We take pride in providing our readers with in depth, unbiased reviews of iGear.  Our reviews are based on the criteria listed below, and in each of our reviews we provide a detailed description of a product’s performance in each of these areas.

Appearance:

No one wants to cover their devices with a shabby looking case.  That makes appearance a key component of our ratings system.  Although appearance can be subjective, we take into account general attributes of appearance, such as the quality of materials, the effort made with colors and accents, and the overall look and feel of a product.

Usability:

The appearance of a product doesn’t account for much if it isn’t functional.  We rate the usability of products relative to products in the same category.  For example, the usability of book cover cases are compared with other book cover cases, while sleeves are compared with sleeves.

Durability:

Most of the products that we cover are subject to a considerable amount of wear and tear.  While it’s hard to estimate the durability of products without long-term testing, we do take a close look at the seams, rivets, zippers and buttons to evaluate durability.

Protection:

At the end of the day, cases, sleeves and bags must do a good job of protecting your iGear.  We rate protection relative to similar products, and take in to consideration the totality of protection along with the strength of the materials used to protect your iGear.

X-factors:

Some products posses an x-factor that increases their value.  An accessory that’s made of recycled materials, for example, has an x-factor that may be valuable for certain consumers.  The impact of x-factors on a product’s overall rating will vary, but we do note these characteristics and attempt to quantify their value to everyday users.

Overall:

The overall rating of a product is based on the factors listed above, along with the product’s price.  The overall rating judges the value of a product to the average consumer, and takes into account major fails and/or strengths in individual categories.  For example, while a device may perform well in nearly all categories, if it is not durable, or if it does a poor job of protecting your iGear, it’s unlikely that it will get a favorable rating.

We use a five star system for our Overall rating of  iGear.  The description of our five star ranking is below.  Half stars are available, as well.

Stars:	Description:
	One star ratings are reserved for products that fail in nearly every way possible.  Bad design, poor construction, cheap materials.  Don’t get one.
	Two star products are below average.  They may fail significantly in a single category, or perform below average in several categories.  While not unusable, you should definitely take a close look at our reviews before buying one of these.
	Three star products are average.  They don’t have any particular strengths in one area or another, or they may be hampered by a weakness in certain key categories.
	Four star products are above average.  Although they are not perfect, they perform well in most categories and lack critical flaws.  You should feel comfortable purchasing one.
	Five stars are reserved for the few products that are as close to perfect as you can get.  Go out and pick up one of these today.

Objectivity:

As you can see, our blog is ad-supported.  We also may receive some review units for free or at a reduced rate.

Although we maintain strong relationships with our advertisers and partners, we go to great lengths to ensure that these relationships do not affect our reviews.  We inform all of our advertisers that their sponsorship will in no way have any influence on our reviews.  When we do receive free review units, we note this in our review.  Additionally, we do not keep any product that is provided to us for free – we either send back these review units, or pass them along to our readers.

We also expect our sponsors to maintain honest business practices.  If you feel that our partners or sponsors have acted inappropriately, please let us know here.