Over the past five years at MobileSyrup, I’ve reviewed several smartphones, laptops and even one TV. I’ve also broken a lot of displays along the way. At one point in my career, accidentally cracking screens was so common that it became very embarrassing.
So, a few years ago, I decided to become a smartphone case person.d
Every time I review a new phone, I always purchase a high-quality case, even when it comes to already hefty foldables. MobileSyrup managing editor Patrick O’Rourke adopts the same strategy, but he one-ups me by always putting a glass screen protector on his devices.
However, the self-proclaimed “Bad Boy of Tech,” Brad Bennett, hates cases, and as soon as he’s done taking pictures of a phone for a story/review, he removes the case. On the other hand, Jon Lamont is the most daring of us all as he never uses cases (except on the Pixel 6, because it’s so darn slippery). He says that whenever he drops a phone, they never break, which is insane to me.
For this week’s community question, we want to know if you’re a thrill-seeker who doesn’t use a case on your smartphone or if you like to play it safe and wrap it up. Let us know in the comments below.
If you have a new phone and you’re looking to protect it with a trendy-looking case that’s also good for the environment, then you’ve come to the right place.
I’ve been testing 0ut the Lavender iPhone 13 Pro case from a Canadian company Pela, and it’s my new favourite case for two main reasons.
One is the soft-touch feel. Above all else, a case needs to feel good in my hand, and the combination of flax shive and plant-based biopolymers that the company uses is incredibly soft. Imagine the smooth back of the Nexus 5x, but better, with more cushion and in tons of eye-pleasing colours.
That leads to my second favourite point. The cases come in a huge array of designs, but the pleasing pastel-inspired hues that the company uses as its standard colours are fantastic. I’ve been testing out the Lavender colourway, and the flax inside of it gives it a bit of a speckled effect that looks really nice. If it’s not for you, there are cases with graphics, other colours and even clear cases with compostable bumpers.
Finally, it wouldn’t be a good case without protection, and the Pela’s iPhone 13 case holds up there too. The model I’m using is quite rubbery, so it offers a decent amount of impact resistance. The case also fits snuggly onto my iPhone and doesn’t add too much bulk to it either. If you opt to use a standard Pela case and a Pela liquid screen protector, the company even offers a guarantee that it’ll fix your screen if it breaks.
I’ve been using this case on my phone for about a month now and it’s held up like a trooper. There was even a day when it got packed tightly in my bag and ended up getting some black scuffs on the edges, but after a few more days of use, they washed away.
My favourite thing about the case has to be its colour, but the company’s green mission is a close second. As a tech reviewer, I go through a lot of plastic waste and specifically, a lot of phone cases. Having a case that I know isn’t going to end up in a landfill offers peace of mind, and having it be as stylish as a Pela case is a huge plus on top of that.
If you’re interested in learning about how these cases are made the company has a great video on it that you can watch below.
Kensington, which makes a variety of tech accessories from laptop stands to docking stations, detailed several new products for Microsoft Surface, Apple devices and more at CES 2022.
For Surface, Kensington announced it collaborated with Microsoft on a series of ‘Designed for Surface‘ (DFS) products that “maximize the potential” of Surface devices. Kensington’s DFS products include a new ‘BlackBelt‘ rugged case for the Surface Pro 8 with military-grade drop protection, a Surface Laptop Riser compatible with the Laptop Go and Surface Book and several new docking stations. The BlackBelt case also comes in a variant with a built-in smart card reader.
Other DFS products include a new ‘MagPro Elite’ privacy screen for the Surface Pro 8 and a variety of Surface locks for securing devices.
On the Apple side, Kensington announced new versions of its StudioDock iPad docking station that support the iPad Pro (2021), iPad Air (2020) and other versions of Apple’s popular tablet. There’s also the new ‘StudioCaddy,’ a versatile docking solution that can hold and charge multiple Apple devices at the same time, including an iPhone, AirPods, iPad and MacBook (pictured up top). Finally, Kensington introduced versions of its MagPro Elite privacy screens that work with the new 2021 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pros.
Rounding out the company’s CES 2022 announcements were a few new Thunderbolt 4 docking stations, the SD5700T and the SD5750T (DFS).
Those interested can check out all of Kensington’s products on the company’s website. The Designed for Surface items can be found here and Apple-specific products can be found here.
Despite the fact that Apple’s iPhone 13 event is just a day away, leaks regarding the tech giant’s next iPhone are still appearing.
Following a rumour that the largest storage option for the iPhone 13 Pro/iPhone 13 Pro Max will be 1TB, we’ve caught a glimpse of very official-looking leaked cases for Apple’s upcoming smartphone line.
Shared on Twitter via an account called @MajinBuOfficial, the images include a screenshot and a photo of several iPhone 13 cases. The colour options look very similar to last year’s official Apple iPhone 12 cases save for a few new additions, including a cool-looking orange option.
The cases show off the same rather large square cutout featured in the iPhone 12 series and squared-off edges, which backs up rumours regarding the smartphone.
