Last week I ordered a
Thin Series iPhone 5 leather case from iCase Leather in Hungary. I picked it up from the post office this morning. It was sent as a registered letter, free shipping.
Let me first say that I have previously been using Sena Ultraslim Pouches (two of them) for five years, since I got my first iPhone. I have been very happy with them. The leather quality is great, but the inside material wears out.
Now, my first impression of the iCase Leather aren't the best. While the shape and fit are excellent, the material is somewhat strange. I'm not sure it's even real leather.
The Sena cases have a smooth, cool (slightly moist), flexible feel, as you would expect leather to be, while the iCase is dry, stiff and feel like some kind of foam plastic. The leather smell is there, but it is faint, and there is definitely some kind of chemical smell too.
I think the "leather" in the iCase might be so called bicast leather (
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicast_leather). It's a thin leather base covered with polyurethane.
The iCase logo also seems to be melted into the case, something that I don't think would be possible if it was real leather.
I took this photo using a loupe:
When I compare how my iCase looks to the
photos posted by esfrost earlier in this thread, my case just looks dull. His has a shine, that at least to me, looks like real leather. I think iCase Leather might have made a change in the production to cheaper materials.
So I'm not entirely happy but will give it a chance nonetheless.
