• $35

• Strong protective inside lining
• High quality leather
• SD/MMC cards won't scratch Palm
• Zipper keeps all info inside w/o worry of loss

• Bulky
• Must remove Palm to HotSync
• Hard to remove Palm from case
• Zipper gets in the way of IR port

Design:
Cost/benefit:
Coolness:
Overall:

Once a local retailer started stocking the m500 series Zipped Leather Case, I went and picked one up, as I was worried about my new "toy".

Description
The case itself is made out of high quality leather, similar to the leather cases on previous Palm accessories. As is implied by the name, the case is held closed by a zipper, rather than a button or strap, which I believe is a mark of a higher quality case.

Inside, as with cases for the V series (and the stock m500 series flip cover), this case attaches itself to the Palm via the left-side mini-slot. Many people have mentioned that the actual stylus is hard to remove out of the right side; well, the same goes for the left. At least I know my m505 isn’t going to fall out "unexpectedly". This will prove to be a problem, which I’ll describe later.

Unzip the case and you’ll see that the Palm is locked into place on the right flap. On the left flap you’ll find an old-fashioned paper-based notepad at your disposal (Palm provides two sets of notepads inside the box). Flip back the notepad to the left and underneath Palm has included slots to store four SD cards, business cards (on the back of the notepad flap) and credit cards. The case doesn’t do the full meal deal, though, like previous large cases of this caliber did, as it doesn’t provide any practical space for coinage or paper money.

What I really liked about the case was that in the back covers on both sides there’s a strong protective material between the inside liner and the outer leather, providing for a strong backplate for the m500 or m505. So, in other words, to bend the case would take considerable effort, and thereby protecting your valuables inside. To test out this tough lining, I dropped my case (with my m505 inside) onto the sidewalk, from waist-height. Opened it up and tried out my Palm… it was still working just fine (thankfully!).

For a bulky case, it still has a stylish look and feel to it, easily complementing the elegant design of the m500 series. This case should surely help keep your Palm out of the Palm Graveyard.

Drawbacks
My dislikes of this case are limited to a few items. The first is the size; its almost triple the thickness of the m50x itself. I wouldn’t wear it in tighter-fitting pant-pockets such as jeans, but cargoes or dress pant pockets are acceptable. (I usually end up carrying it around if I’m not wearing my cargoes).

The second problem with this case was the difficulty in HotSyncing with the case attached. I’ve ended up just taking the Palm right out the case and setting it in the cradle, but as I alluded to earlier, it takes quite a bit of strength and ability to remove the Palm from the stylus holder contraption. Just don’t slide out your Palm with too much pressure, it could go flying right out onto the floor like mine did!

Also, the zipper lining tends to get into the way of the IR port, so you must remember to push that out of the way if you plan on beaming.

Lastly, I’ve noticed that unless you take great care in closing the case when you’ve got both the notepad and the Palm inside, the notepad papers have a tendency to crumple up against the Palm. Not a big issue, but I don’t like having crumpled up notes.

The box for this product claims is that there is a holder for an extra stylus inside the case. I searched everywhere but I wasn't able to find one. Not that I bought it for this feature, but you should be aware.

Conclusion
The Palm m500 Leather Zippered Case is listed at $35 from Palm’s website, and provides a great way to give excellent protection and good storage capabilities for your expansion media. Although this case has a few drawbacks, I would recommend this case to anyone who has an m500 series unit.