Today we’re looking at the Kindle 2 weave book cover from Octovo. This book-style case features a hinge mounting system, with an elastic corner strap, in an attractive woven pattern of Italian leather. It’s available in black/brown or in green/wine color combinations. It’s available now through Amazon or this Octo page.

The hinge system is good quality; my review cover fits well and the upper retainer has a strong, smooth spring action. The interior is lined with black microfibre. Out of the box, the cover lies flat naturally.

The cover includes an elastic corner strap to secure the lower right edge of the Kindle to the back of the case. This strap holds the Kindle flat aginst the back cover, preventing stress on the Kindle’s body at the points where the hinge clips connect to the Kindle.

The cover’s slim profile, and its high-quality stitching, is shown in the 360-degree views of the cover below.

The cover works well folded back upon itself. Like most leather covers, it wants to spring back to its open-flat position when doubled back on itself; I expect this will diminish over time as the leather softens with use.

The cover is a nice choice to convert the feel of your Kindle to a nicely-bound traditional book. It’s also very lightweight – comparable to the weight of Amazon’s minimalist leather cover.

The packaging of this cover, like other Octovo covers, is definitely gift-worthy. The pix below show the unboxing experience.

Summary: There’s nothing low-end about this cover, from the stitching to the well-crafted woven leather exterior. The Kindle hinge system plus the corner elastic ensures a solid grip on your Kindle. Beautiful packaging and an attractive executive-style design puts this item in the gift-worthy category for us. Highly recommended.

Specifications:
Compatibility: Kindle 2 (also available for Kindle DX)
Mounting system: Kindle hinge
Materials: Italian Leather, Microfibre inside lining
Colors: Black/Brown & Green/Wine
Warranty: 1 Year
Price: $84.99 (check current prices on Amazon or on Octovo site).

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The past few days I’ve been using the new Octovo Kindle Light. Thanks to Octovo for giving us this advance look; the light will be available around the end of March 2010, through Amazon and through the Octovo site.

The light is constructed from high-end aluminum which gives it lightness, strength, and a sleek finish.

The underside has a plastic clip attached to it. This clip is sized to fit snugly over the top of the Kindle 2 (or Kindle DX). The lower side of the clip in the photo has a cushiony rubbery pad that grips the light securely to the Kinde.

The light is only 0.85 ounces (24 grams). (The AA battery adds another 0.85 ounces to it.) The total 1.7 ounces is light enough that it does not add noticeably to the weight of the reader.

The LED turns on automatically when the light’s arm swivels outward.

Here’s a shot in a darkened room, showing the pattern of light thrown by the LED. Octovo tells me that the LED is designed to bring forward the contrast of the text on the screen. The LED throws a soft tone; I found it reasonably diffuse so that it allows for ease of reading, even in dark conditions.

When viewed from normal reading angles, I found no glare or reflection from the light.

KindleWidow gives it her stamp of approval.

The battery is accessed by swiveling the arm to the rear, then sliding back the cover. The cover can then be lifted to access the AA battery. Octovo indicates the battery will last a minimum of 25 hours.

The light also fits onto the Kindle DX, shown below. The lower part of the DX screen isn’t lit up quite as brightly as the area nearer the light, but I found it adequately lit for reading over the entire real estate of the DX screen.

How does the Octovo Kindle Light fit when your Kindle is in a cover? I found it most satisfying to use when holding the Kindle “naked”, but I also tried it successfully on several different covers.

It works, for example, with the Amazon Kindle case, as well as Octovo’s weave case and quilt cases…

…and with TuffLuv’s flip and book-style cases.

The light doesn’t have room to clasp when your Kindle is in a case that use a retention system that claims the Kindle’s upper edge (such as Speck’s DustJacket cover, shown below).

Summary: The Octovo Kindle Light is a beautifully designed, lightweight, and nicely finished Kindle light. It works well with Kindle 2, lighting up the entire display evenly with a diffuse, eye-friendly bath of light. It also fits on Kindle DX, although some might find the light not bright enough for lower parts of the DX display. Not available for original Kindles. The replaceable AA battery is a plus for convenience. It’s available for purchase at the end of March, and will retail for $29.99. The light will come in a protective pouch, which was not available for this pre-release review. Octovo also plans to make it available for Nook and Sony eReaders. Highly recommended.

Specifications
Light: LED
Battery: One AA battery (not included)
Battery life: 25 hours
Price: $29.99
Available: March 2010 through Amazon or from Octovo

Comments

We love packages here at KindleBoards headquarters, and this has beeen a good week for that. Thanks to Octovo for sending us a selection of their covers, sleeves, and their unique booklight.

Stay tuned for our photo reviews!

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M-Edge gave us our first look at its new Guardian case – a waterproof, floatable case. The Guardian case is really well-designed. The Kindle sits on a cradle of cross-braces, leaving air pockets beneath the Kindle – which accounts for the case’s ability to float even when loaded with the Kindle.

Four latches are used to securely close the hinged case. The latches are made of heavy-duty plastic and seem more than adequate in terms of sturdiness. In fact, the whole case has the feel that it’s made to take abuse.

The ingenious part of the Guardian is the flexible covering over the keyboard and controls. This is a “transparent polycarbonate” according to the M-Edge product engineer that I spoke with today. It lets you actually use your Kindle’s controls while it’s protected in the case. You can access all buttons and keys, except for the on/off switch. The 5-way controller is also usable in the case, although maneuvering it through the covering takes a little practice.

The cushioning, rugged plastic, and waterproof seals make this a heavy case compared to the other covers and sleeves in the M-Edge product line. That heft is worthwhile if you’re looking for peace of mind with your Kindle at the beach, the pool, the spa, or the bathtub. Hats off to M-Edge for applying creative and thoughtful design into this innovative eReader products.

Release date for the Guardian case for Kindle is set for spring 2010; pricing has not yet been announced. For more pictures and impressions, read here.

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The past couple of weeks I’ve been using the leather Kindle 2 flip case from Tuff-Luv. This well-built case is truly unique, with a built-in stand that folds out like an easel to hold the Kindle in upright position.

While I usually prefer to hold my Kindle, I found it a convenience to use the stand while reading at the dining room table with my morning coffee. It’s a nicely designed feature that adds little to the bulk of the cover.

The Kindle 2 is a precise fit in this well-made cover, and the tight, even stitching reflects an attention to quality workmanship and materials. You can see more pictures and commentary in our photo review here.

The Tuff-Luv Kindle 2 case is available from Amazon, in black or pink, for $39.

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If you’re handy with needle and thread, you can spruce up your Kindle 2 leather cover with a removable fabric cover.

KindleBoards member Sanveann has posted a photo tutorial, showing step-by-step how to create this decorative cover. With eleven clear photos, she walks through how to layout the material and have it fit precisely over your leather cover. The finished result is in the pictures below. Thanks, Sanveann!

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Shown on the right is the MaxGuard eReader Jacket for Amazon Kindle 2. This case is made of high-grade synthetic leather with a soft interior lining. The design of the case provides reassuring protection for your Kindle, while giving you unfettered access to the keyboard. A grip band on the outside of the cover makes for a handy and secure way of carrying the Kindle. See more on this product detail page.

The WaterGuard Waterproof Case for Kindle 2 protects your Kindle against water, dust, and dirt – while allowing you to operate the keypad and navigation buttons right through the transparent case. We have many readers who take their Kindles everywhere, including the beach and the bathtub – and this cover keeps your Kindle safely separated from those watery and sandy hazards.

An accessory bundle is also available, with both of the above: the Deluxe Kindle 2 Accessories Kit.

Trendy Digital has graciously agreed to give away Kindle 2 prizes to three lucky KindleBoards members! Enter here!

To see all of TrendyDigital’s Kindle accessories, click on the logo! Thanks, TrendyDigital.

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KindleBoards member tashab recently switched from her 3acp skin to a DecalGirl skin. She designed a beautiful custom skin, pictured here.

I’ve used DecalGirl skins for about three years, on my Zune players. I’ve peeled many a skin off of those players, and they come away beautifully – with zero residue.

That is not true for all skins, as Tasha found out.

When she peeled away the old skin from her Kindle, it left the awful residual sticky stuff shown in the photo below. Yuck! And this was after she had had the skin on for only a month.

Quality skins may cost a little more, but they are definitely the way to go. No messy clean-up with DecalGirl.

A cheaper skin leaves residue when the skin is peeled away.

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Among their leather covers is the Platform Jacket, which has a flip-over cover. It’s available in genuine or synthetic leather, with a pebbled or smooth finish, and with color choices of black, navy blue, cream, camel, mocha brown, saddle brown, grey, jade green, red, fuchsia, sapphire blue, and purple. (You can see M-edge’s complete line-up here.)

KindleBoards member kevin63 has posted a photo review of his platform jacket. Some excerpts:

The leather feels and smells great.  I like the padding underneath the leather.  The padding give plenty of “cushion” without making the cover too “bulky”.

The edging is sewn well with a white thread.  The contrasting white thread definitely shows up on the stitching, but doesn’t bother me.  I have seen in some of the threads that some don’t care for the contrasting stitching, but it doesn’t bother me.

There is one large pocket in the top part of the cover with a smaller, business card, size pocket.  It has a pen/pencil elastic holder in the part right above where the Kindle sits.  The bottom part of the cover has a small pocket space to allow for the M-edge light (when it comes back out for purchase). And then there is about one inch of space running along the left side that is covered in the purple leather.  This space will allow for the light when folded and provides a space to hold the cover while reading.  The platform has 2 purple leather straps on the bottom and 2 elastic straps covered with purple leather to hold the Kindle securely in place.

The top part of the cover flips over when opened.  I put the small strap into the tab when it is opened.  It’s comfortable to hold when reading.  I had the Amazon cover prior to getting his platform cover.  The Amazon cover did fold back nice and flat.  The M-edge is thicker when folded open.

Overall, I like the M-edge cover.  The leather and the padding is great.  I did like the “hinge” system in the Amazon cover, so I’m sure I’ll order the M-edge Prodigy model somewhere down the road, but till then I’m happy with the Platform model.

You can see more pictures and member comments here, or check out the jackets on this Amazon page.

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This case is available in a 9-inch by 12-inch size, which accommodates a Kindle 1 or Kindle 2 with room to spare. In fact, there’s room for your Kindle 2 along with its Amazon leather case.

As eneisch reports, “the plastic is pretty thick and is very clear.  It is much clearer than a ziploc bag (which is what I used before I got this).”

“The pak uses a secure reusable sealing system that is unlike a ziploc bag.  There are four black “switches” on the face that when rotated press the rubber of the seals together with enough tightness that it keeps water out.  Flipping the switches back releases the seal.”

See more pictures and member comments in this review thread. The case is available from Amazon for $10.88.

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