iPhone Cases | Teague Loughman

The Peel Super Thin Case for iPhone is exactly what it says it’s going to be: a simple, thin, and branding-free iPhone case that showcases the incredible design of the iPhone 5S.

The Peel Case weighs in at just 0.35mm thick, which is perfect for people who love to have the “naked” feel on their beloved Apple smartphone.

The Peel case ships in three different color variations that resemble that of the iPhone 5S – Black, Gold, & White. I reviewed the Gold version of the case, and I would definitely recommend the Gold color option to everyone who wanted to purchase the champagne-gold iPhone 5S, but due to low stock & high demand, were not able to get acquire one. The gold finish on the Peel Super Thin Case definitely satisfies my champagne/gold smartphone woes, as it makes my new Black / Slate Grey iPhone 5S look more like the Gold iPhone that I thought I really wanted.

As far as protection for your iPhone goes using the Peel case, I would not say that protection is it’s strongest selling-point, however protection was not #1 on the priority list when designing this product.

The Peel Case for iPhone 5S is an excellent case for people who love to use (and show off!) a “naked”-feeling iPhone 5S, and the complete branding-free, see-through, and thin design of the Peel Super Thin Case definitely add to it’s appeal. However, if your protection needs for your iPhone 5S are a little higher than setting it down on tables or the occasional drop, I would recommend looking at a bit heavier/bulkier cases to protect your iPhone.

The Peel Super Thin Case for iPhone 5S, 5C, 5, & 4/S are available on Peel’s website for an amazing deal of just $20.

Make sure to check out my gallery below for more pictures of the Peel Super Thin Case for iPhone 5S in Gold!

Millions of people are very happy with Apple’s on-screen virtual keyboard, but many still desire a tactile response only a physical keypad can provide. Apple has stated in the past that it sees no point in adding a hardware QWERTY keyboard onto the iPhone, but the company goes back and forth so many times with iOS products that no one knows what to believe.

Knowing this, BoxWave thought of a way to use the iPhone’s Bluetooth technology and build a case that had a physical QWERTY keyboard. It’s great for people who want Apple to add a QWERTY to the iPhone, but will it lure over virtual-keyboard-users over? How is it compared to the other Bluetooth Keyboard Cases for the iPhone? I’ll answer all of these questions and more in my review of the BoxWave KeyboardBuddy case for iPhone 4 & 4S.

Design

Design wise, the Keyboard Buddy is very sleek, especially considering that it adds a full hardware keyboard to the back of the device. The sliding mechanism is very solid, and there’s an enthusiastic click as you open and close it. It’s reminiscent of the slider on a device like the T-Mobile Sidekick – and that’s a good thing!

There’s also more than enough room to hit the top row of number keys, something other sliding cases often have trouble with. It charges via miniUSB, and BoxWave claims you should be able to go a huge 45 days without having to re-charge. The whole kit has a matte white, soft touch finish that adds a nice grip to the all-glass iPhone. Pairing the Keyboard buddy was an uneventful affair; the BoxWave was up and running in about 30 seconds after typing in a passcode. That’s when I could start putting this thing to the test!

Keyboard

The actual keyboard on the Keyboard Buddy is very similar to the one found on the Droid 2 or 3. Keys are laid out edge-to-edge, and there’s a decent amount of give with each click. The space bar is perfectly placed in the center of the keyboard, unlike some of the other Bluetooth keyboards on the market today. There’s a home key on the top left as well as a lock key right below it, two nice touches for sure.

It’s important to point out that when you choose to use a physical keyboard with your iOS devices, you lose all autocorrect functionality. I longed for things like automatic capitalization of “i” for example, and wish that it would automatically add apostrophes to words. Hopefully this is something Apple could enable as an option in a future version of iOS.

Overall

Overall, the BoxWave KeyboardBuddy case is an excellent option for BlackBerry users wanting to switch to the iPhone but not wanting to sacrifice their physical keyboards, as well as for older iOS users who have trouble seeing the letters on the iPhone’s virtual keyboard and like the satisfying click of a button when using a physical keyboard. I can type faster on the iPhone’s virtual keyboard, but I do like using the KeyboardBuddy to type out long emails or blog posts when I’m on my iPhone. You can read more about the BoxWave KeyboardBuddy and purchase it here.

Full gallery below: