Review: Griffin SiliSkins for iPod shuffle

Since the iPod shuffle hit the market in January, there have been quite a few cases. Some people believe that the iPod shuffle should stay naked, more than any other iPod. Besides, it doesn’t have a screen to scratch, is plain plastic instead of the glossier, polished plastic found on the big iPods, and doesn’t cost as much, so you won’t feel bad if there’s a scratch.

Well, $100 is still a lot to spend on just about anything, and the iPod shuffle looks good, despite being received negatively by some iPod “experts”. For those who want to protect their shuffle, there’s all sorts of options, but the SiliSkins, the newest entry from Griffin might be a new take on a seemingly tired idea.

SiliSkin + iPod shuffle

SiliSkins

An alternate use for SiliSkins?

At $20 for a pack of three, they’re certainly cheaper than some of the other products on the market, but also get to the core of the flexible-case-for-shuffles idea. Rather than include a whole bunch of extra features, like an assortment of clips, a special lanyard, or just excess junk, they protect the shuffle from scratches and allow you to personalize it. There’s not even any symbols or writing embossed in the cases.

Each pack contains a clear one, a blue one, and a pink one. All of the SiliSkins are frosted and look good. They consist of two parts—a cover for the shuffle itself, and then a cover for the USB cap. You can still use the Apple-supplied lanyard cap, but it won’t have any protection. We would’ve liked to see a loop to run a keychain through it, like many flash drives on the market.

Also worth noting is that while the front controls are protected, the back ones are exposed with an opening. Although the chance of having the power switch scratched is present, we’d rather have something that allows easy access to it. The headphone jack is also exposed (obviously), and there’s a hole in the SiliSkins big enough to accept most third-party headphones, as well as the Apple-supplied earbuds.

After tugging on the cases and putting them on and off the shuffles, they not only retained their shape, but didn’t show any damage. They can be cleaned like any other silicone iPod case, with some soap and water, but no solvents.

Judged in totality, the SiliSkins work well, and although they feature a design similar to many other products, the quality of the silicone is higher, they have a good mix of accessibility and protection, and fairly low price. If you can live with the exposed switch on the back, and don’t use the lanyard much, these might be the ideal inexpensive iPod shuffle case.