I read Steven Leibson's letter about attaching grip strips in the Vol. 5, No 2 1996 issue of The HP Palmtop Paper. I had exactly the same experience as he did when I opened the box, but the Palmtop did fall on the floor! Since then it has also survived a 3-foot drop onto solid concrete with no ill effects (so far).
My last Palmtop was a 95LX which survived 2 glasses of water and 1 cup of coffee being (accidentally, and not at the same time) poured over the keyboard. When this happened I immediately turned the Palmtop upside down and put tissue paper between the lid and keyboard to soak up the liquid. My 95LX gave up the ghost about 3 months after the coffee treatment (may just have been the caffeine). However, my experience is that the Palmtop seems to be more rugged than it looks!
William Martin Hong Kong