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I don't mind at all that they're moving away from leather, since Apple's leather cases have been crap the last few years. Considering how incredibly good the X/Xs cases were, the recent ones are just terrible and get this tacky feeling after a while. Meanwhile, my Andar and Nomad cases feel wonderful. These could be really nice as long as they don't show fingerprints like mad.
 
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Here is a guaranteed 100% lock leak from yours truly...
These alt leather cases will carry the exact same price as the real thing.
Take that to the bank.
They care about the environment as long as you pay for it.
If you consider the leather part of the leather case was likely only a fraction more expensive, it wouldn't matter what the material is. The rest of the case is still going to need all of the same materials and quality control. So yes, you're right that it will be priced the same, but it will also cost the same.
 
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I don't mind at all that they're moving away from leather, since Apple's leather cases have been crap the last few years. Considering how incredibly good the X/Xs cases were, the recent ones are just terrible and get this tacky feeling after a while. Meanwhile, my Andar and Nomad cases feel wonderful. These could be really nice as long as they don't show fingerprints like mad.
My Apple leather folio case for my XS was so wonderful. Beautiful leather, hall sensor in the flap to wake/sleep the phone. I miss those designs. It smelled like vegetable-tanned leather too, so bonus if it wasn't chrome-tanned.

I'll keep an open mind if new cases are cork, mycelium, cotton, wool, soy, whatever... I'm still trying to minimize how many petrochemical plastics I buy. Something that'll decompose after it's discarded, like leather, sounds appealing. I want to be an ethical consumer and omnivore, but it sure isn't easy. I keep meaning to join a meat CSA for pasture-raised beef. Step one: NEVER deal in absolutes 😂
 
Cows worldwide are happy. Maybe human skin could be the next product material. Get a real feel for the process.
You know they are killed for the meat? Leather is the by-product, in this case someone else will pick them up. But using plastic and talking about this eco bs is just hypocritical.

 
Leather-shaped plastic is the most amazing scam and I fell for it for decades.

- Real leather is meat industry waste, repurposed. Vegan leather is fresh oil industry material.
- Real leather is biodegradable. Vegan leather really isn't, ironically.
- Real leather breathes, making it invaluable for car seats. Vegan leather sticks to your back like a wet t-shirt.
- Keep hand sanitizer away from vegan leather. It might corrode it. If it corroded real leather, probably wouldn't be a great idea to use it on your hands.
 
Citing a random article that supports your own opinion, is not research.

Research means, you have to go into the topic by yourself and read production related articles, really understanding the topic and filter material related facts from opinions. All you do is gaslighting. Well done.
So let me get this straight. He does research which results in finding information about vegan leather which disagrees with the information you are posting, which you are very clearly posting as "opinion" hence you not providing citations, which he has provided...and you then tell him that he can't post a citation of research material that backs up his prior statement. Amazing how that works.

Another Citation

Vegan Leather can be made from any number of non-animal products...the most common of which is plastic based, hence the term "pleather". I would much rather buy a leather product instead of a faux leather product, because hopefully the hide from the cow used to make my quarter pounder with cheese could be used to make a chair, or a coat, or a wallet or a phone case...most likely all of the above and therefore not go to waste. That is just my preference and belief, which last I checked is something we are all entitled to including yourself. If you want to buy vegan leather products, buy them....I will continue to buy real leather products, because leather has been around for hundreds of years, it is durable and aside from the fact that an animal died it is a natural product especially if a vegetable tanning process was used generally no harmful to the environment post production.
 
Two Three Four things:
1. The case looks legit.
2. There is more space between the Volume Up/Down buttons - much to the approval of my sausages fingers.
3. The Mute/Action button seems to be a thing.
4. It could be optics, but the case does appear thicker.
 
I have the apple leather case for my 12 mini and husband’s 13 mini and love it. The fuzzy inside and lightweight materials makes it wonderful. If the pleather option is the same weight and thickness with same fuzzy inside, I’d buy it. Granted, I purchased ours new for $17 each and I’d need to replace my phone which probably won’t happen for a few more years.
 
The Apple leather cases have been terrible quality for a good few years. One of the worst Apple products.

I’m for this if the quality is better.
I've had decent luck with them over the years but have found when they start to go "bad" it happens in a hurry.
 
Not a fan of the case being made of 2 materials. Bellroy has always done this for their leather cases and it doesn’t feel good in the hands.

If it’s not genuine leather, surely the price could come down. But it’s Apple so that won’t happen and they might even increase the prices for this new “innovative” material.
What do you mean? The leather cases are also made of plastic, wrapped in a thin leather skin. So 2 materials.
 
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You know they are killed for the meat? Leather is the by-product, in this case someone else will pick them up. But using plastic and talking about this eco bs is just hypocritical.

A big part of the 1 billion animals killed for their skin are also used for their meat (supporting meat consumption by driving meat prices down) but a lot of animals are also killed just for their skin, including exotic animals, horses, cats, dogs, …

Anything with a skin is fair game, and animals often end up being tortured and skinned alive.

And as stated above, leather cases are also primarily made of plastic. So that argument doesn’t hold either.

Finally, if you don’t care about animal welfare, there’s the climate change argument as 14,5% of global greenhouse gases stem from livestock.
 
I don’t understand why people care if vegan leather is plastic or not. What matters is that it feels, lasts and looks just as leather — but without cruelty in the process.

I was waiting for the day Apple would go vegan with its leather case and here it is 🌱
I don’t even mind if it doesn’t feel like leather, as long as its grippiness is somewhere between hard plastic and silicone!
 
I’m not a big fan of genuine Apple Leather Cases for the iPhone but I will surely miss them. Wonder if Apple made the change due to being environmentally friendly. 🤔
If Apple was truly environmentally friendly, they'd encourage people to only upgrade when they absolutely HAVE to. They would have also switched from Lightning to USB-C a heck of a lot sooner. The real reason they ditched the charger in the box is because they wanted to be able to ship more iPhone units faster while also saving money on both shipping and manufacturing costs. They also wanted to push the extra cost of manufacturing fast chargers on us instead of on them.
 
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How so? this are the only cases I use I personally have never had a problem. Other then wear and patina which is expected with leather, I'm just curious what problems others encounter?
I’ve had misaligned cutouts on several Apple leather cases. Made it hard to insert the charging cable ann slightly blocked the speaker/mic holes. All of them were for the 14 Pro.

Edit: Added "Apple" for brand clarification
 
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They already did a few years ago. I quit buying them because they fall apart in a month or so.

This message typed over a ribeye steak.
The same way there are bad genuine leather quality, there are also bad vegan leather out there. It all depends on the manufacture. Not if it’s vegan or not.
 
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A big part of the 1 billion animals killed for their skin are also used for their meat (supporting meat consumption by driving meat prices down) but a lot of animals are also killed just for their skin, including exotic animals, horses, cats, dogs, …

Anything with a skin is fair game, and animals often end up being tortured and skinned alive.

And as stated above, leather cases are also primarily made of plastic. So that argument doesn’t hold either.

Finally, if you don’t care about animal welfare, there’s the climate change argument as 14,5% of global greenhouse gases stem from livestock.
OMG, Apple’s new vegan leather is actually made from the skins of people! 😂
 
"Vegan leather" is plastic. It's pleather with better marketing.
I'll stick with my knockoff cases from Amazon for a 3rd of the price. They last just as long (if not longer) than the apple cases and don't wear nearly as bad as apple's official cases do.
 
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What do you mean? The leather cases are also made of plastic, wrapped in a thin leather skin. So 2 materials.
The top, bottom and two edges of the new case is plastic and the new material is just on the back. You can see the seam in this other photo poster by the same guy on X.
IMG_0317.jpeg
 
how many were there? Vegan leather. what else ?
Here's a few to get you started; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_leather#Brand_names
Google can be of help since you're wondering.

animals are killed for meat, not hide. their hide is always a waste product that’s repurposed into leather. so this will have zero impact on animal deaths.

only way to have 100% fewer dead animals is to stop eating meat.
That ain't happening in my house anytime soon. 😄

That is just completely incorrect

Animals are often killed for their skin/fur and then the some of the animal is possible eaten or wasted
Not going to say that doesn't happen, at least not in the civilized world, but you make it sound like its a common thing. It's not.

A big part of the 1 billion animals killed for their skin are also used for their meat (supporting meat consumption by driving meat prices down) but a lot of animals are also killed just for their skin, including exotic animals, horses, cats, dogs, …

Anything with a skin is fair game, and animals often end up being tortured and skinned alive.

And as stated above, leather cases are also primarily made of plastic. So that argument doesn’t hold either.

Finally, if you don’t care about animal welfare, there’s the climate change argument as 14,5% of global greenhouse gases stem from livestock.
Again, animals are not being tortured and skinned alive in the civilized world. It would be financial suicide for any business offering products made from "skinned alive" animals.

Methane is a natural gas. The weather is not decided upon the cow population.
 
No company would kill a cow strictly for its hide, the leather would be a byproduct of the meat industry so 0% fewer dead animals.
Fair point. I’ll rephrase: Apple will reduce the number of cow hide centric products by 100%, reducing the total demand for such products. This will sit well with a portion of Apple’s customers.
 
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animals are killed for meat, not hide. their hide is always a waste product that’s repurposed into leather. so this will have zero impact on animal deaths.

only way to have 100% fewer dead animals is to stop eating meat.
I replied to another similar point. Your point is well taken. I, personally, have no real qualms either way, but this move will reduce demand for leather products. Drastically? No. Enough to move the needle? Maybe but probably not. Will this appeal to a sizable chunk of the customer base? Sure.

Perhaps Apple is eying its growing business in india where there is a major portion of the population who would be quite opposed to cow byproduct in their accessories.
 
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