It was recently announced that Apple could remove, or replace, its divisive FineWoven case line for the iPhone 16 family. While this is great news, it does of course raise the question of what you should be looking for in a new case, especially if you're planning to upgrade this year.
Buying a phone case is one of those things that you don't think about until you need to, only to realize how confusing it can be. There is so much variety that it can be easy to feel lost and just grab the first thing you see, but that could be a mistake. While we will have a full list of all the best iPhone 16 cases as soon as we begin testing them, now seems a good time to go over what you need to know before Apple's September event.
I review phones for a living and was a phone engineer in the past, so have seen some of the worst damage that can occur to smartphones. As such, I am going to use some of that knowledge to break down what you need to know to pick the best case for you.
Don't focus on glitz, look at what its made of.
There is a trend with phone cases to add fancy features to their cases to tempt customers. These can range from stands to magnetic wallets and more. While these are nice to have, they should never be a reason to buy a case. Instead, when looking for a case, you should look at what they're made out of.
When it comes to material there are a fair few, from leather to plastic. The main thing to be conscious of is durability, which was the biggest failure of Apple's FineWoven alternative. In theory, the more rigid a material, the more durable it is, but that isn't always the case — no pun intended. The issue is that many cases made out of plastic tend to offer no added protection against drops, due to the lack of give, meaning one drop will shatter them and still damage the phone.
Ideally, when buying a case you want one that has a mix of different materials in its construction. For instance, some cases make use of leather exteriors to guard against scratches, while inside is a plastic case supported by an inner lining to mitigate the force from a drop. You also want a case that lets the phone breathe when it needs to, otherwise, you risk building up heat which can be a phone killer.
That isn't to say that you need to spend hundreds, and the simpler cases will still do the job (unless it is silicone, silicone cases are pointless) against basic, everyday scratches but will suffer if you drop the phone. However, added protection comes at a cost, and it's more than just to your wallet.
Be aware that a case will change how a phone feels
I'm sure you've seen those really heavy-duty cases, the ones designed for taking your phone on hikes and dropping it off a cliff. If you have, then you will have noticed one major thing about them: they are massive. In a world where phone manufacturers are designing their phones to be as thin as possible, it seems a bit counterproductive to chuck a big chunky case on them.
However, the bigger the case, the more durable it is, especially if it expands the corners. The theory behind this is simple, thicker corners adjust the trajectory of the fall, meaning the phone will land there and the reinforced area will lessen the impact in the one place where most cracks occur. It might not be as pretty, but it's certainly the most durable.
However, these more durable cases are heavy and change how a phone feels in your pocket. I have a Galaxy Z Fold 5, which isn't exactly the thinnest phone around, and to protect it I put it in a big case that nearly doubles its size and ups the weight. It's a trade-off that I'll happily make, but I'd recommend trying the case out on your phone before buying if you can. While we don't know if the iPhone 16 will have a similar size, we can assume that most third-party companies will release an update of their current best iPhone 15 cases.
You should be prepared to spend some money, but not too much
The final, and arguably trickiest thing, to be aware of is the cost. The issue is that phone case costs don't always accurately convey what the phone is good at. For instance, a company will up the price of a case if they add more accessories to it or if they use a more expensive material. It is always worth checking out customer reviews to see if anyone mentions their phone still breaking.
When trying to figure out what to spend it is a good idea not to go too cheap, it's also not worth spending over $100/£100 for a case, either. Usually, a good area to look is around $50 to $80 (or, £30 to £60 if you're in the U.K.) and it's worth noting that cases do go on sale pretty regularly. Especially on heavy sales days like Labor Day.
I have said it before and I will say it again, you should invest some money in a phone case. An outlay on a phone case is always cheaper than buying a new phone or getting a repair. On that note, we have other breakdowns of how to protect your new phone you should check out. We also have all the details for Apple's upcoming September event so you can get an idea of everything we think is on the way from Apple.
