We’ve reached that time of year when your football team is either out of the playoffs or about to be out of the playoffs. This means we’ve also reached that time of year when it’s more important than ever to show your dedication. I can’t think of a better way to do so than with your computer equipment, and I can’t think of a better place to go than SkinIt.com.
Now, let’s first establish that SkinIt offers a tremendous number of skin designs beyond football (or sports, for that matter). They also offer skins for a variety of devices that extends well beyond the Apple products covered here. Gaming devices, phones, digital picture frames…choose your device. If it’s not there, you bought the wrong equipment.
Here, I’m focusing solely on a few of their Apple offerings: the MacBook, iPhone 3G and iPod classic. I’m also focusing on their sports designs; specifically the NFL and NHL. At their site, you can select your skin by design or by device. You can even create your own skin, but we’ll save that for another review.
Selecting a skin is a fairly simple process, although backing out of a specific device or design is unwieldy. Also note that not all designs are available for all devices. None of the NFL designs are available for the iPhone, for example (licensing deal with Sprint, don’t you know).
The designs for each team are smiliar, with only colors and logos separating them. Some are slightly outdated (one of the Minnesota Wild designs, for example, is based on a home jersey that’s no longer used), but sports fans should be satisfied with the options available.
So, you’ve picked your design and device, it has arrived, and you’re ready to apply the skin. The good news is that this is not too difficult, depending upon your device, and there is some room for error. If you don’t get the placement right the first time, simply pull the skin back up and apply it again. I didn’t have to do this much, so I can’t weigh in on how many times you can reapply before it starts to stretch or lose its “sticky.”
Obviously, applying my Seahawks skin to my MacBook was the easiest. SkinIt was smart enough to cut out the Apple logo, so I used that as my starting point. Center the skin around the Apple, then just press outwards from there. The skin looks fantastic, fitting nicely and sporting deep, rich colors (much more vivid than what my wife’s iPhone was able to capture in these photos, sorry).
It’s been durable against scratches, but it’s not like I’ve taken a key to the skin for testing. I have had bubble issues with the MacBook that won’t go away, but SkinIt will tell you to either lift the skin and reapply to lose the bubbles, or (as a last resort) pop them with a pin.
Now, applying the skins to the iPhone 3G and iPod classic was a bit more involved, but still not too difficult. For the iPhone, I used the camera opening as my starting point, then worked my way down. I did have to lift and reapply a couple times to get the alignment angle right, but when I did, the fit was absolutely perfect. I can’t believe how closely it hugs the chrome accent and buttons/openings on the phone. There are some crinkles in the corner that won’t go away, but they’re not that bothersome.
With the iPod classic, I started on the bottom and worked up. Easy, and again, a perfect fit.
Both devices offer front skins as well. The iPhone’s are just color accents to be placed above and below the touch screen. If you choose to use these, note that if you’re already using a full size screen protector, the bottom accent will create noticeable lift around the home button. Best to find a screen protector that covers the screen only, as opposed to the entire front of the iPhone.
The iPod front skins are more useful, bringing the back design over and placing the logo over the click wheel. Getting the skin framed around the screen was tougher, as it bends easily, and reapplying can easily stretch it. Be careful there. The center click button and click wheel pieces are easier, and having the skin on top of the click wheel didn’t noticeably affect its sensitivity.
Although the skins are great for protecting the devices against scratches and scuffs, they won’t help if you drop your iPod or iPhone. Thankfully, they’re so thin that you can still place them in belt clips or even some other cases, if you prefer.
Does it seem like a waste to in effect by two cases? Then you’re missing the point of these products. The focus is on individuality, and letting the world know where your allegiances lie, be they with a specific sports franchise, with a particular model, band or religion, or even with Teams Edward or Jacob. Whatever. Consider them tattoos for your electronic devices, albeit without the pain and ultimate embarrassment and regret.
Well, again, depending upon the team you choose. Uh…go Seahawks?!
Late last year. pods had fallen into a rut: the features were stale, the form factor of the flagship device basically stopped progressing, and it started to seem like Apple didn't care or understand where portable media players were headed — or at least didn't seem to realize what such devices were capable of.
You can always get a clear plastic protective case from the apple store or elsewhere to protect against dropping it, and still be able to see the cool skin you have underneath!
get the best of both worlds.
i’ve got skin Apple Jam
ap-jam.com
on imac and on macbook
looks good. $15 for lakers skin for iphone4. costs less than I thought.