Design NotesMaterik: surface, color, character
A design story about what catches the light, and what you touch.
Design Notes
Brand StoriesApple's next case story folds.
Two new iPhone Duo cases, two different ways to approach a folding phone.
Brand StoriesPeak Design: the case as a system
A mounting interface changes the questions you ask of a phone case.
Brand StoriesNomad: a closer look at leather
How material choice becomes the starting point for a case collection.
01 / 04Materials. Making. Everyday use.
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Comparisons
Apple iPhone Duo Case vs Folio with Kickstand
Two approaches to the same folding phone: compare the documented differences, then the questions that need a sample.
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Compatibility
Can an iPhone 17 Pro case fit iPhone 18 Pro?
Start with the exact case SKU. Three Belkin listings show why a product-specific answer matters.
Read the storyJoe's Field Notes
Why I'm keeping a case notebook
An opening note from Joe about the questions, objects and people this journal will follow.
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Brand Stories
Nomad: a closer look at leather
How material choice becomes the starting point for a case collection.
Read the story
Brand Stories
Peak Design: the case as a system
A mounting interface changes the questions you ask of a phone case.
Read the story
Design Notes
Materik: surface, color, character
A design story about what catches the light, and what you touch.
Read the storyUnder the surfaceLook closer.
Look closer.
Then ask how.
A surface, a seam, the edge around a camera. The details are where a useful story begins.
Inside the making →From the archive and the workbench
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In the Making
How an iPhone case is made
Tooling, materials, finishing and the small decisions that end up in your hand.
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Case 101
Will this case fit your iPhone?
The model name is the beginning. The camera, controls and revision decide the rest.
Read the storyStories
From iPod sleeves to iPhone cases
A short, documented beginning to the objects we have carried around our devices.
Read the storyA note from the editor
Joe
I want to bring what we know about iPhone cases into one place: the materials, the people, the way things are made and the details that matter in use.
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Follow the makers.
Explore documented case brands and go straight to the original sources.
The iPhone archiveStart with your phone.
Identify the exact model before looking at case compatibility.