REVIEWED: Covert Stafford case for iPad Mini
Timeless styling and lightweight, too, but a fake and bulky buckle means you should give this the slip
Buy the Covert Stafford
Price at time of review: £29.99
Eight-inch tablets are probably the best thing to happen to travellers since, well, the iPad. Half the weight of its bigger brother (2013’s iPad Mini 2 Retina weighs 342g while even the iPad Air notches-up 478g), the iPad Mini fits in a pocket.
Fake bulky buckle
Not with the Covert Stafford case for iPad Mini it doesn’t. OK, so that depends on how big your pockets are, but while it’s possible to squeeze an iPad Mini au natural one into man-size jeans, and absolutely any cabin-sized bag you can think of, a fake buckle on the Covert Stafford precludes that.
Deal breaker
Is it a deal breaker? It is, though largely because during our test we managed to snag the buckle (which wraps around the otherwise delightful Herringbone Tweed slip) while shoving our iPad Mini into a tiny Berghaus backpack that was on cabin duties. It just sticks out too much.
Soft but rigid
Side-opening and with a popper on the inside of the lid, there’s a microfibre inner that reminds us of lens cleaning cloths. Weighing 135g, the Covert Stafford is well-made – hand-crafted, even – though it’s clearly using cardboard to lend it some rigidity.
Style over substance
It also lacks the auto wake/sleep functionality we’re used to on most cover. Good value but all about style, the Covert Stafford does a stylistic job only; there are better, more travel-friendly cases for the iPad Mini.