How’s this for an almost spectacularly misguided idea. It’s the HighLine, and it’s a kind of springy phone cord which locks into the dock connector of your iPhone or iPad. Sure, it’ll keep the phone safe if you drop it, but it will also cause you to swear the moment the cable gets caught up and rips itself out of the delicate 30-pin dock connector port.
The 30-pin dock connector is many things (annoying, hard to use, an attractor for fluff and lint), but it is not a decent anchor for a safety line. Remember the first-gen dock connectors (the ones that came to the iPod after Apple ditched the FireWire connector)? They had little locks that kept them in place, and you had to squeeze the sides to release them.
Those always made me nervous.
The HighLine is a bungee cord, a locking plug and a belt-loop in one. Use it to cinch the iPhone to a belt, bag or other anchor. Thus equipped, you can now enjoy several scenarios. If you drop the iPhone whilst cycling, it can bounce around against spinning wheels and cranks instead of dropping once to the safety of the floor.
Or you could drop it while walking and it will swing down and smash you in your shins. Ouch! you can just enjoy the fact that your iPhone is now equipped with a curly cord, just like the old landline you used as a kid.
I kid. This could actually be handy. I rescued an iPhone just a few weeks ago from a mugger who had snatched it from a tourist’s hands as she snapped a photo. If I hadn’t been around, she would have lost it. The HighLine might end up damaging the phone, but that’s a lot better than losing it altogether.
Ok. I just changed my mind. Now I want one. How much is it? Ah, just $20. I’m in.
Source: Kenu
