cases

That loud creaking noise you hear is the sound of enormous floodgates opening: The era of the iPhone accessory has arrived.

Not even a full day has passed since we mentioned that the first cases for the iPhone were on the market, and already two more are supposedly rushing our way from an outfit called BeyzaCases. Gear Diary says these models come in leather and a lot more colors than the first batch.

Now can we please see the phone before we get any more accessories?

It's depressing, but the steady growth of asthma sufferers worldwide has given rise to more everyday products to deal with the disease. A few months ago, for example, we even saw a snorkel made for those with the affliction. Now, taking some design (and marketing) cues from the gadget world, a U.K. creative team has come up with the "Apod," a line of cases for the pocket inhalers used by those with the chronic respiratory ailment. The brightly colored Apods could prove especially important in de-stigmatizing the inhalers because so many asthma sufferers are children.

This is one of those accessories that made me think, "Wow, I'm surprised nobody came up with this before." The Bevy case for the iPod Shuffle, manufactured by Mophie, is a key ring that holds your itty bitty music player, lets you neatly wrap your earbud cord around it when you're not listening in, and throws in a bottle opener for good measure. Yes, a bottle opener.

It's actually the product of a design competition that took place at Macworld earlier this year.

Personally, I think attaching the Shuffle to a set of keys is … Read more

In all likelihood, there are far fewer than six degrees of separation between you and breast cancer, and the idea of breast cancer awareness through gadgets is not a new one. So why not support a good cause through consumerism? Belkin's new Nano cases provide yet another opportunity for doing so, with 10 percent of the proceeds benefiting Susan G. Komen for the Cure. (Belkin is promising a minimum $100,000 donation.) One eligible cases is the "Hope" Remix Metal for iPod nano ($29.99), which is constructed of durable acrylic and brushed pink metal and features … Read more

Well, it's about time. It's been nearly five months since Emperor Jobs anointed the iPhone, and only now are we seeing its first cases.

After all, it took only about 5 minutes for a Bluetooth headset to come out. Such is the perverse order of events in the world of high tech, where accessories can often precede the star attraction. But we digress.

EBcases has released two new lines, the eNovo iPhone Clip and the eCopilot, according to Textually.org and iPhoneFreak. The Copilot is offered only in "Rouge," but the eNovo case comes in a … Read more

As Spider-Man fans eagerly await the next movie (please don't make Venom lame), we hear Sony Ericsson will sling out some Spidey-enhanced handsets soon.

The K800i, the K750i, K550i, and the K610i will be getting new suits. And don't worry about scratching your phone when you're web-slinging because these special-edition phones come with a carrying case and a wrist strap. Reportedly, there will also be exclusive Spider-Man wallpapers and screensavers preloaded on the phones.

No word on when these are expected to be available, but it shouldn't be too far as the movie's only a … Read more

As much as we appreciate the aesthetics of natural wood finishes when done well, the idea doesn't always work for all things technological, especially the iPod. But sometimes, concepts work best when they're integrated less with the design of the core product.

Miniot's "iWood" line, for example, borrows from some retro designs we've seen recently to create a cigarette-style case for Apple's media players made of various hardwoods. The sylvan look is available in maple, walnut, mahogany, cherry and oak, Red Ferret says, for 75 to 175 euros (about $102 to $237). We'… Read more

Crave has a long-standing tradition of ranting against useless or ugly "special editions," but rarely have we seen one just for a product's case. But when you're a company like WANT Les Essentiels De La Vi, we suppose, you can pretty much do whatever you want.

The international purveyor of luxury goods has proven that point with its limited-edition "Narita" iPod case, a handcrafted work of Italian leather that Popgadgets says weighs more than the media player itself. Never mind that it's not exactly the most practical item, as you need to open … Read more

I don't know about you, but sometimes I carry way too much stuff in my pockets. On any given day I'll have a cell phone, an iPod, a memory stick, a pen, my wallet, a pack of gum, and some keys, all taking up space in my pants.

I suppose I could just simplify, or carry a bag around, but the folks at ThinkGeek have another idea. They want us gadget lovers to think about how Han Solo would handle this problem. I reckon he would strap on the Gadget Hip Holster because "whether you're making … Read more