It may be a while before we see those long-lasting hydrogen-powered batteries in our iPhones. In the meantime, the options are bulky: pack your charging cord, carry a battery charger or go the power case route.
For those who don’t like the thickness or extra heft of power cases, Spyder has just introduced a new battery case weighing in at 3 oz and measuring a relatively thin 12.5 mm.
There are a number of companies producing battery cases with most averaging a thickness of between 13 and 15 mm. This may not seem like a lot of extra plastic, but it may be enough to turn off some people, especially those who wear skinny jeans.
Spyder’s PowerShadow case promises to bring a 120 percent boost to your iPhone 5 or 6 in a unibody design that provides durability with a snug fit that keeps out dust and water. A version for the iPhone 6-plus will be out in September
The case has a USB port for charging, an on-off button to let the user control the power and works with an optional docking station for charging and syncing. For you germophobes, Spyder applied an antimicrobial and fungistatic seal over the case.
The case, which comes in black, titanium, champagne and white to compliment the iPhone 6 colors, is $99 on the Spyder website, Best Buy and Amazon. The PowerShadow dock will cost an additional $50.