Speck Products See Thru Hard Shell Case for Apple MacBook Pro Review

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by Gerald Edgecomb

If you are investing $2000 in an Apple MacBook Pro, you will want to protect it. Cases and sleeves only protect your notebook computer while it is being transported, but what about while you are using it? Speck Products tries to fill this need with their See-Thru Hard Shell, which retails for $39.95 USD. What Speck has done is made a plastic see through case that snaps onto the MacBook Pro, in affect giving your MacBook Pro armor. The advantage with the Speck case is that you do not have to pack you computer into a bag to go anywhere. Just close the lid and you are off!

Design

Top view of the Apple MacBook Pro with the Speck Product See-Thru hard case on (view large image)

The design of the See-Thru case is solid. It manages to provide extra protection without taking away from the beauty of the MacBook Pro. The model I received is clear, but Speck also offers a red version; both look identical except for the color. The case snaps on and off with relative ease. However, if you are not careful, it is possible to scratch the paint while removing the case. Speck has also thought about connectivity. All ports are fully functional. I tested the fit of every one of them and the case never hindered any of the connections. They have also made sure the MacBook Pro’s vents are not blocked and even provided vents on the bottom of the case. The only thing Speck left out was the button for the battery; there is no way to press it. The other caveat with the battery is unavoidable: you have to remove the bottom portion of the case to remove the battery. This would be an annoyance for those with multiple batteries.

Bottom view of the Apple MacBook Pro with the see-thru hard case on (view large image)

The ports on the MacBook Pro match up with cut outs for ports on the See-Thru case (view large image)

(view large image)

Use

My first concern upon receiving the case was heat. We all know that MacBook Pros have a tendency to be hot, and the case looked as though it would make it even hotter. Seeing this as a big issue, I fired up Temperature Monitor to see if temperatures were affected. Fortunately, there was no difference in the temperature. In fact, it felt a little cooler on my lap because of the space now put between the aluminum case and my lap. After the heat issue was put to rest, I noticed that my MacBook Pro felt heavier than usual, so I weighed the case. It came in at a hefty 15.5oz. Now I know that does not sound like much, but it takes the total weight of the MacBook Pro from 5.6 lbs up to about 6.5 lbs. That is a significant jump. The MacBook Pro is, in my opinion, the most portable 15.4” notebook available, and the extra weight does take away from that. Clearly, though, the See-Thru Hard Shell will protect your notebook in the event you bang it against a wall or door jam.

Conclusion

I must admit, I was skeptical at first. I did not think the case would live up to its billing. I was wrong. It is advertised as being able to protect and beautify your MacBook Pro. Now, as far as beauty is concerned I will let you be the judge, but I can say it does protect the MacBook Pro. If you like the looks, can live with the extra weight, and do not change batteries often, the See-Thru Hard Shell is a bit of insurance to protect your investment. For MacBook owners, don’t be jealous; Speck plans on releasing a 13.3” MacBook version soon.

Pros

• Extra Protection
• Easy to put on
• Reasonable price
• Does not add extra heat

Cons

• Weight
• No battery access
• No battery indicator access
• May scratch notebook case when taking it off

 

 

It looks like it fits on really well...pretty cool concept even if it's not for everyone.

 

My understanding of that product is that it comes in several colors, right?

Considering that I never can even look at the ultra white laptop (I really dislike the Dell bumpers let alone this)...that is an extra benefit. I red or blue mac might look more interesting to me...

Relief to hear that no one will be getting burned more often is always a good thing .

Excellent review...we needed a review of that!

 

Hmm.... No padding, though, so if you did bump your MacBook into something, while it might protect against cosmetic damage, it wouldn't really absorb any impact energy.

Maybe if I was crazy about keeping my laptop looking 1000% new... Otherwise a good sleeve + bag combination probably provides more protection.

 

Well, padding is not the only thing that can protect. The plastic should actually absorb a lot of the energy, but in a fall it probably would not help too much. Of course the only thing to really help against a fall would be a hard case with padding inside. As for colors, mine was clear, it was bright that day and the plastic reflects, which is why the pictures came out whiteish. They will also have red.

 

Great review. I remember wondering about the heat issue when I first heard about this product.

But I'm guessing it's pretty sturdy plastic considering the weight.

 

Another alternative would be the clear uberskins like the InvisibleShield or Best Skins Ever variety. I dunno about InvisibleShield but I can vouch for Best Skins Ever, it keeps my DS lite nice and shiny. I think I would go with one of these over a hard case since it keeps the profile thin but nice review.

 

Wow. When I first saw this thread, I thought it MUST be a typo -- it has to be an iPod case. Then when I realized it was indeed a plastic laptop case, I was skeptical. I imagine it looks a touch hokey in person (clear plastic = reflectivity = cheesy), but overall it seems a much better product than I would have guessed.

 

I think it looks like a decent product... it certainly appears to be designed well. I have to agree with Jumper a bit on the absorbing shock issue... but nothing's perfect. If I had a Macbook Pro, I'd probably get one.

 

That really does fit nice, great review Gerald. I'm surprised too that the heat does not build up; it's pretty well engineered.

 

I don't think there's any reason to doubt the protective abilities of the plastic sheilding. Especially stuff that's this thick and heavy. If you think about it, plastic is used in protective gear all of the time: safety glasses, hockey helmets and face sheilds, motorcycle helmet face sheilds, squash goggles. In my lab we use plastic to shield against radiation as well, although I'm not sure most notebook owners are worried about stray radiation. The reason the plastic is effective against a bump is that it helps distritbute the force of the impact over a larger surface area. An additional benefit of this type of shield over the notebook sleeve is that this is always on. If an accident were to happen and your notebook took a leap during use then a sleeve wouldn't really help since it's not usually on when the notebook is on.

 

But the case of the laptop does that already, as it was designed to. When used as googles, plastic is not being used to absorb energy but to deflect.

What foam or another padding does it it turns an instantaneous impact into an impact spread over time. Instead of going from falling to stopped in no time, it goes from falling to stopped over the period of a few hundred milliseconds, which is all the difference in the world to the internals of your laptop. Airbags in cars are doing the same thing.

I see this as something for Mac owners who want to keep their MBP looking absolutely mint on the outside, free from scuffs and scratches, but I wouldn't count on it against falls or impact the same way I would a simple memory foam sleeve, let alone something like a Brain Cell with a layer of open cell foam suspending the laptop inside a hard shell...

 

I think this is the main purpose of this product. I would also think that aesthetic customization is another main purpose, but they only have clear and red available so far.

 

With the aluminum case of the MBP bumps bend the case inwards fairly easily - especially at the corners. I've seen it happen once.

The Speck case is made out of polycarbonate which is "used to make bullet-proof windows, greenhouse walls, automobile headlamps, and rugged housings for cell phones, pagers, and laptop computers. It is a tough, shatter- and heat-resistant material" ( http://www.americanplasticscouncil.org/s_apc/sec.asp?TrackID=&CID=343&DID=1104&VID=86)

Anyways, I don't plan on getting one since I don't have a MBP. Just FYI since the product is being dismissed so quickly.

 

I just got this case and apparently the right side isn't too useful on C2D MacBook Pros. Anyone know if Speck has an updated case? Oddly enough, not a single picture on their site shows the case from that angle facing the right.

 

Why is it that every time I see people buying hard plastic cases for anything, it is always Apple products. I guess people are starting to admit that hard plastic may be more useful than the aesthetically pleasing aluminum that Apple makes EVERYTHING out of?

 

I honestly don't know...it is a design thing...'bling' I think they call it. But hard cases are nice!

I think their company (or another one) was working on hard cases for the hottest selling laptops from major vendors. Aside from hearing 'they will do it eventually,' I haven't heard anything else. I will try to find that company name...

 

People tend to pay a bit more for Macbook Pros than your typical laptop, partly for its thinness and lightness and partly for its stylish aluminum finish. On the other hand, it's that thinness and aluminum material that makes it extremely prone to denting.

On a normal 1.5"+ notebook made from carbon fiber reinforced plastic or magnesium, a tiny bang/dent on the lid or bottom only affects aesthetics. But when the entire thing's a flat 1" out of aluminum, you're not just denting the chassis and the looks, you're bending the entire machine.

This isn't a Thinkpad with the Mg roll cage that can take 300000000 PSI in pure vacuum while being bombarded by solar radiation.

If you dent it near the right front, you can't use your optical drive (since it's slot-loading, it's even more vulnerable to minor shape distortion). If you dent it near any of the sides, you just lost half your ports. If you dent it near the middle, that's your RAM on the bottom and near the top is your logic board. If you dent it near the top - well that screen is thin as it is. There's not much room for error there.

 

Rarely do I defend the mighty Macbook...but I do have to say those machines can take more than you think they could. A professor I know has a MAC (not too sure why since he needs XP and it is a pre-bootcamp and pre-Core Duo/Core 2 machine), and boy-oh-boy has that thing been tortured from the looks of it.

There are a couple of dents on the lid and sides, one corner is clearly screwed up...but the screen still works (I cannot vouch for dead pixels though so maybe that is bad), and all the ports he used still worked (but he didn't use some of them so it is probable a few ports near that corner are indeed dead). At least it still boots

 

Geez, what is he doing to that thing?
My last laptops were a Thinkpad (titanium!) and a Latitude, so i guess I'm a bit spoiled for durability. I feel like I have to baby the thing. Not that I mind, I love my MBP.

I'm still not going to buy a clear shell for it though

 

i got one yesterday and i hate it ,the right corner doesnt fit properly .Im gonna return mine.

 

I think this looks great, wish I had a Mac. Will this be available or is it available for any other types? I have a HP Pavilion dv9000, I would love one!
Thanks...

 

I asked them about that last December, they told me they were going to increase their lineup to including one or two of the most popular laptop models from the big companies like Dell and HP. They also said that lineup expansion would happen 'within a very few months.'

http://www.speckproducts.com/products/by_device

As you can see, they never did...so my guess is that they are unwilling or unable to expand their product line.

 

Hate to revive an old thread, but this is an excellent review and solidified my decision to go ahead and purchase a black case for my 17" MBP. I was searching hi and low for something, a skin or whatever, that was black for it, but could never find something that I liked. Dont know how I stumbled upon the Speck products, but I figured someone here would have one or have reviewed it in the past.