Category: Cases
Works With: iPhone 4/S/5
Price: $30
There are a few things I really like about Kubxlab’s AmpJacket. It’s soft and squiggly, so it’s kind of fun to play with even when not on the phone. It’s also very small when you consider what it does – it’ll even slide into a pants pocket. And finally, there;s the fact that it not only amplifies the sound fro the iPhone’s speaker, but protects that iPhone and even raises it out of the way of spills in the kitchen.
What It Is
The AmpJacket is a stiffish rubbery jacket for the iPhone which incorporates an acoustic amplifier
The AmpJacket is a stiffish rubbery jacket for the iPhone which incorporates an acoustic amplifier, a kind of horn speaker which stretches the sound from the phone’s own speaker and makes it louder. Note that it doesn’t make it better – the iPhone’s speaker will still be tinny when compared to using a proper external speaker – but it does make it significantly louder.
In theory, you could leave the jacket on at all times: you have access to the headphone port, the volume and mute switches and the Lightning hole. You can even use the camera and flash.
The Good
The case works. Unless you’re a teen who loves to play tinny music from her cellphone all day long, you probably won’t want to use this for extended listening. But if you don’t care for particularly high fidelity, then the sound boost from the AmpJacket is most welcome.
It comes into its own during podcasts, though. I listen to podcasts when I’m out and about, but also at home when I wash the dishes. In the latter case I usually fire up whichever Bluetooth speaker I’m testing this week and use that – the iPhone’s speaker just isn’t loud enough to hear over the splashing I make when doing the dishes.
The AmpJacket fixes this, and as the voice quality of podcasts isn;t usually too high anyway, the lack of a Jambox isn’t really a problem.
The case also offers protection. I’d actually consider taking this case on a bike trip. It’s not rugged, but it’s easy to grip with gloved hands, and offers some protection against knocks. And the extra volume provided by the amplifier means I won’t miss a call when the speaker is muffled inside my handlebar bag. I guess it might also be a boon for hearing traffic directions too, but I don’t use those often enough to have tested it.
There’s also one other cool feature: a hole.
There’s also one other cool feature: a hole. There’s a tiny hole at the bottom corner made for a wrist strap. Normally you wouldn’t see me dead using one of these, but it makes a rather handy way to dangle the iPhone over the sink while I work, or anywhere else for that matter.
The Bad
I’m struggling to find anything bad about this case. It even makes Siri easier to use. So I won’t write anything bad. After all, just because we have a “The Bad” section, doesn’t mean we have to fill it, right? Unless by “fill” you mean “add in a discussion of filling up the review so it still looks good on the page.” Not that I’d do that.
The Verdict
Light, tough, flexible, cool-looking, available in a rainbow of not-quite-garish colors and able to do its job just fine; there’s a lot to like about the AmpJacket. It even turns your iPhone into a miniature see-saw (teeter-totter) for pet chicks (see photo), which is a bonus not mentioned anywhere in the FAQ.
In a world where a branded iPhone skin can cost the same amount as this $30 utilicase, you’d be a fool if you didn’t at least consider it.
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Product Name: : AmpJacket The Good: Light, strong, effective and cute. The Bad: Nothing The Verdict Does what it says it does, and does it with style. Recommended. Buy from: Kubxlab |
