Apple Leather Case vs. Silicone?

[bstocks32]

Just curious on which case you prefer..... Apple Leather or Silicone and why?

My favorite color is Red, so I've had both. While I love the silicone red color, it just doesn't hold up very well (cracks and splits) The leather is very slippery. I ordered Red Leather for my Gold XS Max -- Any advice how to make it more grippy?


Friday can't come soon enough!

 

[yanki01]

leather hands down. just looks so much better.

it will become less slick with use as it gets oil/dirt from your hand onto the case.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/apple-leather-cases-patina-proud-photos.2091430/

 

[Mike75]

Leather. Looks great, feels great.

 

[metalsiren]

Same tried the silicon one and hated it. Leather one is nice been using it for years

 

[i hate phones]

I can’t do the silicone case. It’s a dog hair magnet.

 

[thecore762]

I’ve had my silicone case on my 7 plus for 3 months and it’s already falling apart.
Going for the leather next when the new iPhone max comes out.

 

[b_scott]

I’ve had my silicone case on my 7 plus for 3 months and it’s already falling apart.
Going for the leather next when the new iPhone max comes out.

wtf do you do to your phone? I've had the same silicone case on my iPhone 6 Plus since 2014 and it just has regular wear on it.

 

[nutmac]

I love the look and feel of the Silicone Case. But it is extremely fragile. I had 3 and all 3 of them wore out significantly well under a year. Corners getting chipped off, etc. All I did was sliding them into my pockets several times a day.

Leather holds up a lot better and has the benefit of awesome metallic buttons.

 

[IpadCases23]

Silicone or Leather Case?
Silicone:
Has more Color Options
Gives you more Grip
Absorbs more impact on minor drops
Has microfiber lining on edges, back and inside
Cons:
Wears out a bit faster than leather
More bulkier
Gets more debris inside of case


Leather pros:
Less bulky
Is tighter on the phone
Looks better
It can patina

Cons:

Less color options
Has less microfiber lining
becomes less slick when getting oil in it

id say Silicone provides more protection and thats the purpose of the case, providing protection and Not making your phone look cool. im not bias on silicone btw

 

[anthony13]

I like the leather cases as well, but will say I've been disappointed in their build quality over time. The leather is really just a super thing stretched leather over a hard plastic, and has ripped on 2 out of the 3 I've owned over the years. For the 12 I went with the clear mag safe plastic. That has already accumulated several internal cracks on the corners and is slightly yellowing (as can be expected with any plastic product).

 

[Vangeli]

The leather cases aren’t exactly consistent, sometimes with the same model case you’ll get one with leather that feels and is durable, sometimes you’ll get one with extremely soft leather that that may look prettier but doesn’t last long.

Still, they look and feel a bazillion times better than the silicone cases, though I’m disappointed that they added a plastic camera trim to the latest generation.

 

[Htsi]

Leather only for the buttons. I’d pick the silicone if it had metal buttons. End of the day I’m in the caseless camp

 

[kecinzer]

I already have silicone one and it's pretty good. Bought leather case for iP12 3 days ago. It's very good and nice. It has perfect form factor (I had few leather cases from Apple in past and it has few hickups and notperfect parts). Buttons are great - definitely better that on silicone case.
Overal leather case is little bit smaller and lighter that silicone one. Fits perfectly without jumps out (like I red somewhere).
It will age over time because of leather, but I will see.

But for general usage I would recommend both cases. For sport and outdoor activity I prefer silicone one. For normal usage leather one.

 

[djmanosv]

Leather for winter, silicon for summer vacay wet hands , beach life and sand.
12PM blue + pistachio + california puppy

magsafe leather wallets feel strange when it’s hot and u use wet hands.. wish there was alternative to leather wallet with such strong magnets but silicon or other material

 

[Knowlege Bomb]

I like the leather cases as well, but will say I've been disappointed in their build quality over time. The leather is really just a super thing stretched leather over a hard plastic, and has ripped on 2 out of the 3 I've owned over the years.

False. I've had leather cases from Apple pretty much every year except for this year. When they're dropped, depending on the impact the leather can get torn/gouged and in my experience when this has happened I've never seen plastic.

 

[AnthroMatt]

False. I've had leather cases from Apple pretty much every year except for this year. When they're dropped, depending on the impact the leather can get torn/gouged and in my experience when this has happened I've never seen plastic.

This is my experience as well, but my wife drops her phone A LOT and her silicone case is getting chewed up

 

[anthony13]

False. I've had leather cases from Apple pretty much every year except for this year. When they're dropped, depending on the impact the leather can get torn/gouged and in my experience when this has happened I've never seen plastic.

I’m happy you haven’t, but I absolutely have seen exposed plastic on multiple apple leather cases. So my post was not false. Unless you only find truth in personal experience. Which then, yes, for you, my post was false. But Sartre would have some opinions on that…

 

[Knowlege Bomb]

I’m happy you haven’t, but I absolutely have seen exposed plastic on multiple apple leather cases. So my post was not false. Unless you only find truth in personal experience. Which then, yes, for you, my post was false. But Sartre would have some opinions on that…

Oooohhhh Anthony with the name-drop!

I wasn't refuting the fact that the cases have plastic in them. What I'm calling false is that the they're nothing but thin leather stretched over plastic and any sort of damage rips the leather through. My phones always end up getting dropped, whether it's me or the wife doing it (more often the wife) and even the nastier of the gouges in the leather show more leather underneath.

I don't suppose you have any of your old cases on hand that you could show. I had a nice collection of old leather cases at one point but finally found somebody that was interested in using some of them and the rest got tossed. Anybody else with Apple leather is welcome to showcase their damage as evidence too!

 

[Caseguy]

for all previous apple iPhones i say leather

for the 12 pro max, these apple silicone cases are much superior to their leather counterparts, imo.

 

[Knowlege Bomb]

for all previous apple iPhones i say leather

for the 12 pro max, these apple silicone cases are much superior to their leather counterparts, imo.

Outside of black, I'd agree. The black leather feels better as it ages and you don't see the uneven wear you get on the other colors. I don't have any silicone cases for my 12 Pro but the wife uses one on her Mini and I do get a zing of envy when I hold it.

 

[rambo47]

I have a couple of both types, Apple silicone and Apple leather. I go back and forth often. I tend to carry my phone in a t-shirt pocket. The leather slips out too easily while the silicone has just enough grip to stay put. However, the leather looks and feels so much nicer. I recently bought a new batch of t-shirts with more narrow pockets. Now my leather cases don't slip out as easily as with my old raggedy t-shirts so I'm using the leather cases more.

 

[Mcflip78]

I have both the silicone and leather apple cases for my 12 Pro. I personally like the leather one much better. The silicone case attracts too much lint and the leather case’s buttons are much more tactile compared to the silicone. Only downside to both is that the phone’s corners seem to pop out a lot on both cases. They both have good grip and feel great in the hand. The leather is a little slippery at first but when the leather is broken in, it feels great.

 

[dmr727]

My wife has the silicone case and I have a leather case (from Nomad). I really love the feel of the silicone case in my hand, but I put my phone in my front pocket and it creates too much friction for the phone to slide easily in and out. Leather works better for me in that regard.

I went with Nomad over Apple on the recommendation from a friend, and although it looks and feels nice it's a little bulkier than I'd prefer. The packaging was a little ridiculous as well - they're mimicking Apple in trying to provide a 'premium' unboxing experience, but it went way over the top. It's a friggin' phone case. Ditch the crazy packaging and drop $20 from the price and I'd be more likely to recommend it to others.

 

[AVBeatMan]

I hate the feel of the silicone cases and just can't use them. Always buy Apple black leather case and have done again this year but, have discovered Andar Leather cases and they are far better quality than the Apple leather or the Nomad leather cases. Andar is the best quality leather I've tried (apart from Twelve South's BookBook's).

 

[Knowlege Bomb]

I hate the feel of the silicone cases and just can't use them. Always buy Apple black leather case and have done again this year but, have discovered Andar Leather cases and they are far better quality than the Apple leather or the Nomad leather cases. Andar is the best quality leather I've tried (apart from Twelve South's BookBook's).

Yep, I’m in Andar this year too. MUCH nicer than Apple’s, although I prefer how the one from Apple fits as well as their buttons.