We Don't Make the Rules

It's one thing to come up with an idea. It is totally something else to make it real.

Nutshell's elegant leather Smartphone Folder/Holder
holds Phones plus HD accessories

This is a sneak-peek at a development based on the Walnut, our all-in-one combination phone wallet/credit-card/note carrier covered in genuine leather with a protective phone platform built right in.

But we don't make the rules. You do.
And sometimes you tell us what you want and give us another idea.
Like this.

So - unlike the Walnut this folder has nothing inside...except for not one but two protective phone platforms and a lining that accepts a pad and lets you place the phone/accessory combination inside the folder which ever way works best - for you.

With a platform size of 5 1/2" tall x 3" wide this folder will hold an amazing number of current Smartphones.  And because we have deliberately made the folder with a generous 1" spine, it will easily fold over and close on a heavy duty and large sized accessory -  like a battery or rugged protection cover - no problems at all.

 

Take a look at our Picasa images on the project.

Tell us what you think.
Better still, tell us you want one.

This little beauty will retail for USD$39.95.
We consider that's an attractive MSRP - for a slice of genuine leather and some sharp Kiwi protective innovation. And we'll sharpen the pencil.

We have given it an internal SKU: WN53750.
But that's not really a name - is it? 
So...what on earth are we going to call it?
Any ideas?

A Mobile Game of Swings and Roundabouts

Welcome to 2012.

There is nothing as scary as an industry caught in the grip of innovative improvements.

That, in a Nutshell, is the mobile phone industry; an industry that is relentlessly devoted to continual improvement, innovation and the adoption of the latest in form factors and presentation techniques.

In the past twelve years we have watched as technologies have merged and blurred the lines between mobile phones and hand held computers.

The iPhone has a lot to answer for; Steve Jobs and his visions guided (some would say led by the nose) the industry through yet another set of birthing pangs and entranced users with advanced technologies that swiftly became 'old hat' as their replacements and upgrades roll out on a regular basis. A schedule that will never cease to amaze, astound and, sometimes even bewilder the user.

And as the technologies embodied in today's latest mobile devices get smarter, faster and lighter, thinner and 'bigger' (in storage terms) the physical attributes of phones continues to alter. Where once handheld devices were almost 'brick' sized, today's latest devices are fast becoming wafer thin, yet embody developments that many would have considered impossible only a few short years ago.

Moore's Law dictates that processing power doubles every 18 months, and the mobile phone industry is an embodiment of this; there are no signs of slow-down, and none of any zenith or pinnacle being reached any time soon.

And just as the horsepower inside continues to relentlessly increase processing power, network inter-connectivity and storage, external formats continue to change and morph; where once device designers were intent on making their creations as small as possible, it would appear that the pendulum has once again swung in favour of larger displays, resulting in larger overall dimensions. Although thinner than their predecessors, new phones have grown to emulate their ancestors' overall larger physical properties.

Of course this would throw a lesser manufacturer of cases into a tizz of indecision. But not Nutshell; as a company that has developed along with the industry we serve, we have already crafted larger format cases for earlier generations of handhelds and mobile phones. These cases, which we once thought would never again see the light of day, are being dusted off and re-presented to accommodate the next generations of smartphones.

It really is a game of swings and roundabouts.

New iPhone 4G case now shipping

Our customers are the best!

And definitely very proactive.

Even before the new iPhone 4G hit the streets we were getting orders for a case to protect it. Obviously this is proof positive folk want to be able to protect their devices from day one.

At Nutshell we have gotten pretty good at 'guesstimating' sizes based on the manufacturer's published dimensions.

As these images show, we have once again 'guesstimated' correctly.

The new iPhone 4G fits into the new case - like a glove.

Why did we have to create a new case, I hear you ask?

Simply because iPhone has again set a new benchmark; this time for thin-ness. Unlike all other models on the market the new phone is less than ten millimeters thick, which means our existing cases were just too 'fat' to correctly accommodate this new device.

Obviously new battery technologies and new ways of shrinking components mean that, without a doubt, we are going to be seeing many more thin phones (under ten millimeters) in the marketplace.

So Nutshell has to (once again) lead the way in developing protection that fits and our earlier cases, which are now too 'fat', will find a use as cases to accommodate the array of new protective covers that you just know are on their way.

The iPhone 4G is just one new phone that has caused us to redesign; the new HTC Evo 4G also has its own unique form factor. While it is as wide as an iPhone it is taller than the iPhone...resulting in our sale of a couple of cases that were too 'sloppy' to fit properly. Once again, back to the drawing board.

Both cases are now in production and we feel our response has been as positive and proactive as we can be to meet the challenges thrown up in an industry that keeps on changing sizes every time they bring out a new phone.

That's progress, and over the years we have learnt to live with it.

But while we may make nasty noises about the changing times we live in, we offer sincere thanks to our customers, who put up with our failings and know that, eventually, we always get it right.

Here's to you guys. You are the BEST!