Review by Dave Burrows
Introduction
Every now and again we try to review a case for a PDA. It's not GPS, but everyone reading PocketGPSWorld.com are purchasing countless PDA's and you need to protect them. Whether that's encasing it in a cows hide (leather) or just protecting the screen, you want to protect your investment. The last thing you want is a cracked screen, or scratches over the case where you have accidently dropped it (and lets face it, we all do it!).
Recently the Mitac Mio 168 has been on sale at some great prices, and many of you have snapped these up, and some of you have purchased the Navman PiN (which is basically a Mitac Mio 168 with Navman SmartST Software installed).
So, I thought it was about time we reviewed a case for the Mitac Mio 168 and Navman PiN! So here it is!
I was expecting the case to arrive in a small jiffy bag but was quite surprised to see the package that was included. Vaja pack the case in a nice presentation box, even with a credit card style support card. The whole box looks like something you would purchase an item from a designer store. Vaja as many of you will have learnt now means quality. Everything Vaja does shows. Nothing is tacky looking, and the Vaja case itself is also very well made.
The Vaja Case
Unlike some cases where you can find stitching can start to unravel, or the shine goes on the case, or holes don't exactly match up.
One thing that sprung to mind is that Vaja has thought of everything in this case. The Mitac Mio sports a flip-up antenna, and Vaja have thought that you may need access to this, so they've designed the case to fold back so that you can easily adjust the GPS Antenna. You will also notice from the photo below that the holes line up for every button and socket.
Quality
On the front of the case you'll see the Vaja logo and on the back of the case you'll see that the front part wraps round to the back and is fastened at the base of the rear with a metal popper to make sure that your Mitac Mio 168 doesn't fall out of the case. On top rear of the case you'll see Vaja have designed the case to cater for the flip-up antenna and this adds extra padding to the antenna whilst creating a snug fit.
Stitching Quality
Vaja shouts quality. The stitching is precise with no split ends and no rough edges on the cuts of the leather.
All the leather is polished and finished to perfection and the case is designed to both protect your expensive investment and to make it look stylish and to stand out amongst other cases.
Buttons and Soft Reset Hole
Vaja have also taken the minutist detail in providing a soft reset pin hole on the side of the case, and yes it does line up! Vaja have paid very close attention to detail on this case by making a cut out around the the buttons. I must say I am impressed with the quality of the Vaja Case. Vaja Cases are not the cheapest around, but they do shout quality and style.
Conclusion
The Vaja case for the Mitac Mio 168 is a great case. It fits snuggly, protects the screen and equally as important, it protects the GPS antenna. The leather is of good quality and the fastener works as intended.
I just can't wait to see what the Vaja Case will look like for the SPV C500! Perhaps we'll have to get one in for review.
Review sample supplied by
|