Leather case durability

[jakmac]

Hi!
I'm going to switch from Android phone to iPhone and looking forward buying leather case but my God... they are so pricey 😅. Cases for my previous phones were literally 5x cheaper while still very durable (2-3 years without many signs of use). Leather is premium material and this price is I would say justifiable if this case is durable. I'm going to use my phone for at least 3 years. I can't really find pictures of saddle brown case after 3 yrs of usage, does it look bad? Most of posted cases are 1 year old and most of them looks very nice with patina. Also I'm considering black colour, because it seems not to change during years. Any suggestions what to choose?

 

[iFone88]

If you keep your phone for three years and buy a £60 leather case; £60 ÷ 36 months = £1.67 per month of protection.

These cases can easily stand three years of use.

Black doesn’t really show age as much but it definitely does; more around the corners. Saddle brown darkens over time which whilst it’s not my cup of tea, the do look stunning.

 

[Apple_Robert]

In my opinion, the Apple leather cases are worth the money. They fit the phone precisely and over time, provide good gripe to the phone. The brown leather does age well. If you want something that won’t show its age as readily, stick to black as @iFone88 mentioned. It takes about 3 weeks for the Apple leather case to not be slippery.

 

[sneeks]

The leather cases are expensive but they are worth the money as the quality is excellent and they last very well. I usually always buy the black version.

 

[Lion007s]

But do you have to be extra careful with the leather? You can't be out in the rain, can't put it down on a table with any liquids or dirt, constantly will have to clean it and baby it a little.

With silicon you can let it get wet and let that IP68 rating of the phone be existent, whereas I feel with leather you have to baby it a bit.

I used to have a leather case and then just went naked because wiping down the phone during the pandemic made me worry that would harm the leather too. The silicon, not so much.

When I was travelling, I used the silicon case as I didn't have to worry about durability regardless of weather condition or surface I put it down on. Bonus was the extra grip.

What are all your thoughts?

 

[vseera]

But do you have to be extra careful with the leather? You can't be out in the rain, can't put it down on a table with any liquids or dirt, constantly will have to clean it and baby it a little.

With silicon you can let it get wet and let that IP68 rating of the phone be existent, whereas I feel with leather you have to baby it a bit.

I used to have a leather case and then just went naked because wiping down the phone during the pandemic made me worry that would harm the leather too. The silicon, not so much.

When I was travelling, I used the silicon case as I didn't have to worry about durability regardless of weather condition or surface I put it down on. Bonus was the extra grip.

What are all your thoughts?

I actually traveled a lot with an Apple leather case for my earlier XS and never babied it. Got wet? Just wiped it down. Out in the rain? Use it as normal and then just wipe it to dry it.
I only used it for a year but the case looked nice and normal and did not really break or fade. These things are pretty durable and honestly, it's a case to protect your phone. You can start worrying about the case or worry about your phone

 

[Lion007s]

I actually traveled a lot with an Apple leather case for my earlier XS and never babied it. Got wet? Just wiped it down. Out in the rain? Use it as normal and then just wipe it to dry it.
I only used it for a year but the case looked nice and normal and did not really break or fade. These things are pretty durable and honestly, it's a case to protect your phone. You can start worrying about the case or worry about your phone

Cool! I was always worried that with leather, if it gets wet, it ruins the leather. Especially if the rain gets moderate or there is more liquid than usual around...and there's nothing to wipe it down with until maybe an hour later apart from putting it into my pocket. So as long as the leather case doesn't develop any spots or other issues from liquid contact, then I would feel more confident using it as an all rounder case especially since they cost AU$89 (US$65) here.

 

[jakmac]

While I'm still not sure about choosing saddle brown vs black, I will definitely go for one of these leather cases. Thank you all for responses!

 

[Madhatter32]

There is a very high probability that the leather case will outlive the phone. They look great. My experience with cases in other materials is that they are not nearly as durable. However, I keep phones for at least 3 years -- sometimes longer.

 

[iFone88]

But do you have to be extra careful with the leather? You can't be out in the rain, can't put it down on a table with any liquids or dirt, constantly will have to clean it and baby it a little.

With silicon you can let it get wet and let that IP68 rating of the phone be existent, whereas I feel with leather you have to baby it a bit.

I used to have a leather case and then just went naked because wiping down the phone during the pandemic made me worry that would harm the leather too. The silicon, not so much.

When I was travelling, I used the silicon case as I didn't have to worry about durability regardless of weather condition or surface I put it down on. Bonus was the extra grip.

What are all your thoughts?

You are massively overthinking it.
It’s a £60 leather phone case, not a £1000 leather handbag.

 

[nrvous1]

None of these cases pictured below are mine, but you can see they’re all still in good shape after years of usage. The first pic is of a 4 year old saddle brown leather case. They wear well and will last the life of the phone baring some sort of catastrophic accident.

 

[Lion007s]

You are massively overthinking it.
It’s a £60 leather phone case, not a £1000 leather handbag.

That’s still a lot of money for a phone case and the durability in all environments (especially with liquid contact) is of importance to me. I’ve found my answer on the Apple Support page on how to take care of the cases which basically tells me from the care required that the silicon is more durable than the leather when it comes to all types of environments. I guess I could have deduced this based upon the Apple Watch sports bands versus leather bands for when it came to sweat etc.

For my own personal usage, I am going to remain naked and if I was travelling where the environments were out of my control or in a group setting where others would handle my phone, I’ll probably pick up a deep navy blue silicon case For its versatility and grip.

But for those who want a case on all the time, I handled the Baltic Blue leather case earlier today at a local Apple Store here in Aus and I have to say, it’s a really nice case - well built, beautiful colour, and would be my choice if I wasn’t keeping my phone naked most of the time. I think it will age well too. Enjoy guys!

 

[jz0309]

I have had Apple leather cases for every single one of my iPhones (starting with 3GS) and they have been great, will (probably) never use anything different ...

 

[iFone88]

That’s still a lot of money for a phone case and the durability in all environments (especially with liquid contact) is of importance to me. I’ve found my answer on the Apple Support page on how to take care of the cases which basically tells me from the care required that the silicon is more durable than the leather when it comes to all types of environments. I guess I could have deduced this based upon the Apple Watch sports bands versus leather bands for when it came to sweat etc.

For my own personal usage, I am going to remain naked and if I was travelling where the environments were out of my control or in a group setting where others would handle my phone, I’ll probably pick up a deep navy blue silicon case For its versatility and grip.

But for those who want a case on all the time, I handled the Baltic Blue leather case earlier today at a local Apple Store here in Aus and I have to say, it’s a really nice case - well built, beautiful colour, and would be my choice if I wasn’t keeping my phone naked most of the time. I think it will age well too. Enjoy guys!

Silicone wears a lot quicker than the leather and definitely isn’t as durable.

The corners are a real weak point and wear quickly from going in and out of pockets

 

[Lion007s]

Silicone wears a lot quicker than the leather and definitely isn’t as durable.

The corners are a real weak point and wear quickly from going in and out of pockets

I won’t be using it on a daily basis so it’s not going to wear quickly as my phone is naked. My durability needs are for environments where there is more liquid present/need more grip - this is where silicon excels.

But also like I said, if I was going to have a daily beater (exposed to liquid barely), it would be the Baltic Blue leather case

 

[Toonartist]

Silicone wears a lot quicker than the leather and definitely isn’t as durable.

The corners are a real weak point and wear quickly from going in and out of pockets

So true... I had a silicone one for my iP8+ and the corners went on that one. So grippy, excellent for when I’m out hiking etc but a bugger to pop in and out of your pocket... hence the wear on the corners.

I do have a silicone one for my 12Pro but also a California Poppy which feels great. Love it!

 

[radiologyman]

My personal experience is that black and blue leather cases do not show color change/dirt as they age. But they still show age eventually as leather gets little scuffs. I still buy them as nothing comes close to Apple leather case the way it feels in the hand.

 

[jm31828]

To revive this thread, what do people think of the cases they had on their 12 series phones after a year? Still good? I had read other threads where people made comments that the leather seems to be much lower quality in the last couple of years.

I just bought a leather case for my 13 Pro, and it smells like plastic or rubber- I don't smell leather at all as I do on other leather products (and leather phone cases from other brands). Kind of disappointing, but it does look nice!