New Case Mate Leather Case Holster for BlackBerry

This review is of the Casemate Signature Combo cases. My particular application is for the Bold 9700. I have looked at least ten different case and holster combinations for my Blackberry. Each one of them had part of what I was looking for, but each one of them also had a deal breaker that lead to my returning the item for a refund. When I followed a link to Casemate my search ended. As may be said of a lot of case choices out there, this one claims to give the best of all possible worlds as far as versatility of use. It also has the comfortable feel of leather in a highly protective and snug fitting one piece case. It is important for me that my phone case offers a secure feeling when I reach for it, since I tend to be all thumbs as far as grabbing hold of my phone to use. This is true if it is in a regular case with a flap like the one included with Blackberries, or if it is simply sitting on a table. And Blackberries are not the cheapest phone out there if they are damaged in a “drop”. This is the one reason I have opted for a case for the phone with a separate holster. If a belt clip is part of the case, it is a deal breaker. If the case pops apart on impact, it is also a deal breaker. The Casemate Signature combo case consists of two main parts: a one piece wrap around case for the actual phone, and a holster to hold it via a belt clip. Both of these are covered in leather- not a cheaper leather appearing substance, as some cases I looked at on my way to Casemate, but a covering of real Napa leather. The case portion starts with a plastic wrap around cover that is then wrapped in leather so the exposed parts are leather. This is a single piece case, not a two section deal that might pop apart if dropped, or that may not fit completely snug when you snap it together or one that comes apart in everyday use. Many of the other cases I looked at were like that, and they felt as cheap as they looked. The Blackberry fits snuggly into the top of the Casemate case. It allows full function from keyboard to power/ charge cord to the camera. Note that the case would have to be removed to fit a base charger and would not fit over an adapted case back for other types of charging systems. Because the holster is totally separate, you do not have any clips directly attached to the case as I have seen in other cases I ruled out on the way to this choice. This means the case allows the phone to sit flat on a table and then easily be put into the holster for travel. Or, you can simply put it into a pocket. Clipped on and with the case/phone in, the clip allows the holster to swivel a full 360 degrees with very solid feeling “stops” so you can position the phone in a more comfortable position if seated in a car for example. Speaking of the holster, this unit does allow for the separate Blackberry “in holster” ringer options- at least in the Bold model. For the magnet controlled function to work, the phone has to be inserted into the holster with the keypad towards you. This is fine anyway because it also provides maximum protection to the phone. It is also possible to put the phone into the holster with the keyboard facing out, but in this configuration the “in holster” functions will not work. The holster, at least on my version, has the one thing about this that I dislike. Casemate recommends of course that the phone should be placed in the holster with the keyboard in. The fit into the holster in this configuration is not as good as it could be. The case/phone combination feels a bit loose, like it could be bumped out. I should qualify this with a couple of points. First, my phone has not fallen out of its case in the first couple of months of normal use so this may be a needless concern. And if my case/phone combo did fall out of the holster I would feel better about its chances with this case than others I have tried. And not all cases for Blackberries may fit their holsters the same way the Bold does. It is a bit odd though that if I turn the blackberry around so the keyboard faces out, the fit of the bottom of the case matches the bottom clip of the holster perfectly. All in all, this is the best case solution for my Blackberry that I have seen, and even with the loose feel of the case in the holster, I would recommend it. Casemate also includes a single display protector and a cleaning cloth.