[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] swordsman74:
Hi all,

Here is my review of the Sikai leather/plastic case, as sold by Amazon. For comparison, I have had my Prime in the Poetic cover since I got it. It was okay, but didn't have a charging slot in the spine so it had to be open to be plugged in - plus the nearly-flat angle was nearly-useless because the cover kept slipping out of the tab you tucked it into. I had ordered the GreatShield folio case, but returned it because I didn't like the way the case gripped the tablet, plus I didn't like that to close the cover I had to put pressure on the screen to slide the clip past the edge.

Onto my review...

As mentioned in other reviews, it is a strange mix of black leatherette and dark brown plastic. The plastic back plate is great - the Prime snaps in and seems to be held quite securely. Similar to many iPad covers, it just wraps over the edge - enough to hold, but out-of-the-way enough to really reveal the sleek Prime look. The main portion of the back plate is the black leatherette material, with only the outer edge showing the brown plastic. It has all of the necessary cutouts - including (apparently) the ability to have the dock attached and still close the cover. That is because the "hinge" pieces that connect the cover to the back plate are elastic. I don't have a dock, so I can't comment much on that.

The leather-ish cover looks to be two pieces glued/sewn together, with two bends in the midde - allowing it to be folded up in a triangle shape. Both angles I tried seem to be reasonably stable while typing. About the two layers of the cover...they might have been able to get away with only one, giving it a sleeker appearance, but they had to account for the strap that slips over the sides to hold the cover against the screen. The strap is fine, and gives it an upscale look, but I would have preferred a more unobtrusive solution with magnets or something similar. Overall, the case is skinny enough - just about the same thickness as my Poetic case. That is actually a bit of a downer since I expected this to be thinner since the Poetic case has that layer around the bezel with the magnets in the corners.

There are a few tiny fit-and-finish things that I didn't expect to see in a $30 case. The leather part of the back plate doesn't always make a perfect fit with the plastic border. I'm really nitpicking here, but when this costs three times as much as my Poetic case, I was expecting Ferrarri-quality stuff. I know - it still only $30 so I won't beat them up (much) for it.

Overall, I really like the Sikai. It has a superior look to the Poetic - that one hid all of the nice features of the Prime underneath the protective layers of the front/back/cover. When all that is exposed is the center part of the screen, it almost doesn't matter anymore what Asus designed it to look like. The Sikai shows the Prime's lines and curves much better than the other cases I have seen. The plastic seems tough enough to not break or wear any time soon, so as long as the leatherette holds up, I say this is the best case available for the Prime under $30...

By the way, when ordering from Amazon, it ships from Hong Kong. I placed the order on June 18th, and got a confirmation within 24 hours that it had shipped. However, the confirmation email said my ETA was JULY 31st! Needless to say, I was very happy when it arrived today instead...

I figured there were already better pictures available than my crappy phone can provide, but I can take some close-ups of specific features if requested.

Thanks!