Macally BOOKSHELL2 Leather Protective Cover for New 13 - Inch Aluminum Mac Book

by Macally

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 13 x 1.2 x 9.5 inches ; 1 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 4 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B001R1X6OS
• Item model number: BOOKSHELL2
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (76 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: September 14, 2004

Product Description

Black leather protective cover for the new 13" aluminum MacBook is a two piece snap-on protective imitation leather shell specially designed for your MacBook Access to all ports and CD/DVD slot Ventilated rear to minimize heat built-up Suede inner lining to prevent scratches to your MacBook

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Value, Snug fit, July 1, 2009

By 

Tessera (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Macally BOOKSHELL2 Leather Protective Cover for New 13 - Inch Aluminum Mac Book (Personal Computers)

* Fits the new MacBook Pro 13" too (only difference is the laptop "lock" notch near the CD drive is covered.)

* Fits snugly with a slight bit of padding, so you can put your laptop in a backpack or something without scratching it. The case meets very well when the laptop is closed.

* The Apple logo isn't visible (fairly minor) and the sleep light isn't visible. All other ports are easy to access.

* When the screen is 100% tilted back (I don't really tilt my screen this far), it will seal of the rear fan port as the case meets. The rear of the laptop isn't actually covered by the case to allow venting.

* It has a nice, soft feel to it that I like better than a plastic shell. The inside is lined as well.

* Under $30 seems like a great value for this. It has a nice look (black matches the aluminum style).

* I would order this same product again if I needed another. It looks like it could get worn out after a year or two of use, but that's kind of the point of a case.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nearly Perfect Shell Case, August 24, 2009

By 

J. Dulak - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Macally BOOKSHELL2 Leather Protective Cover for New 13 - Inch Aluminum Mac Book (Personal Computers)

Just got my new 13" MBP last week and I had already put a small scratch in the bottom aluminum cover :grr: from gentle normal useage. So I immediately set out to find a shell cover. I was never a fan of plastic covers (clear or otherwise) so I went in search of a leather cover at "any" price point (I also own a Vaja leather cover for my iPhone). There are plenty of high priced options that I'm sure would be "worth" it, but for $25 this cover is excellent choice! Even for $50 I'd still consider it money well spent especially compared to some of the designer MBP leather covers/cases that can run $100-$300!

As others have noted, this case fits nice and snug. When closed pretty much everything is covered except for the ports and CD slot on the sides. The leather is thin (but that is to be expected at this price point) but has a very nice, smooth grained texture with a subtle Macally logo embossed on the LCD cover. Also, both the top and bottom do have some padding built into them between the leather and the plastic skeleton inside which is a nice touch and the inside has a soft faux suede insert to not scatch up the laptop. The only real cons of this cover is that it covers up the sleep LED indicator on the front edge and a cutout for the glowing Mac logo would have been nice (if you going for the mac snob look, LOL). Otherwise, this cover stealths your Mac a bit by being largely non-descript on the outside. Finally as others have noted, the case does close the back side if you tilt the LCD as far back as it will go, however if you look down at the hinge with the LCD open you can still see the vents so they can still blow out the top of the hinge. Not ideal, but the vents aren't completely closed off.

This shell case is a definite winner, I'd highly recommend it and would buy one again. The few cons noted are easily overcome by the value of this case and for $25 it really can't be beat. Also as an FYI, I have an Incase neoprene sleeve case as well and my MBP can still easily fit inside of it with the shell case on which is an added protection bonus while travelling!

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars PROS, CONS, AND CAVEATS FOR SOME USERS, May 21, 2010

By 

B. Hoak - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Macally BOOKSHELL2 Leather Protective Cover for New 13 - Inch Aluminum Mac Book (Personal Computers)

Reviewing this with Macally BookShell2 leatherlike cover bought in May 2010 with the Macbook Pro 13 model new release of April 2010 (see wikipedia for details of this Macbook 13 Pro) - it was a new spec in April 2010.

PROS:

*Professional look and feel - Understated and elegant black cover is soft and absorbs all light and reflections, which makes it look even darker than it is. It fits evenly around all sides on top and bottom.

*Secure grip in hands - will not slip out of hands and cannot slide much at all when on a desk.

*Cover attaches securely to laptop - The top cover has two clips on either side (top and bottom), the bottom cover one clip on the left and right towards the front corner, and two on the back of the lap over the bottom ridge of the airvent at either end. The cover cannot come off without substantial effort.

*The Apple logo is covered - I consider this a good thing and don't want a hole in my protective laptop cover advertising a brand when I am at my cafe. I also don't buy shirts with logos on them. Some folks like logos though when they spend a lot to get a logo!

*Will not scratch laptop - Even the clips have a soft material covering them, and the inside of the cover is lined in a soft black material. There is nothing here that could scratch the aluminum Macbook.

*Does not cover security lock - The security lock is the small hole to the left of the CD slot. I can assure you contrary to other reviews that with this cover and this macbook it is not blocked. There is a full 3/4 inch of clearance to the left of the security hole.

CONS

*The sleep light is covered - This should be fixed since to know when the computer is asleep verses off. I would rather have this showing then the infrared light, which they made a cutout for so it could show. Who uses infrared anymore?

*Fit could be more snug for top cover - I feel they should have added an additional clip on the front middle and rear middle of the top cover, as that part doesnt fit as snugly. Note that is secure, just not as snug as it could be. It bows an eight of an inch up in the front and rear middle.

*Macally logo on top cover - Macally, you have guts to cover the Apple logo, and then put your own, albeit faint and hard to see, on the cover!

CAVEATS FOR SOME USERS:

*Don't buy if you use a wired network cable - The new 'right angled' Apple power connector cord design normally allows one to point the power cord toward the rear; however, the Macally case cover block that rear corner. Since you need to then point the power cable forward, you end up blocking the wired network port and partially blocking the firewire port. I would not redesign the case since the corner should be covered. This is more a flaw in the Apple power connector design - I prefer the older 'T' shaped connectors.

*Don't buy if you find the fan is on or the laptop gets hot - First, since this is an insulated cover it will make the laptop harder to cool itself. It also partially blocks the rear air vents when opened up to about 100 degrees. When the computer is opened to 120 degrees (it cannot open more) the top cover in the back contacts the bottom, thus almost sealing the airvent shut if it weren't for alight opening due to the aforementioned eight of an inch bow in the top cover. I find the fan almost never comes on though and the laptop for me is never hot so this isn't an issue.

CONCLUSION:

I would buy again due to the fact that the cover protects well, looks great, and was an excellent value for the quality. Also, since the Macally logo isn't all that visible it doesnt bother me much. I don't think they could have changed the fact that the airvents and network ports are partially blocked, since this would drastically undermine the protective qualities of the cover. If I were Macally I would not have redesigned the cover for this two issues. Basically, you buy a cover to protect. If the computer got hot in any way, I would not use any cover at all, since a hot computer is meant to be cooled, and at that point the cover is not longer protective, but harmful. Please unblock the sleep light, and put two more clips on the lid and its a five star product.