Apple discontinues FineWoven phone cases

FineWoven was a rare misstep for Apple. It was a brand name for what Apple generously described as a ‘premium’ material used to replace leather on phone cases and other accessories.

Apple has stopped using it for phone cases. If you want an Apple branded case for a new iPhone 16, you’ll have to make do with one made of silicone or plastic.

The FineWoven MagSafe Wallet lives on for now, but, presumably. once stocks are sold, any replacement will use a different material. And Apple continues to sell Watch straps, or what it calls Watch bands, made from the material.

Leather replacement

FineWoven was noble enough idea, by replacing leather with the largely recycled FineWoven material, Apple could reduce its carbon footprint. We can assume the carbon footprint will go back up if it is replaced by plastic.

Reviewers, myself included, gave FineWoven a drubbing.

In hindsight my review was fair, but incomplete. The testing I reported was genuine enough, but in the weeks after my test, the stains and the material didn’t get any worse.

That said, I soon stopped using the case and continued with a naked iPhone 15. The phone never came to any harm with or without the FineWoven case.

Leather remains the best material for phone cases

While plastic and silicone cases appear to be popular, they are nothing like as good as a leather phone cases. Every time I’ve had a leather phone case it has outlasted the phone. The material more robust and looks better. It’s that simple.

In my experience silicone cases aren’t great either. I’ve had the layers of the material peel away making them ugly to look at.

Apple’s decision to move away from leather cases has left the market wide open for third party case makers. It’ll be interesting to see if Apple does a U-turn and returns to selling leather cases.