iPhone Leather Wallet
Apple’s $49 iPhone Leather Wallet attached to an iPhone 12 Pro Max in Pacific Blue.
Apple introduced the iPhone Leather Wallet with MagSafe on October 13, a $49 accessory that magnetically attaches to any iPhone 12. This allows the Wallet to remain sleekly affixed to the device and effortlessly swapped out if you need to charge the phone or just want to customize your device's look.
The wallet is designed to store up to three cards. I tested this both with three credit cards with raised numbers and three cards without, and in both scenarios, the wallet tightly held onto all three. I don't get the sense that this is a case that will ever stretch over time to accommodate more, so please don't think, "he says three, but that probably means it can fit six;" it won't! It is also worth noting that the wallet will also securely fit one and two cards without any risk of them falling out.
Four colours of the Apple Wallet are available at launch, from left to right: Black, California Poppy, Saddle Brown, & Baltic Blue. These are the same colours Apple has made available for the iPhone 12 Leather cases, the Apple Watch Leather Links, and the iPhone 12 Leather Sleeve (where Pink Citrus replaces California Poppy).
I began writing this entry to get my thoughts out on the new iPhone Leather Wallet, but it expanded to include some musings about Apple's use of magnets, a bit of rambling about aesthetics & modularity, and then my experience with how well the Wallet holds onto the iPhone and whether you should trust it with your credit cards?
Apple's Attraction to Magnets
When Apple announced the iPhone 12 (& 12 Pro) on October 13, 2020, it also introduced a new motif for accessories: MagSafe. But MagSafe in 2020, the name recycled from the much loved proprietary magnetic power connector Apple first introduced back 2006 with the MacBook Pro, is no longer just a magnetic power adapter (though one was announced for wirelessly charging the iPhone), but a "new ecosystem of accessories for easy attachment."
Apple is no stranger to magnets. In fact, Apple & magnets go about as well together as peanut butter and jelly, a burger and fries, or bacon & eggs. The point is, they go great together. And since the beginning, magnets have played a pivotal role in many of their products. Some of my favourite implementations have included: magnets in the lid of the MacBook allowing Apple to remove the latch mechanism from their laptops, the storage and wireless charging of the Apple Pencil 2 in the newest iPads, and the Smart Cover open-to-wake function on iPads since the iPad 2 & in the iPhone X onward with a folio accessory. With the Leather Wallets, Apple again seems to be expanding the role magnets play in their products to a more modular & aesthetic purpose.
Modularity & Aesthetics
By modular, I refer to magnets being used to transform Apple's iDevices by adding or swapping accessories quickly. I think no device highlights this vision as clearly as the new iPad Air 4 & iPad Pros, which can quickly transform to/from tablet to laptop experience using the Magic Keyboard. In this case, the use of magnets allows your iDevice to instantly shift to fit the exact workflow needs you have at any given moment.
"Now how is this held on? Do we have some screws that you screw in? What do we do? No, we use magnets." - Steve Jobs during the iPad 2 Announcement
And by aesthetic, I am referring to using magnets to help easily customize your device's look. This was even part of Steve Jobs' pitch when he talked about the iPad 2's Smart Cover during its introduction:
"It's really easy to remove or change the cover. So you could have a bunch of them, and pick whichever cover you feel like today." - Steve Jobs
After I wrote this section, I thought I was getting a little too deep regarding the whole aesthetic argument. It's just a wallet; settle down. But then on November 07, Apple released the iPhone 12 Studio, a website whose entire purpose is to explore all the different ways (though there aren't that many yet) you can customize the iPhone size, colour, cases, and wallets; and then to share that design on social media.
An example of an image generated at Apple’s iPhone 12 Studio.
Magnets vs. Jeans
I saw a couple of videos, notably by MacRumors & MKBHD, throwing a bit of shade on the leather wallets and how susceptible they were from separating from the device, mainly when placing the phone back into the pocket. And so, for science, I wanted to test out the Wallet myself...
Wearing a relaxed-fitting pair of jeans (probably for the first time since March!), I attached the Leather Wallet directly to the phone. Camera facing up and Wallet facing out, I proceeded to drop & remove the phone from my left front pocket over 150 times. I'm happy to report that there wasn't a single instance when the Wallet slipped, shifted, or dislodged after over a hundred trials. And I wasn't babying the phone; I would drop the phone into my pants pocket each time and even made an effort to rub the Wallet against the crease in an attempt to dislodge it. Nothing. The Wallet hung on tight!
I even made a time-lapse video & posted it to YouTube. I am famous YouTuber now?
This is all anecdotal, and there might be several factors that influence the possible risk of the Wallet coming off - from the crispness of your jeans to how tight your pants and pockets are. In my case, I was wearing an older pair of size 31" Slim Straight jeans from Hollister. Because of that, I wouldn't call the situation risk-free, but I think there is a good chance that a sizeable portion of folks won't need to fear this being a concern.
