Pros

• All round good protection
• High quality Napa leather
• Five different reading angles
• Value for Money
• Includes Stasis feature

Cons

• Velcro straps are fiddly
• iPad slightly exposed on one side
• Inside micro suede picks up a lot of lint

Based out of the UK, Tuff-Luv build cases for everything from DSLR’s to mobile phones. Whilst the market has certainly been flooded with case manufacturers looking to provide for the ever changing Apple product market, Tuff-Luv look to bring high quality affordable silicone, hemp and leather cases to over 1000 different electronic devices. Clearly this is no mean feat. So when they released the Tri-axis Napa leather iPad 2 case, we were delighted to give it a try.

Here’s what we thought of the Tuff-Luv Tri-axis Napa leather iPad 2 case.

Style

Some people like leather, some people don’t. But if you’re someone who does and appreciates the musky scented smell of good leather and you need a case for your iPad then the Tri-axis might just be the one for you. Built from a high quality soft Napa Leather, the design of the Tri-axis is certainly not run of the mill ordinary.

On the front side of the case are 5 velcro flaps giving it a kind of railroad look effect as well as two triangular folds which we’ll go over later. Keeping the case closed is a clasped strap that clicks in nicely onto the back. Turning the case around and there’s a large clipped in stand that’s very much similar to what you might find on the back of a traditional photo stand.

There’s a little bit of shine to the black case, but our dominant impression of the case was the smooth and soft texture of the leather. It’s clearly a high quality product and as such comes with Tuff-Luv’s lifetime workmanship guarantee for that extra peace of mind.

Unsurprisingly it does add some bulk to the iPad, but for the protection that the leather affords the iPad as well as for that nice texture, we think it would be pretty hard for the case not to bulk up a little.

Protection

The Tri-axis covers most of the iPad. As with most cases, you get the usual cut outs, at the bottom for the recharge cable and up top for the headphone jack etc. However the right side of the iPad is left virtually totally exposed. In most situations this won’t be a problem as the edges of the case do go over enough to cover the edges of the iPad. However the iPad is still left up to the mercy of the elements and therefore will be exposed to things such as dust and rain for example.

Otherwise the case has a good amount of padding and in all the right places. Of course if you dropped it off the top of a roof then don’t expect your iPad to still be working, but for most everyday use, it’ll do a good job keeping that iPad nice and safe.

Features

Tri-axis’ main selling point is it’s ability to stand in 5 different reading angles which is where the photo stand comes into play. Unclip it from the back of the case and flip the lid all the way around and you’ll find it neatly stands against the flaps on the front of the case. Tuff-Luv’s selling point is that you can undo the velcro straps and secure the stand into each of the flaps. While this is great in theory and it certainly holds it well, in practice it’s pretty fiddly and isn’t the best way of securing the stand. That said, the stand sits perfectly well against the flaps without having the velcro to secure it down.

As well as landscape mode, you can also stand the case up and to lean it back, bend back one of those triangular panels on the front of the case. It’s an unusual method of standing the case up and although interesting, doesn’t provide the most stability when having the iPad stand in such a way.

The inside cover of the Tri-axis also features a micro suede interior. It’s nice to touch but contrary to the microfiber lining on the Apple Smart Cover for example, the interior picks up quite a lot of lint under minimal usage. Unlike the Smart Cover, it’s also not the easiest to brush off and because of the way it opens and how the frame almost holds back contact of the cover to the iPad, there’s very little of that “screen cleaning” effect you see on other cases.

Even with that in mind, the 8 total reading angles makes for a very compelling reason to buy this case.

Conclusion

In the Tri-axis, Tuff-Luv have created a very high quality leather case for your iPad. We really liked the soft Napa leather material and that it has a full range of reading options. Despite it’s slightly exposed right side and the fiddly securing mechanism, we can definitely recommend the Tri-axis leather iPad 2 case from Tuff-Luv.

The Tuff-Luv Tri-axis Napa Leather iPad 2 Case is available for £49.99 from Tuff-Luv.

TUS Rating

Style:	4 of 5
Protection:	4 of 5
Features	3.5 of 5

Overall: 4 of 5  

DISCLOSURE: This product was provided to TUS by Tuff-Luv. See Contact TUS page for full details on our review policy.