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Well, okay, the only thing that is truly rock solid is, ahem, a rock, but Proporta’s Crystal Case is quite durable and strong in my view. Read on for more information.

Palm Discovery gives a BIG THANKS to Katrina of Proporta for providing the product for this review.

Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Proporta and purchases made from the affiliate links provided in this posting as well as on this site will help keep Palm Discovery running and pay for other associated costs. Thanks to everyone for their support! Please check out our Proporta affiliate store here. Use coupon DISCOVER for an additonal 10% savings!

Here are some pictures as well as a video of Proporta’s Crystal Case.

Click on the thumbnail images for a bigger picture

Video of Proporta Crystal Case

video at YouTube

Alternative link: Vimeo

Since I didn’t demonstrate how to open the case, I’ve decided to make another video demonstrating how it’s done.

Video of opening the case

Video at YouTube

Alternative link: Vimeo

Before I begin with this review, I want to make it clear (pardon the pun) that I have not previously reviewed ANY crystal cases before so my opinion of it is strictly based on what I observe with this particular crystal case from Proporta. Thus, I can not compare this particular crystal case with any other in terms of durability, feel, etc. So please keep this in mind when reading this review as well as my possible conflict of interest since I am an affiliate. Again, these are my opinions and based on my experience with the product (and I do tend to baby my accessories anyway). With those out of the way, I’ll continue on with the review.

I was quite impressed with this crystal case even when I first saw it in the package from Proporta. The case was nicely wrapped in a plastic covering to protect it from scratches and also inside a box. The case itself is made up of two plastic parts, one for the front and one for the back. Very much like plastic models, you simply snap the two pieces together with the Treo device inside and you’ve got the case enclosing and protecting your Treo device. There is a catch or tab located at the left side (or the Treo’s right side) where you push inwards until the top part of the case is loosened enough so that you can separate the two parts. I normally press a bit on that tab so that I can see the two parts are separating and then flip the case upside down. At that point the front part of the case will easily separate. I think that a lot of people who complain that their crystal cases are easy to break may be trying to pry it apart which may break the side hinges. But again, since this is the only crystal case I’ve reviewed, I am not entirely sure how different other crystal cases may be compared to this one or how they use it. I can only provide you with my handling of the case. Mind you, I try to take good care of all products so you won’t find any interesting “durability tests” in any of my review.

Unlike many other leather or hard cases where you may need to remove it from time to time, you are expected to have the case with the Treo practically all the time, with the exceptions when you need to open it up to get access to parts that you normally can’t. Such cases would include getting at the SIM card tray on the Treo 650, or doing a soft reset or swapping out the battery. Otherwise, there isn’t any reason to open it up since practically most of the Treo can be accessible when it’s inside the crystal case. With the case being so clear and transparent, you hardly know or notice that it’s there. Charging or hotsync with the Treo shouldn’t be a problem since you can easily access the connector ports.

The case at the front has a flip open lid that protects the screen when not in use that you can snap into place or obviously flip open if you need to access the screen. You have full access to the hardware and QWERTY keys at all times which can be a plus (full unobstructed access to keys) or minus (unprotected keypad from accidental button pressing) depending on your point of view. There are cut outs for the side and volume buttons, camera and mirror, speaker, stylus, bottom connector ports and microphone, SD card slot, infrared port and ringer switch. As well, there is an SD card holder at the back of the case to hold one SD card so that you have a place to hold that extra SD card that most of us may have. If you have the case with the removable belt clip, you will likely need to remove the screw from the back first before you can fit the SD card in. You may need to be a bit careful when inserting the card in the holder since the screw area is slightly raised and you will need to slide in the card into the holder. Once the card is inserted in the holder, it fits quite securely in place.

Again as I’ve noted, there is a tab or snap in catch located on the left side of the case (or the Treo’s right side) where you need to push inwards to help separate the front part from the back. Then flip the case upside down and you will easily find that the front part has fallen or separated from the other part. The snap seems quite sturdy from the frequent opening and closing of the case (I’ve been removing and re-inserting the Treo into the case quite often of late due to various reviews, etc so let’s just say the case has experienced enough times of being opened and closed. So far, it’s held up pretty well.

Here are my observations. The plastic is indeed quite sturdy and strong. I have tried to give it a good squeeze to feel how much resistance it can take and it holds up quite well. One thing to note that I’ve already indicated in my video review is that at the top left corner of the case near the antenna, there is a gap between the front and back part of the case that no matter how hard I try, I can’t get them to snap together. The case itself holds up very well since the side hinges on the right as well as the snap catch on the left does a very good job of keeping the case snapped shut. You won’t have to worry that the case will fall apart at the wrong moment even with this gap. Again, this may be only present in my particular case (pardon the pun) but it still holds up very well even with the gap.

Those who have watch many of my previous case reviews will know what I will say with regards to the belt clip. The removable screw and the clip will be similar to my experiences with many other removable swivel belt clips with a screw. I have not experienced any removable belt clip that requires a screw to be tightened at the back of the case that does not fail. What usually happens is that the screw will somehow (no matter how often I try to tighten it on the case) unscrew itself and one day, the case with the Treo with the loosened screw will fall to the ground. That has happened to me on several occasions with various different belt clips that are similar in design. The fault is in the design of a screw that will eventually unscrew or loosen itself. I guess the other option is to super glue the screw in so that it won’t fall out but then, the case isn’t so nice now that there’s a screw sticking out at the back. Sigh. I think one of the best designs is to have a very flat headed attachment that is permanently attached to the back of the case that doesn’t stick out too much similar to the plastic Prima Cases attachment on some of their cases. I think that will solve the problem and yet still work. You can still place the case with the attachment on a flat surface and it won’t topple over to one side or whatever.

The belt clip itself is pretty good. I love the hook at the end and it’s a spring clip so it grips the belt and pants quite okay. I would have preferred that there’s less gap between the clip and the back of the case so that the case won’t somewhat tip over or swivel somewhat as I’ve demonstrated in the video. If the back of the case and the clip are closer, there’s less chance of that happening. But that’s just a minor observation. Okay, enough on the belt clip. Most of you already know what I normally say about what I expect since I’ve stated it many times in various reviews about them.

The plastic lid over the screen can be quite nice and also a bit of a hindrance sometimes. It’s very nice that there is a good durable protection available for the screen and it can easily be flipped open if we need access to the screen. But, at times, having the lid obviously stops you from making that quick tap on the screen to, for example, dismiss an alarm that’s gone off. Now, you have to first flip open the lid before you can do it. For me, since I use Watchmaker, I need to tap on the screen since a button press won’t dismiss the alarm. Well, it will dismiss it, when the alarm has finished ringing which most times, can take a while. To me, even with this slight annoyance, I am quite happy with the lid.

There is somewhat of a slight adjustment I’d have to make when texting or typing with this crystal case. The case does come up over the edge of the Treo just enough so that when I’m trying to press down on the keys at the edge like the Q, A, Option, P, Backspace and Return that I may not necessarily press down on it when I try. This requires a bit of an adjustment on my part since my thumbs may not reach those keys when part of it is pressed on the edge of the crystal case. In order to adjust, I find that if I turn my thumbs outwards then there’s no problem. Again, this is a slight adjustment I have to make. I guess if the edges of the case in those keypad areas can be adjusted so that my thumb can rest level on the key and part of the Treo then it can be better.

Since this case is made of plastic, you will likely find that some dust or particles may stick to the case from time to time due to static cling (there’s no way to avoid that really) but it’s surprising that it’s not a “magnet” for dust or particle. Some things do stick, but it’s not as bad as other plastics or even silicone cases. That’s a good thing.

As well, with regards to the case being made of plastic, even though it’s made of “scratch resistant” plastic, you know that some time, or, more specifically, over time, you will find that the case will likely show scratches. I have not owned it long enough to experience it but I’m sure that it will come some time. If you dislike how some plastics can scratch and cause the white or blurry look, you may want to re-consider. Nothing lasts forever and maybe by the time the case does look blurry, you may want to consider upgrading to another Palm or handheld device. And the case is at a decent price so it won’t break your bank if you need to replace it with another, unlike a lot of other leather cases.

Here are some suggestions that may make the case even better. Again, these are my personal opinions and suggestions. A reset button/hole (why call it a button when it’s really a hole?) may be what a lot of Treo 650 owners (myself included) would like to have, especially if we have either purchases a battery cover with a reset hole or, like me, drilled our own reset hole in the battery cover. That way, we no longer have to open up the case to do the soft reset. Having the hole won’t interfere with those that don’t have a reset hole in the battery cover yet, still allow those with a reset hole to easily access the reset hole should we need to.

The other suggestion which I have already somewhat addressed is possibly cutting down on the edges of the case where the outer QWERTY keys are located so that the thumb or finger can rest on the key to make the accurate key press. Right now, the edge of the crystal case is somewhat higher than the keys so that when you rest the thumb or finger on the key that most of it touches the case and not the key. So when you try to press on the key, you aren’t actually pressing it with the normal area of your thumb and it seems awkward to do. I have found that the only way to make it easier for myself is to turn the thumb and hand outward since the normal area of contact is near the inside of the thumbs.

The final suggestion is to extend the top cutout of the crystal case to include the SIM card tray as well since some of us do tend to swap out our SIM cards and having that accessible means we don’t need to open up the case as often.

The case is made of polycarbonate plastic, the same material used for protective eyewear so you can be assured that it is quite durable and sturdy. As well, Proporta offers a lifetime guarantee on this case so this can be viewed as an assurance that Proporta backs up the quality of their products.

Overall, this is a quality plastic case that offers a very clean and clear way to display your case. This is one way you can truly see the Treo for its beauty (for those of us who like it that way especially if you have a nice looking skin on it) yet offer a decent protection again scratches and drops. I personally have not tried very hard to drop the Treo with the case so I’m not sure how well it can dissipate the shock of a drop without some kind of cushioning that many other hard cases offer but as for protection, the material seems quite durable. It is thick enough to provide good protection but not too thick that it adds too much bulk to the case. I do like the plastic protective lid on the screen area and again, sometimes I forget about it being there, especially when I try to tap on the screen only to remember that I didn’t open the lid. Most of the Treo is easily accessible through cutouts and the SD card holder at the back is an added plus. The case is smooth to the touch but not slippery so I feel confident that I have a good grip of the case. That’s important for me. This is one case that I will personally add as another that I personally like but again, I’ve always been quite fond of hard cases anyway.

If you’re interested in this Proporta Crystal Case for the Treo 650, please consider checking it out at my Proporta affiliate store. Use coupon code DISCOVER for 10% off your purchase.

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