Griffin iPad 2 Accessories Roundup

Elan Passport

We wrote a hands-on review of the Elan passport more than a year ago and while the case wasn’t our favorite case ever, what you do get is a nicely styled and functional iPad case. Do note that the review was for the first generation iPad and since then Griffin has brought to market their second version designed exclusively for the iPad 2. The new version sports a faux-leather outside, and a soft microsuede interior with an interior pocket and room for credit cards. The whole ordeal is kept closed with a tab so there are no metal parts to damage your iPad. This case would be well suited for a frequent traveler or businessman. It retails for $49.99 at Griffin’s online store and comes in red, brown, black, and tan.

IntelliCase

You can think of the Griffin IntelliCase as Apple’s Smart Cover version 2. The smart cover brought some very cool innovations to the iPad, but the major complaint was that it left the back completely unprotected. The Griffin IntelliCase seeks to remedy this complaint by encasing the iPad 2 in a polycarbonate and TPU sheath. The rear sports hard polycarbonate plastic making it the perfect material to protect the soft aluminum back. The front sports the same three way folding mechanism that made the smart cover so innovative. Finally, the inside is done up in microsuede to help keep your iPad’s screen scratch and scuff free. Like the smart cover, the Griffin IntelliCase contains magnets that work with the iPad’s 2 wake/sleep function. It retails for $59.99 at Griffin’s store and comes in black, black, and black (Henry Ford would be proud).

Survivor

We here at iPad Accessories love Otterboxes build quality and robustness, but we also like competition. We were excited to hear that another company finally had the courage to compete directly with them in the hardcore iPad protection market. Griffin recently unveiled the Survivor, a military spec iPad case available in black or pink. The Survivor meets or exceeds environmental testing for blown dust, blown rain, grit, vibration, shock, temperatures, and humidity. If you’re planning a trip to the jungle, even if it is the urban jungle, make no mistake and wrap your iPad 2 in a protective case designed to last a lifetime. It is available on the Griffin website for $79.99. Be sure to check out their full webpage on the testing and design that went into the Survivor here.

Crayola ColorStudio HD

Griffin partnered with Crayola to bring you the Crayola ColorStudio HD. It marries the power of the iPad’s touchscreen with the creative coloring of Crayola to bring your children endless hours of entertainment with no mess, and no clean-up! The secret is the iMarker, a stylus designed to work with the iPad’s touchscreen and yet styled to feel like a marker. The iMarker, coupled with the ColorStudio HD app transforms your iPad 2 into a coloring book with unlimited pages. Share your child’s masterpiece over Facebook or email. You can also print the pages to post on your refrigerator! The Crayola ColorStudio HD retails for a cool $29.99. Not bad for endless fun.

Helo-TC Touch Controlled Helicopter

Griffin created another great toy for the kids, or the kids-at-heart adults called the Helo TC Helicopter. This action packed helicopter is flyable with the downloadable Helo TC App and comes with a Flight Deck that plugs into your compatible iOS devices headphone plug. The helicopter is controllable with either the on-screen joysticks or the tilt to steer function. The app includes the ability to record and save 3 flight plans to repeat whatever crazy stunts you can dream up. Finally for those of us who are coordination impaired (myself included) there is an auto-land button that takes care of the finer details of landing the helicopter. All in all, this is a cool high tech toy suitable for any age. It retails for $49.99 at Griffin.

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