Big thanks to the guys and gals at Fortte for agreeing to send me over TWO samples - Much appreciated, I hope you know. I’m sorry for the late review, but I needed to go and collect it from 30 miles away because I wasn’t in when it was delivered. Times like these I wish I had a PO Box.

So. Fortte. For those of you that don’t know, these guys are the customisable Kings - Not just for iPod Touches and iPhones though.Infact, a lot of PDA devices and other mobile phones too.

They sent me these two cases (Not exactly this style, colour, shape, emblem, etc… I’ll show you the actual ones in photos below.) but this proves how must you can customise your genuine leather case:

Those of the base models on their website. Standard black, with the company name in the centre and the emblem just above it. Now - Read more to find out the rest of the specs from these leather pouches.

Fortte are a company that specialises in sleek, leather cases for protection of mobile devices. Their main market must be the iPhone, but their product range bleeds into Blackberry, Motorola, Nokia, Sony Ericsson, many more phone companies, and recently - Digital Camera cases.

The two cases I received were different and sent to me to show off the ability to produce your own variety on their website.

Firstly, the brown lateral pouch. This is a product made of genuine leather, and it’s a “sideways” case. From the images below, you can see how much you can customise your case. There are choices in emblems, where you want the emblem, whether you want your name engraved into the leather, or your company’s name? And then where do you want the engraving to be? Do you want a fixed clip for the back? Or no clip? What colour do you want… Maybe a pattern aswell? I literally spent an hour on their site just customising my “dream case.”

Now I’ll talk about the outside appearance of the second one. This is my favourite. I saw this one on a video by “ItsMeMorphious” (Youtube) and I fell in love with it. The colour, the stripes, the emblem… And I’d've loved to have my name engraved into this! Again - Red leather (smells so good) with stitched on black “racing” stripes (Even the emblem makes it look like a Ferarri). It’s vertical and the magnetic latch is at the top - And it has a belt clip on the back with the words “Genuine Leather” engraved at the bottom.

I’ve never owned a leather case before - Mainly because I was worried about protection rather than looks. But these look magnificant, feel great, smell amazing and if you customised your own, you’d feel you had a bond with it.

The insides are lined with a smooth material - I think it’s like a lint-free cloth - and it extends through the inside of the cases, on both sides, for max protection. The red one even has speaker holes in the bottom in the same place as the iPhone’s speakers - So I suspect this could also be used for an iPhone and 3G?? (As well as providing listening abilities for the 2G Touch)

The magnetic clip just works… All it takes is a flick of the wrist and it clips together and locks in place firmly to prevent accidently opening - And I love the fixed belt clip for its strength. I just trapped my finger in it - And it bloody hurt. That won’t come off your belt if you’re out of a job… I couldn’t get it off my finger without help from my dad.

Your device will fit snugly into these aswell. My 1G iPod fits well. My 2G fitted aswell. Seems to be a universal case if you have both - Like I said, I reckon it would fit an iPhone aswell. The vertical pouch in particular has gaps at the top for speaker controls.

Verdict:

I’m impressed. Never before had I considered a leather case - But now I can’t help but use one just because it looks good, and makes you look good.

Looks: 10/10. Just look at it. And remember - you can customise it, too. So if you don’t like the red, why not go for a black or brown or another colour from their customising page.

Protection: 6/10. I haven’t done it yet - But if I did drop this, I fear that the iPod would feel a little damage (cushioned by the interior) and the case might get scuffed.

Feel: 9/10. Smooth, rough and firm all in one. Definitely gives grip, feels professional and like… Leather.

Price: 8/10. The base model will set you back $29.99. Adding some brilliant, vibrant colour is $10 - Some colours are free though. You can add different belt clips for free, a Belt Loop is $4 and a Wrist Strap is $5. Choose an emblem out of 4 (or not have one at all) for free. Add engraving/embossing for $15 (2 different fonts available too), and add a company logo for $25. After you’ve done all this - The average price is about $50-$60, which in my eyes is very reasonable because it’s about £25 to £30 - Which is the same price as a SwitchEasy RebelTouch but with that little bit extra.

Overall: 33/40. A low 30 - Marked down because of the protection score. But who needs protection when you’ve got enough style to ensure you won’t drop it in the first place?

Grade “A”

Coming Soon:

And I’d also love to try out the AirCurve if anyone from Griffin is reading. =P

Remember: If you want to see bigger photos, just click on any of the pictures in my reviews and you’ll be taken to the direct image in all its 5MP glory.