Trexta
Orla Kiely Snap on Cover in Multi-Stem for iPhone 4/4Strexta.com Price: $39.95
It's refreshing to see fabric in the world of plastic and rubber iPhone cases. Check out Trexta's Orla Kiely Snap-on Cover. Its innovative Mould Fabric Application technology means it appears fabric-like in texture, yet it protects your iPhone with a thin, exterior plastic shell. Soft to the touch, the interior of the case is a cozy dress for your iPhone. Do not miss the great textile patterns of these Orla Kiely designs!
Saddleback Leather Co
iPad Case Dark Coffee Brown
saddlebackleather.com Price: $104
There is a growing market for leather goods in the Apple Accessories line up. A lot of leather iPad cases I've seen have been pretty but not overly functional. The Saddleback leather company takes protecting the iPad very seriously. Instead of a thin piece of leather, you get a case made out of thick full-grain boot leather. It also features pigskin lining which is tougher than any leather material available. This heavy-duty material is stitched up with an equally durable marine grade thread. The Saddleback leather company is so sure of its product, it comes with a 100 year warranty. That's something you don't see everyday in the world of high-turnover techie gadgetry! The iPad Case also features a fold over stand for secure watching, surfing and typing in horizontal mode. Protect your iPad with some of nature’s toughest materials.
Melissa BethRocker Bag
melissabeth.com $169
Melissa Beth designs a range of bold and fashionable bags for the stylishly attentive woman. Studded with metal details, The Rocker Bag is true to rock culture in quality leather form. The bag features a practical, cross-body strap for hands-free portability. You want to carry your Rocker bag in hand? There are comfortable handles as well. This bag is available in colors like purple and navy that you don't normally find in a line of leather goods.
Rocker Bag Features:
-Genuine Leather
-Contrast inside lining
-Easy-to-reach outer pockets
-Thin sleek design
-Metal grommet detail
-Wear cross body (hands-free) or over-the-shoulder
-Adjustable and removable shoulder strap
iFrogz
Vertex with Micifrogz.com Price: $49.99
The Vertex is the latest of iFrogz comfortable and stylish over-ear headphones. They are lightweight, so you hardly notice them on your ears during long midday jam sessions! Touches of contrasting color - tones of red on the black set, and touches of white on the iron headset - add to their visual appeal. With the convenient in-line mic, you don't have to miss calls or switch from headset to phone in a frantic and awkward flare of panic! Use them with any media device that has a 3.5mm jack.
Colsen Keane
15" MacBook Pro Sheath with Bucklecolsenkeane.com
Price: $135
From the very first contact I had with Colsen Keane to the Tumblr blog they share on their website, it is apparent the people behind Colsen Keane are artisans that embody a greater practical consciousness in running their business. Product-wise, take a look at their MacBook Pro leather sheaths available for all size MacBooks. The attention to detail in construction including the vintage buckles tell me that these sheaths will hold value the duration of their product lifetime. A company that offers us that much more transparency welcomes us in; with other companies, I often feel taken simply for my money without the company's concern for much of anything else. In purchasing one of Colsen Keane's products, you can feel good about who you are supporting financially and come away with a fantastic product. You already have a MacBook and, thus, taste for quality products: invest in an artisanal bag made by people, good people.
MacCase
Flight Jackets mac-case.com Price: from $189.95
MacCase carries an extensive line of accessories and protective gear for your Apple products. They even carry keyboard covers for your MacBook Pro! So, within their arsenal of protective and portable gear, they offer variety. One of their unique products is the rugged, leather Flight Jacket for your Mac laptop. The Flight Jacket is the portable carrying case that is the next step up from your basic sleeve. It offers a detachable, square front pocket, perfect for fitting your AC adaptor. Don't need your power adapter? Take off the pocket, and the Flight Jacket still looks sleek and finished. One more lengthwise pocket offers space for the basics, your keys and wallet for example. One great option before you finalize your purchase is the backpack-straps option. This is just another way you can carry your laptop without the bulk of most bags. I personally prefer to carry the Flight Jacket in backpack mode. It takes the strain off my delicate hands! You can believe in the quality and portability of the MacCase Flight Jacket.
Knomo
MacBook Air Envelopeknomobags.com Price: $79.95
If you appreciate quality goods and craftsmanship, you will enjoy the Knomo Envelope for MacBook Air. This soft, genuine leather product is minimalist and elegant. It grabs your attention without the help of extraneous design features, the all-too-common "bells and whistles" of today's accessories. The soft leather exterior is matched by a smooth black velveteen interior. Two snap front closures keep your MacBook Air snug and secure in its leather case. Knomo's envelope transforms an already thin and light laptop into a comfortably portable machine, dressed in style.
Kempton & Darrow
Rough Night Deceiver Laptop Bagkemptondarrow.com Price: $425
Take a look at the picture of this bag, and you still can't understand its beauty. It is the smell, the look and feel of an amazing leather product. Combining a woman's need for both a laptop bag and a great purse, Kempton & Darrow designs are carving a place for laptops in the fashion world. The Rough Night Deceiver bag includes decorative metal rivets to keep it in trend with today's looks. The interior, padded laptop sleeve fits a 13" macbook, and it sits between two magnet-closure compartments on either side. There is plenty of room to fit your power cord and purse essentials. If you're already carrying two bags to and from work, the adjustment to one purse/laptop bag combo will be an easy and welcomed one. I will continue to observe Kempton & Darrow's line just as I peruse Gilt Groupe's featured fashion designers.
House of Marley
Exodus Headphones Price: $149.99/ Zion Earphones Price: $99.99
thehouseofmarley.com
Bob Marley became a musician of legendary status because he pushed himself further than most would dare. Not only was he determined and dedicated to his music he pondered the questions of humanity that so many of us are afraid to ask. The House of Marley is a Marley family-run company that embodies some of his best attributes. Their extensive line of audio equipment stands for: superior quality, eco-consciousness, and charity for the greater good.
As soon as I laid my eyes on the Exodus headphone set, I was smitten by its natural beauty. The strap is two-fold, one made of a fine, dark wood product, the other of sensual leather. The earpieces themselves are made of quality-recycled aluminum. Fabric is used instead of plastic for the cord, which translates to reduced cord tangle and refined, clear audio sound. These headphones were made for bass-heavy music, and I listened to the notes pour out of my playlist with depth and heart. Looking over the 3.5mm connector, I did notice the shine of its gold plating, another factor in its high-quality audio output. If you cannot carry a bulky set of headphones, their line of earbuds are a great option. I had the opportunity to test the Zion earphones, and did so comfortably, because of three sets of multi-sized silicone tips. I have small ear canals! Though they are earphones, not full headphones, The Zions produce incredible audio power and miss none of your full and rounded bass beats. As with the Exodus headphones, they include a gold-plated connector and fabric cord. The neodymium magnet adds to quality sound so you have musical integrity and harmony.
Remember One Love.
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Product images by MacTribe and respective companies.
More Apple
Normal Market Rules Do Not Apply to Apple
Clem Chambers
As we report on the Apple market position we are saddened by the news of the passing of Steve Jobs. As I write, Apple is bigger than Exxon. I promised to short Apple when this happened, but when sat on the edge of a general financial abyss shorting anything would probably be a great move. Historically, stocks like Apple do well even in market crashes and recessions. In the thirties, the radio stocks shone even while everyone sang "Buddy, could you spare me a dime?" The long expected news of Steve Jobs stepping down has not caused much of a setback for the stock, nor has the word that the new iPhone is an incremental revision. The share price is being roiled but it has bounced back much better than the rest of the market. Meanwhile, Apple is at war with Google and all the "me-too'ers" trying to steal Apple's crown. There may well be a patent war that is so large it could reshape world patent laws in its aftermath. As far as Apple stock price goes; the market seems oblivious to the retirement of the company's founding genius, Part II of the world economy's implosion and Apple's engagement in the mother of all legal battles. It only goes to show normal rules do not apply to Apple.
Apple Fall 2011
Bulls and bears have been fighting a war of attrition all year now. It is an oft seen cycle that consumer goods companies rally up to Christmas and then languish until the next winter season but this hasn’t been the Apple cycle of the past. Apple has rallied up to new product launch as rumours circulate about the next marvel to come from the company. This year’s price movements look parlous to anyone who cares to look at stock charts as a guide. No matter what the releases or news, the price is stuck in a rut and has now broken through the bottom of this six month channel. Charts are fickle guides; the bottom of a channel could be the turning point or the end.
However, as someone fairly in the bear camp, I see the failure of all the recent hoopla to break Apple out of its $25 range onwards to $400 a pretty negative sign. Will going to the cloud mean anything to the company’s legion of fans; only perhaps that ownership may become suddenly way more expensive as the user is a la carte-d to death. It doesn’t seem that the investors are following the cloud story; it might even be a let-down since there is no new wonderful object to buy and experience. Last year Apple broke out of a similar rut and shot $100 higher. As a bear I see it returning the way it came - to $250 a share. Even then Apple will be a mightily successful company, but with an army of me-too copiers on its tail, life is getting tougher.
Apple Market Report
Apple is still leagues ahead of its competition and it could simply be that now the market has had a look at the me-too emulators they are re-assured of Apple supremacy for quite some time.
I should be short of Apple now. I promised to go short when it became the biggest listed company in the US by valuation. For a moment there during the recent post S&P US downgrade crash, Apple was bigger than Exxon. Considering how the roof is collapsing on the market in general, shorting Apple now would be a brave and potentially highly profitable trade. However I haven’t and I won’t. The trick to trading overpriced stocks on the short side is to let them fall, waiting until the old bull trend is obviously broken. Then you can sit back for a couple of years and let them halve. But this isn’t where Apple is. Apple is still the most amazing corporation in America. It has huge product and business momentum and an army of zealots. This configuration can crush a “contrarian” under foot, even if that fellow is dead right in the long run. The old joke is you can’t afford to prove a crazy market wrong. It has much more money to lose than you. Of course, the better model is that the market is always right, while you aren’t. Thus, when you want to disagree with a stock price like Apple’s, going short will likely see you stomped. However, Apple is well down from its post results high, unsurprisingly considering recent market conditions. Can the Apple stock price remain bullish during the current crazy market? Unlikely. Even Apple can’t buck the whole market. Yet if the market does bounce, Apple seems highly likely to head up along with the general sentiment. Amongst all the craziness, a little more Apple stock price madness won’t cause any surprise.
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