Rotating iPad Case Offers New “Spin” on Tablet Protection

Is your nickname “Butter Fingers?” Have a tendency to frequently drop your gadgets, especially the slippery, touch screen devices like Apple’s iPad? Hub Innovation may have a solution: The versatile REV 360 rotating case, which has been designed to protect your pricey Apple tablet and to allow for optimal viewing of the iPad while facilitating easy manipulation of its touch screen – with just one hand.

“Flip it, spin it, turn it share it.”

That’s how Hub Innovation describes its REV360 rotating case for the iPad tablet. While the company is hardly the first to come up with a product to help users keep a good grip on their iPads, the REV360 design is unique. The REV360 case is made of molded polyurethane, which the company says can take tons of abuse without scuffing. Strategic ridges and curves along the edges also help add stability when placed on flat surfaces, making it suitable for use on a desk as well as in your hands.

The handgrip on the back of the REV360 is made of thermoplastic ABS and shaped so it fits the hand’s natural tendency to rest in a curved state. And I found the the handgrip to be sized just about right, though the heavy duty “one-size-fits-all” elastic strap did feel uncomfortably tight on my average-sized hands. A looser strap probably wouldn’t work well here, but some way to adjust it would have been welcome.

Ultimately, the strap did help me get a solid grip on my first-generation iPad using one hand. I found it particularly useful when performing activities that require regular contact with the touch screen, such as navigating RSS feeds on a newsreader or surfing the Internet.

I’ve seen a lot of cases in my time, and I can say without a doubt that the REV360 is a superbly well-engineered product right down to the circular disc mechanism used to facilitate the REV360’s rotation. And the gadget has a thick circular piece of soft material on the rotating mechanism to prevent it from scratching the back of your iPad.

On the downside, the contour of the handgrip makes the iPad/case combination a bit too bulky to slip into most average-sized bags. But it does help that the case can be easily removed. For folks who’d rather not frequently remove and replace their iPad cases, the bulkiness of the REV360 rotating case could prove to be a deal breaker.

The REV360 for the iPad 1 is available from Hub Innovation’s website for $49.95. The company also makes a REV360 for the iPad 2, which is available in additional colors and prints from $59.95 to $69.95.

The REV360 rests on an inclined angle suited for typing when placed on a flat surface. A circular piece of soft material in the center prevents the case from scratching your iPad.

The back view of the REV360. Note the circular disc mechanism and elastic band.

Gripping the REV360 with my hand.

The cutouts for the various buttons and toggles on the iPad were extremely precise. However, I found the orientation/mute toggle to be a tad difficult to reach due to the deep recess.