Obviously, case preferences are very personal, but you may be able to save some money with Palm’s included flip-cover.

When I purchased my Palm Tungsten T3, I also purchased along with it a Palm “Hard Case” thinking that I would definitely need something to protect the $400 investment I just made. After having used several cases of different types on many Palm and Sony Clie PDA’s, Palm’s “Hard Case” was my first choice. I was very happy with Palm’s “Hard Case” for my old Pam Vx, so this had to be a great case, right?

I couldn’t have been more wrong! Yes, I needed some protection, but this case made my T3 huge. It certainly wasn’t comfortably “pocketable” other than in baggy pants or in a jacket pocket. In addition, I was very disappinted with the construction. Compared to my Palm Vx’s hard case, this thing was a joke. The brushed “metal” look was nothing more than not-so-tough plastic. My Palm Vx’s hard case at least had brushed metal plating on the outside. And the entire case flexed too much for my comfort. And what about the fact that the T3 has a slider? Basically, I had to remove it from the case for the slider to be effective. Excuse me, but that’s not efficient when trying to quicky jot a note, etc.

OK, don’t get me wrong…it isn’t a bad case–I was just very disappointed with my high expectations.

So, what to do? Well, I decided to just install Palm’s “Flip cover” that is included with the T3. It reminds me of the flip-cover on my wife’s Sony Clie SJ20. It’s functionsl, it looks good, and it affords the protection I need. I can comfortably “front-pocket” my T3 and not worry about the screen getting damaged. No, it’s not a perfect solution, but it does afford nice protection. Besides, it comes free with the T3!

So, is there a better solution out there? Maybe, and I’ll keep looking, but until I find something better, I’ll stick with the include flip-cover and just be happy!