Apple Leather Case for iPhone 5 & 5S

Just a quick review of a case that I picked up at the weekend for my new iPhone 5S that I’ve been using since launch day without a case.

I previously had an iPhone 5 and I used that with a shell case from launch day until I got the new S model.

I was quite shocked at the condition that the iPhone was in. It appeared that small pieces of grit had somehow managed to get between the case and the phone and has scratched the finish off the edge of the phone.

I decided that I wouldn’t be using this case with my new 5S but I tried it on there for an hour or so and it felt a little loose on the new phone. I decided that I would use the phone without a case and see how I got on. I quickly found that I don’t like the way the iPhone 5/5S feels without anything on. It is too slippery and too thin for my liking and I was constantly scared that I was going to drop it whilst removing it from my pocket.

Whilst walking past an Apple store I thought I’d take a look at the different cases that they had available and the Apple case really caught my eye for the simplicity and quality. It seemed a little expensive at £35.00 but I thought that if I can buy one case and stand a good chance that it would look after the finish of my phone in everyday use it was worth a go.

This is what your £35 gets you.

I chose the black but it is also available in brown, beige, yellow, blue and a special (Product) Red version where some of the profits go to a Charity set up by Bono of U2.

The back of the case has a nice embossed Apple logo and the leather feels very nice. There is a warning on the back of the packaging that the case is made of natural leather and that the finish will change with use.

There is a nice large cut out for the camera and flash but all of the buttons are covered and have little bumps so that you can feel where they are. No need to try to reach through the case to press them with a fingernail here. Unfortunately apple chose not to replicate the ring/vibrate switch as part of the case and it might be a struggle for those with larger fingers to operate. As a plus it will not get knocked accidentally.

The case is lined with a nice, soft suede/micro-fibre material which should help to prevent scratches like I experienced before.

Inserting the phone is easy, just push it in.

The case fits the phone perfectly. If it had been any other way I would have been shocked.

The case offers a small lip to provide some protection to the screen if laid on a surface face down.

The headphone and Lightning connector ports are nicely exposed for the majority of things that you’d want to use them for but strangely the lighting connector will not work with one of Apple’s own accessories that I use every day. I have still not updated my bedside dock to one with native Lightning and so, I have been using the 30 Pin to Lighting adapter. As you will see this will not work with this case.

The mic and speaker ports in the case line up perfectly with those on the phone and no difference in call quality or speaker volume can be noticed.

Apple iPhone 5s leather case Verdict.

Over all I am extremely impressed with the case but it does have a couple of downsides but for me these are not enough to make me want to return it and search for something else.

Pros

• Quality looks and finish
• Perfect fit

Cons

• Not all Lightning accessories will be compatible
• Ring/Vibrate a little difficult to access.
• £35 is quite a lot to spend on a case.