (in pics at least) is this Natural Hemp one. Handy if you're looking for an animal friendly one too (if that's your thing).

But I wanted the look and feel of a traditional leather bound book, hence the choice to go with Noreve. I've gone with a dark brown full grain leather which should get better with use as a patina builds up to give it character. To my mind another good choice would have been a beige/cream cover which would contrast nicely with the Espresso brown of the device. The only drawback of that might be that as a patina builds up, it could just make cream look dirty rather than adding character, but I could be wrong.

So you could either go for colours that tone with brown, but that contrast like beiges and creams. Alternatively other pale versions of colours like pink, blue or green should go with brown and look more contemporary.

Thinking about it, my going for dark brown and trying to match the espresso probably wasn't a smart move. It could just end up looking like it's trying to match, failing and therefore look wrong, but never mind, I'll see how it turns out. It's a shame they don't do a rich burgundy; that would work too; and I like burgundy.

[Prestidigitweeze]

Yes, a faded teal would be more correct, but I really do hate teal. And I'm metro enough as it is without gadding about with pink devices, thank you very nice.

I still like this combination, as disconcerting as indigo can be (but notice how the background validates your cream/beige idea):


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I think you can get away with more variation if you pick a textured leather (as you've done). Then the nuances of color can be a tad more forgiving, and off-match matches attain a tad more contrast.

[guitarchitect]

Originally Posted by meson1

The only other cover that I've come across in brown that looks anything close to decent quality (in pics at least) is this Natural Hemp one. Handy if you're looking for an animal friendly one too (if that's your thing).

I'm basically torn between the Noreve and Cover-Up cases. Unfortunately they only come from Europe, so it's a bit of a gamble regarding duties/import fees. I've asked Noreve (Cover-up states that the buyer is responsible).

The two things that worry me about the Noreve cases for an e-reader specifically are the fact that when it's in hand-held "fodled back" reading position, the "clip" the pulls the case shut is in the middle on the right side - meaning it'll be tough to comfortable hold it. The other thing that worries me is the comfort of the embossed logo on the interior leather - i'd rather have a smooth surface there than a textured one.

I guess that's specific to me, though - I like that the Aura, on its own, doesn't need to be "held open" - so the case I'm looking for needs to be comfortable when folded back on itself. Seems like the Noreve cases will be most comfortable when held open like a book... so maybe add this consideration to the review that you will be doing down the road!

I'm also waiting to hear from Cover-Up, regarding refunds for duties on returns... if they have a policy in place and I don't have to worry about needlessly paying duties, maybe I'll pick one up for the sake of getting another review in here!

Seems like the Gecko covers are nice, too - can anyone confirm if the back is the faux-leather as well? Looks like the ebay ones are hard plastic

[Lyn2012]

Originally Posted by guitarchitect

Seems like the Gecko covers are nice, too - can anyone confirm if the back is the faux-leather as well? Looks like the ebay ones are hard plastic

My sister has the eBay brown cover and the back is faux-leather with a 1cm approx. plastic border around the edge. She really likes it, she even took it into the store and compared with the official cover and found the quality on hers to be better.

[Prestidigitweeze]

If I hadn't just bought a completely unsatisfactory official cover, I'd pick up this one in dark blue for $9.99:

Leather Aura HD Cover


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Originally Posted by guitarchitect

I'm basically torn between the Noreve and Cover-Up cases. Unfortunately they only come from Europe, so it's a bit of a gamble regarding duties/import fees.

Unless you buy them Stateside, of course:

Cover-up Hemp Case at the U.S. Amazon Store

Where are you located?

[guitarchitect]

Originally Posted by Prestidigitweeze

Unless you buy them Stateside, of course:

Cover-up Hemp Case at the U.S. Amazon Store

Where are you located?

Canada...

"All orders are shipped to you directly from our warehouse in the UK (unless your order has been fulfilled by Amazon)"

Hmmm, maybe i'll try ordering via amazon.com - amazon.ca orders are filled by the warehouse, but it looks like the amazon.com orders are fulfilled by Amazon...

[guitarchitect]

Originally Posted by guitarchitect

Hmmm, maybe i'll try ordering via amazon.com - amazon.ca orders are filled by the warehouse, but it looks like the amazon.com orders are fulfilled by Amazon...

I stand corrected - on Amazon.com I don't see them being fulfilled by Amazon, they are shipped from Cover-up. Darn.

[Prestidigitweeze]

Success! Due to the incredibly shoddy way the official sleepcover was packaged and sent (crude crumpled secondhand box and trashcan-extracted plastic wrapper unworthy of ebay sellers) -- and the condition it was in when I received it (weathered spine, and box with flaps fallen off and no shrinkwrap), Kobo has agreed to take back the original case and credit my account.

Perhaps there's a Noreve, Cover-up or othersuch case in my future.

Note to others: My case was sent from somewhere in California, supposedly by a "Kobo partner." Hope this wasn't symptomatic of the Rakuten market.

[Fallen33]

Hello, new Kobo Aura HD owner.

I ordered this case.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I have to say its a very good cover and the sleep function/magnetic closure works flawlessly. High quality leather feel and fits the Aura HD perfectly. (its actually a little difficult to get out, don't worry it doesn't scratch it) I ordered the brown and its a good tone, not to bright or dark. Oh and the little metal tab is lighter blue not silver like in the pic.

I also ordered this screen protector.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Its a little difficult to get on without bubbles but I managed to. Once on you hardly notice it.

I also order this slipcase. (Yah, I know overload on protecting it, I'm in the military and we can be in austere conditions sometimes, I NEED 3 layers of protection)

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Hasn't come in yet, I'll shoot a review when it gets here.

[guitarchitect]

I ordered the Cover-Up hemp case in Slate Grey - already feeling a bit of buyer's remorse as I like the black frame around the kobo, so I'll swap it if I need to (I just don't look forward to the wait). But I really like the material and quality of construction when I compare it to the cheaper cases. Fingers crossed!
But once that noreve review is up, meson, I may want to send it back altogether!

[Miramyn]

Originally Posted by Fallen33

Hello, new Kobo Aura HD owner.

I ordered this case.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I have to say its a very good cover and the sleep function/magnetic closure works flawlessly. High quality leather feel and fits the Aura HD perfectly. (its actually a little difficult to get out, don't worry it doesn't scratch it) I ordered the brown and its a good tone, not to bright or dark. Oh and the little metal tab is lighter blue not silver like in the pic.

@Fallen33: The light blue on the metal tab is just a protective film for shipping. You can peel that off and have the silver metal underneath instead.

[Fallen33]

@Miramyn

Thanks! I feel like a total dummy now.

[guitarchitect]

Welp, I got my Coverup case! Got it pretty quickly, too - less than a week to get from the UK to Canada with $2 shipping.

I'd like to post some photos with my actual review... but my first impression is that it is quite nice. The leather-alternative that they use is very soft to the touch. The stitching and details are all top-notch. It is certainly going to stand up to abuse and being tossed into a bag with other stuff, so I don't feel like I will ever need to be worried about damaging it by shoving it into a backpack for a bus trip or road trip (like I would with a Noreve case). All of the buttons are easy to access, and they even made a little cutout for the factory reset hole. Nice attention to detail!

The only thing I'm not sure about is my color selection! I went with the slate grey, and while it is darker than I thought it would be, it might be a bit too light in the end and I may prefer black to go with the black Kobo. We'll see...

[Prestidigitweeze]

Originally Posted by guitarchitect

Welp, I got my Cover-Up case! . . . It is certainly going to stand up to abuse and being tossed into a bag with other stuff, so I don't feel like I will ever need to be worried about damaging it by shoving it into a backpack for a bus trip or road trip (like I would with a Noreve case).

It's always disquieting to feel that one needs a case to protect the case to protect one's e-reader.

How's the fit -- is it tight, safe and slender enough for you? The Cover-up case for the PRS-350 seemed a tad bulky.

[robko]

Originally Posted by guitarchitect

W It is certainly going to stand up to abuse and being tossed into a bag with other stuff, so I don't feel like I will ever need to be worried about damaging it by shoving it into a backpack for a bus trip or road trip (like I would with a Noreve case).

You might want to be a little careful with that confidence of total protection. The cover will no doubt protect the screen from scratches and direct point pressure from an object on the screen, but you're likely to end up as one of those people who wake up one morning with a cracked substrate wondering why. Cases are great for direct screen contact protection, but they don't do a lot to protect from twisting of the screen which is the big killer of the glass substrate (IMHO) in an e-ink device. Cover's are great protection for tablet/phone etc, but e-ink is a little different.