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OneGrit

macrumors member
Original poster
May 12, 2021
65
47
Richmond, British Columbia
I'm looking to ditch my Samsung for something else and I'm considering either an iPhone 13 Pro Max (assuming that's what it will be called) or a Pixel 6 Pro. If I choose the iPhone, I would like to buy an Apple silicone case since I've always liked how they feel in the hand. I know previous iterations of this case weren't too good in the longevity department as the 5c versions were somewhat flimsy (possibly due to the speed holes, or maybe no hard plastic structure?) and the ones for the round-sided phones tended to crack or chip away near their open bottoms. However, since these ones are essentially the best aspects of the previous iterations with none of the bad stuff, are they holding up better than their predecessors? I am curious to know, especially from those who've been using them for a long time or even since launch.
 

fwmireault

macrumors 68020
Jul 4, 2019
2,262
9,594
Montréal, Canada
Can’t say for specifically the 12 series as I got the Apple leather one for my 12 PM, but my previous Apple silicon cases (for iPhone X) were terrible regarding durability. It started to peel off only a few weeks after I bought it and had to change it after a few months because it was not usable anymore.

If someone says that Apple improved durability since the X I will believe it, but until then I strongly recommend to look for third parties or other materials
 

Knowlege Bomb

macrumors G4
Feb 14, 2008
10,258
8,926
US
My wife has been using one on her Mini since we upgraded her back in March and it still looks brand new. It's one of the lighter colors (peachish).
 

OneGrit

macrumors member
Original poster
May 12, 2021
65
47
Richmond, British Columbia
Can’t say for specifically the 12 series as I got the Apple leather one for my 12 PM, but my previous Apple silicon cases (for iPhone X) were terrible regarding durability. It started to peel off only a few weeks after I bought it and had to change it after a few months because it was not usable anymore.

If someone says that Apple improved durability since the X I will believe it, but until then I strongly recommend to look for third parties or other materials
Have they improved leather since the iPhone 5s days? That was the last iPhone I used on a regular basis and those leather cases were notorious for breaking near the headphone jack and lightning cutouts. A lot of the leather cases for the round edged iPhones I've seen looked chewed up near the open bottom but these ones have more in common with the 5s case design than those.
 

fwmireault

macrumors 68020
Jul 4, 2019
2,262
9,594
Montréal, Canada
Have they improved leather since the iPhone 5s days? That was the last iPhone I used on a regular basis and those leather cases were notorious for breaking near the headphone jack and lightning cutouts. A lot of the leather cases for the round edged iPhones I've seen looked chewed up near the open bottom but these ones have more in common with the 5s case design than those.
This is my first Apple leather case, and from what I’ve read the 12 line up case is not aging well compared to previous Apple leather cases. Apple put a sort of protecting layer on the leather but it peeled off only on the edges and it looks not so great. From what I’ve known this was only an issue for the 12 series, maybe Apple will correct that for the 13

Except only for this weird looking layer, the case itself is very durable and I would take it again
 

Knowlege Bomb

macrumors G4
Feb 14, 2008
10,258
8,926
US
My black leather from Apple is perfect. Couldn't be more happy with it, especially now that I've had it for 7+ months. It's slim, soft, the buttons are perfect and it looks classy as f***.

leather.jpg
 

OneGrit

macrumors member
Original poster
May 12, 2021
65
47
Richmond, British Columbia
After today's keynote, I have decided to wait for the iPhone 14 family as the power consumption of the new Pixel chip has me worried about switching to one of those instead. Hopefully the cases will have improved significantly by then.
 
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