Otterbox Rugged Laptop Case

Product: Otterbox Rugged Laptop Case
Author: Carlos Echenique
Category: Laptop Accessory
Reviewed on: December 04, 2006
Product cost: $169.99
Manufacturer: Otterbox
Spelling and Grammatical Editors: PlanetX64 Staff

Having recently acquired (bought) a very spiffy Alienware Area-51 Core2 Duo laptop (review coming soon, I promise), I had become more concerned over the tightening of restrictions on carry-on baggage when I travel. I had already purchased a foam-lined Storm Case for my camera gear on the off chance that some recalcitrant airline attendant feels it won’t fit in an overhead compartment (outside of a Sopwith Camel, that case fits in any overhead compartment, but I’ve had to check it in on occasion) why not something for my laptop?

Alienware obliged and provided me with an engraved metal briefcase (dubbed "AlienArmor") which is very slick looking, but offers only standard fabric covered Velcro fastened foam padding which is great for riding around in the passenger seat of your Audi, but not in the bowels of an Airbus.

I looked at Storm Case & Pelican (who make excellent cases), but their offerings were too large and cumbersome. I was looking for something sleek that could withstand the rigors of baggage handling and yet look professional if carried onboard.

Otterbox came to the rescue with their Rugged Laptop Case (no points for name originality).

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Construction
The Rugged Laptop Case (RLC) is composed of heavy-duty plastics that can hold the weight of a full grown adult standing on top of it. This is more than I can say for some airplane toilets. The case is waterproof, with a grey seal along the lower half of the lid. It is not approved for underwater use. The hinges and latches are of the highest quality and the carrying handle and shoulder strap are made of woven ballistic nylon and rubber attached via hex bolts to the case. The shoulder strap is swivel mounted and the swivels also use hex bolts for attachment. About the only fault I could find was with the keylock. With this new focus on air travel, I feel that the use of a standard keylock (while economical) is not a good idea. Checked luggage is scanned and randomly searched by the TSA. To facilitate this, TSA approved travel locks are used on checked luggage. These TSA approved locks have a master key that is issued to the TSA that allows them to open and search checked luggage without breaking the lock. If the TSA was interested in opening a checked RLC, they would have to resort to their secondary master key (read "hammer and chisel"). I’ve seen the results of that method and it isn’t pretty.

Score: 4.75 out of 5
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Mounting System
Otterbox’ laptop mounting system is nothing short of genius. Using a combination of hard rubber corner blocks and Velcro fasterners, the engineers at Otterbox managed to recreate the kind of protection found only in custom foam insert cases. The mounting system maintains a small air gap around the laptop on all sides while not allowing any movement.

Another feature of this innovative mounting systems is that the laptop can be used inside the case. There is a rubber covered access port on the bottom that allows you to plug in the necessary cords. This is, of course, assuming that the rubber blocks do not cover the laptop’s ports. In my case (no pun intended), the power cord cannot be used because Alienware chose to mount it in the corner and it is covered by the mounting block.

Score: 5 out of 5
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Space
Otterbox currently offers the RLC in a medium size for 15" laptops. My 15.4" widescreen Area-51 fits perfectly. There are plans to offer models for 17" & 14" laptops. I would go ahead and offer those sizes for the following reason: the only thing I can carry in the case is the laptop. There is zero extra room for the power cord or any other accessory. I am not sure whether this is by design or not. Cords and accesssories may come loose during less-than-gentle handling and could conceivably damage the laptop. However, I would recommend buying the next size up for your laptop. This would give you some extra storage and you can always use Velcro straps to secure the cords and accessories to the inside of the case.

Score: 3.5 out of 5
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Price & Conclusion
Otterbox is not the cheapest case out there, but you get what you pay for. At $169 USD you are getting a near bulletproof, watersealed insurance policy for your laptop that doesn’t look like a piece of military hardware. My opinion is that this is much cheaper than replacing a cracked LCD and certainly a far smaller headache.

Score: 4.5 out of 5

Conclusion
For protecting your laptop, you would be hard pressed to find a better solution than the OtterBox Rugged Laptop Case. For the money, you get a case that can withstand the weight of a full grown adult standing on it, that looks like you could take it into a meeting without looking like you got your accessories from the Army Surplus, has a solid mounting system for your gear and is watertight to boot.

With a final score of 17.75, we proudly award OtterBox Ruggend Laptop Case

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