I recently reviewed several iPhone 6 cases, which drew a lot of questions and suggestions from readers.
Those comments were all appreciated. Now I want to address a topic not mentioned in the myriad cases I tried out.
where it’s @
The Mujjo Leather Wallet Case for iPhone 6 from Mujjo retails for $40.63 and is available online. More information is available at www.mujjo.com. The Wallet Case for iPhone 6 from Griffin Technology retails for $39.99. More information is available at www.griffintechnolo….
A couple of people asked me about wallet cases, which can hold not only a smartphone but also a credit card or two. Since I happen to have a couple of wallet cases, I decided to give them a good look.
The first wallet case I tested was from a company unknown to me, and the other is from a rather well-known case maker.
First up was the Leather Wallet Case for iPhone 6 from Mujjo, a European company. Apparently, this case is an update of a popular predecessor.
The Leather Wallet Case is very basic and very slim, but it doesn't shirk on the quality of materials. The case essentially is a hard shell encased in soft leather. It includes side rails to protect the iPhone, as well as cutouts to allow access to a phone's side buttons, top and bottom.
The case includes a pocket that opens about halfway up the back. While the pocket is fairly tight near the bottom, it is designed to hold a couple of credit cards at once. The top of the pocket on the case I tested was fairly loose and curled out easily, but the sides were heavily stitched to the back, so the pocket didn't seem to go anywhere. I do worry about it tearing away at the top over time, though.
Its interior is a soft, shaved leather that protect a phone's back from scratches. The exterior is full-grained, vegetable-tanned leather. I'm not going to lie -- I have no clue what that really means. I only know the leather is very soft, of high quality and a pleasure to hold in the hand.
The leather quality may be excellent, but I'm not completely sold on this case. My biggest issue is it offers little protection, particularly for the screen. The side rails don't rise much above the phone, so if the phone is dropped on its face, there is a chance the screen could be damaged. The corners are protected, but not by much, and there is no protection for the buttons or ports against dust, moisture or anything else.
The Mujjo case offers high-quality material and definitely qualifies as a slimline and wallet case, but it doesn't offer as much protection as I hoped.
The second case came from Griffin Technology, a company I know well. I've tested some of its newer, high-protection cases. This time, I tested its version of the wallet case.
The Wallet Case for iPhone 6 features a textured leather exterior and a book-style front flap that covers the phone screen.
The phone fits into a stiff leather holder within the case. It's fairly easy to pop the phone in and out of the holder, which is nice. The Mujjo case offered a bit more of a struggle.
The holder doesn't offer any protection on a phone's corners or over the ports at the bottom. However, the flaps on the case do extend slightly beyond the holder, offering some protection if the phone is dropped. The phone is protected further by the case's spine and the front flap.
The inside of the front flap has two slots capable of holding credit cards or folded cash. The flaps are a bit tight, so it may be difficult at first to get cards in or out of it, but they certainly won't go anywhere once they're in the wallet.
The case has a crease on the back that helps it double as an iPhone stand. Folding the crease backward allows the side of the iPhone to stand on the front flap as the flap lays flat. The propped-up phone moved the first few times I used it, but it stayed in place better once the crease loosened a bit with use.
The spine of the case is softer than the front and back flaps, allowing the flaps to be folded apart and together easier. This allows the user to fold the front flap behind the back one to use the phone properly. The only downside to this is the front flap doesn't always want to fold back over the phone properly. It takes a while to get it to sit back on the front of the iPhone properly. I think it would work better if it had a strap of some kind to keep it closed.
Of the two cases, I would recommend the Griffin case first. It isn't the perfect wallet case, but it does the job. The leather certainly doesn't have the quality of the Mujjo case, but it does offer more protection.
Hopefully, that answers some of the questions about wallet cases. One more thing to add: These cases would slip rather easily into a Christmas stocking -- just in case you're needing a few stocking stuffer ideas.
Melissa L. Jones can be reached via email at mljones72@me.com.
SundayMonday Business on 12/08/2014