One of my criticisims of the Backpack for XDA II / i-mate Pocket PC Phone was that a case to accommodate the backpack would be hard, if not impossible, to find. Imagine the pleasant surprise I had to find that Piel Frama did have such a case, and they kindly provided it to me for review purposes.

The case is much the same design as the standard Piel Frama XDA II case, but accommodates a deeper device with provision for access to the video out connector featured by the backpack. The normal SD card and credit card slots are provided, and as usual the case fastens with a stud loop. The usual removable nub arrangement for the weak-as-usual belt clip is provided. The nub is great as such, but I hate the belt clip, as always.

The case continues to provide access to various buttons and connectors, although the base of your device is somewhat exposed through the design choices made to provide access to the power/sync connector, headphone jack, and reset button. A more enclosed solution would perhaps be preferable, and might even enable the main issue with this case to be addressed.

No provision is provided for long Compact Flash cards – such as my Netgear MA701 CF card – so forget about using these while in the case. This is something that can’t easily be rectified in the current design,

This case does not seem to be designed to accommodate an XDA II without the Backpack attached – to do so, an additional stud-fastening or Velcro strap would be required, or perhaps a little elastic.

In any case – this thing is huge, as is fitting for anything that tries to tackle the unwieldy and awkward backpack. There is a massive amount of wasted space in the area directly above the backpack – a fault not in the case, but in the design of the backpack. It’s so huge a space, in fact, that I’ve taken to storing my MA701 CF card in there, as the card slots very neatly behind the backpack, while the antenna component is safely protected in this Grand Canyon of spaces.

Perhaps it’s this increased storage that led to the big surprise I found with this case – I like it. I really do, just like the backpack itself. I wish the backpack design had been better, but if there’s anything that can make the backpack better, it’s this case.

That being said, I do get comments from people about the size of my phone, and queries on how on earth I can carry that thing around on my hip. To give you a perspective though – the weight of the XDA II with Backpack on my hip is nothing compared to the backpack that carries my notebook as well as all the tools of my trade (typically 20kg+).

The backpack has convenient functions – Compact Flash, additional battery life, and video output – that make it highly attractive to a certain type of professional on the move. The most common complaint I’ve heard has been the inability to keep the backpack attached at all times, and the backpack certainly does address this – I have kept the backpack attached ever since receiving this (at least until recently). However, the bulk of the backpack and this case together may not make it the most popular XDA II accessory – nonetheless, a big thumbs up to Piel Frama for attempting to address a need which needed to be filled.

I give the Piel Frama case for XDA II with Backpack a solid 7/10 for quality – 2 points deducted for what I felt were failures to address the Compact Flash access, and 1 for the ever present weak belt-clip.