Mobile Technology

Super-thin iPhone case hides extra juice

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The Air Case is a super-slim charging case for later iPhone models
Air Case
The Air Case is a super-slim charging case for later iPhone models
Air Case
The Air Case is about as thick as a normal protective case for your iPhone, but has the added bonus of a built-in battery pack
Air Case
The Air Case is a super-slim charging case for later iPhone models
Air Case
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While there are many battery back-up iPhone cases out there, they all tend to add significant weight and thickness to your otherwise sleek smartphone. The Air Case, now at the start of a so-far successful Indiegogo campaign, aims to change that by packing some decent juice into a case that's really no bigger than a standard protective wrapper you might put on your phone anyway.

The Air Case measures just 3.8 mm (.15 inches) thick. For comparison, even the slimmest battery case from popular manufacturer Mophie, measures 14.5 mm thick (.57 inches). Of course, the Mophie case is actually available for purchase from a reputable vendor, while the Air Case is a fundraising project on Indiegogo, so just be aware of this fact if you're considering pledging.

The Air Case manufacturers also promises plenty of juice, saying that it will be able to pack a 2,400-mAh battery into the super-slim design, which is a little less than the 2,800-mAh battery found in their competitor's case. That sized battery should be able to recharge your iPhone 6 or 6 Plus at least one full time, which effectively doubles your battery life. And yes, the case is only being made for the iPhone 6, 6S, 6+, and 6S+.

Other touted benefits of the Air Case include pass-through charging, which means you don't have to take the case off to charge the phone — it will convey the current directly to your phone and the case simultaneously when plugged into the wall. The same is true for syncing — you can do so right through the case's Lightning port. It also has a handy push-button LED power meter on the front to let you know how much juice is left in the case at a glance.

The case will also be able to keep your phone safe from drops. "The frame is made with aerial aluminum," the makers told Gizmag. "The outer shell of the case is made with a special plastic, which is an impact-resistant material making the whole case shock proof. The surface of shell is then refined with rubber paint, making the outer surface scratch-resistant, weather-resistant and wear-resistant during use."

While thinner, smaller tech usually means more expensive tech, the creators of the Air Case have managed to keep their pricing reasonable. You can pick one up for just US$39 through the campaign, which will be running for about one more month. The makers have already more than doubled their fundraising goal of $10,000, so the campaign is now considered successfully funded, although that's no guarantee that the devices will be manufactured and dispatched by the August 2016 shipping date.

It's also worth noting that the iPhone 7 is slated to launch about a month after these begin shipping, so it will be interesting to see how quickly the makers will release a new model to accommodate that phone.

More information is available in the following video.

Source: Indiegogo

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2 comments
EpiPeter
Woohoo! I am now an Indiegogo backer. I do hope they launch a crowdspeaking campaign as well as I can contribute much more on there ideally HeadTalker or Thunderclap. I hope this project takes off big time! Great write up.
wle
why can;t these things ever actually power the phone directly, instead of wasting the energy to go from 4.2 V to 5V, then from 5V back down to 4.2V to charge the internal battery?
wle