mguhlin

Gumdrop Case – A Final Update @gumdropcases

As I shared in these two blog posts about the GumDrop case, it’s a versatile case for your iPad or iPad Mini (I think it looks even better, and drawbacks below aren’t as much of an issue on the iPad Mini GumDrop case)

Some drawbacks that I’ve discovered after a week of heavy usage:

  1. The covers for the charging port on the iPad and the headphone jack are difficult to access.
  2. The headphone jack interferes with sound quality. I found this out since I typically plug in exterior powered, amplified speakers to my iPad while exercising indoors. Unfortunately, the rubber dust cover–which is quite thick at the base–actually puts pressure on the headphone jack at the point it goes into the iPad…and causes sound issues (e.g. no sound). When I removed the case altogether, the sound issue went away.
  3. Sound switch dust cover on the right side of the iPad is a bit of a pain to work around.
One of the fears I have about the tough rubber that covers the charging port and the headphone jack is that it will put undue pressure on the port and cause damage over time. My iPad would be worthless to me without these two components, so I’m loathe to put the GumDrop case back on unless I make some adjustments to it.
The adjustments I plan involve using my utility knife to slice off the dust covers for the headphone jack and the charging port. That way, it’s easy to plug cables in without the Gumdrop case getting in the way. Since I’m not travelling to a desert anytime soon, the Great Dust Storm is in America’s past, I hope that the decision won’t be a problem.
With those modifications, I’m putting the case back on my iPad. I’m also making the recommendation to GumDrop case developers to do something about the dust covers. Here are the modifications I’ve made:
Modified headphone jack. You can see that the dust cover has been completely cut away.
With that modification, I haven’t experienced any audio problems with headphones jack.
Here’s the modified charging port. Before I made the modifications, I had to  work harder to insert/remove
the charging cable. Now, it plugs in easily without issue.
Making these “unauthorized modifications” may weaken the protection your Gumdrop covered iPad has. For me, those modifications are worthwhile since I believe that the dust covers may impair long-term function of the iPad.
Now, in reviewing the mini iPad cover, the rubber is more pliable, less thick. As a result, I’ll have to see if the Gumdrop gets in the way or not. Time will tell.

Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin’s blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

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