Review – Speck See Thru Skins

I utterly, utterly hate it when something I obtain in new condition gets scratched or dirtied in some way to lose its “fresh” status.  Whether it is a car or a computer or simply a toy, I want it to remain in brand-new condition forever.  It could be a holdover from my childhood, where I tended to not play with used toys even if I were the only one to have used it.

One of the big appeals of the iPhone and iPod Touch (and the Apple products in general) is that they look sleek and new, even futuristic.  They have that solid silver hull on which a scratch would be the visual equivalent of a nail running against a chalkboard.  With this in mind, a purchase I made shortly after obtaining my iPod Touch was one of the hard cases for it sold by the company Speck.

The Speck shells come in a variety of colors.  I decided to purchase a 2 pack of the See Thru skins in case one skin ever got so scratched or damaged that I had to get rid of it.  I settled on the colors of aqua and pink.  When it eventually arrived in the mail, I opted to cover my iTouch with the pink skin first for two reasons:   First, I am so comfortable with my masculinity that I could walk around with a pink iPod and not feel ashamed or threatened in the least.  Second, it was the color my girlfriend preferred.

I have been taking my skinned iTouch to work virtually every day, watching movies and/or television shows on it during my long, weary bus commute and I have to say that the durable casing fits perfectly around the dimensions of the iTouch.  While the surface is getting severely manhandled and scratched, I am comforted by the fact that my iTouch is safely enclosed within it looking more-or-less new.

If you decide to purchase the Speck casing, I have a few words of warning.  Installation is a hassle at first.  It takes a few tries to work out how exactly to snap the shell around the player while keeping the protective screen that is included covering the touch screen.  Also, once the casing is on the device, the outer dimensions of it change.  I found that it no longer fits in the plastic stand that comes with the 1st generation device.  The shells are not interchangeable between devices, so you cannot purchase an iPhone covering in hopes it would fit the iPod Touch.

If you have an earlier generation iPod Touch or iPhone, the Speck casing comes at a considerable discount at this time.  The $30 pack of two shells is being sold at a 75% discount for $7.50.  It’s a nice price for protection of a $200-plus dollar investment.

In short, if you are paranoid like me about ruining the shine on your media player, I recommend purchasing a Speck case for yourself.  It will make the product last longer.