Even now, a year after its release, SwitchEasy’s Canvas remains one of only a handful of cases for the iPad 2 to earn a high recommendation. It was a big improvement over the original, which shared a name and not much else. Not content to stop there, the company has released its third iteration of Canvas ($50), now compatible with both the iPad 2 and the third-generation iPad. Although it looks similar to its immediate predecessor at first glance, SwitchEasy made some real improvements that elevate the value of this already great case even higher.
This folio-style case uses the same combination of an edge-to-edge hard plastic shell and reinforced canvas fabric as the prior version, offering access to all the buttons and ports without leaving any more of the tablet exposed than it needs to.
As before, we really like these materials, the build quality is high, and the color selection is nice too: brown, black, grey, and red versions are available. Included with the case are a sheet of screen protector film, polishing cloth, bubble removing card, and a pair each of plastic headphone and Dock Connector port protectors. The set is just what we’ve come to except from SwitchEasy.
Gone is the latch to hold the lid shut, one of the few aspects of the case we suggested be altered. It’s been replaced by strong magnets that hold the cover in place surprisingly well, and also automatically lock and unlock either generation of the tablet. We did receive early review units that failed to compensate for the reversed polarity of the sensors in the new iPad, but subsequent cases have shown it to be fixed.
SwitchEasy acknowledged that a small number of the faulty units made it into customers’ hands, and has offered to replace them with no questions asked.
This new Canvas also has a refined stand mechanism. Instead of just three ridges, it now offers a wide array of angles thanks to hard plastic feet along the left edge of the shell and a textured fabric lining inside the cover. We liked the range, although the typing angle is just a bit higher than we prefer. Our only other recommendation for improving the case was stronger Velcro connecting the shell to the body, and that was taken care of too.
SwitchEasy has really impressed us with its track record when it comes to Canvas. Each successive generation has shown significant improvement, with this current model fixing every small issue we noted and improving other features as well.
