There is something that I find extremely amusing about leather goods and luxury items made for housing technology that I can't quite put my finger on. A while back I bought an iPad Pro, which I have mentioned in the past, for my design work on silks. It was such a beautiful looking thing when I purchased it, rose gold backed, sleek lines, slim in the hand, smooth to the touch. Then the ugly part of the transaction came, where I realised the practicality of having a valuable piece of equipment not available to me if it's screen was cracked so I had to ask the sales clerk, wearing his chipper "i am over the moon with my job" blue apple t-shirt about what kind of cover best suited my device.
"There's not too many options at the moment" he said and pointed to the condom section. I walked over and looked at what was on offer. He wasn't lying. Either you got something with a keyboard but it didn't protect the back, or you got something that was so solid it looked like it was military grade for the set of Avatar 2, or else you got next to nothing, leaving you exposed like a feather weight condom in the middle of the Rio Olympics.
What a first world dilemma to have.
I went searching online for lovely iPad Pro cases and you won't believe it, Smythson, my preferred company for journal books, did in fact have them. The only trouble was they were 425 GBP. That's roughly $722 AUD not including freight. That's just $500 bucks shy of the $1200.00 AUD I paid for my iPad Pro. And this is where I felt like smiling ear to ear, because it was a joke but one I still bought into.
When you consider how much time and energy is wrapped up in an iPad Pro as well as what it can do for you in terms of utility; it can run your business, entertain you, educate you, guide you and soothe you - all for $1200.00 plus in app puchases.... what then by contrast was Smythson able to offer you ? A stylish life, some protection against damage, and perhaps somewhere to stow business and credit cards. And? perhaps a level of impracticality, since owning a cover from one of these luxury brands is always more cumbersome than the tightly engineered housing cases offered by the original manufacturers and their cohorts.
I know all this because I own a Smythson iPad case and I don't use it. It's stunning. It's a work of art. But it's impractical. Thankfully I did not purchase it at RRP but through someone who no longer wanted theirs, perhaps for good reason.
Rubbishing these luxury technology accessories is not something I get enjoyment out of. Aesthetically I understand their value, but when I think about the journey I have done in ten years, from the Nokias to the Blackberries, the HTC, the Samsungs, the iPhones, the iPads, the mini iPads and now the iPad pros - I can't help but feel that buying a luxury leather bound cover for such devices is a pure indulgence that's rather short-lived.
I'll keep my Smythson journals for a life time I hope. I can't say the same for my technology case.
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| Smythson Mara Ipad Pro Case - 425 GBP from Smythson.Com |
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