Review: Apple Smart Battery Case
Except for the Moment Photo Case that I use only when taking photos, I don't use an iPhone case. Then, one day, this happened to my iPhone:
My broken iPhone XS
So, in addition to the photo case, I looked for a protective case for my iPhone 11 to use when I'm not taking photos. As my iPhone battery typically is down to 20-30% by 6 pm, I had a closer look at the battery case from Apple as it would protect my iPhone 11 and add a bit extra battery time. The Smart Battery Case will also replace my everyday carry Anker Powercore Slim 10.000 mAh power bank. Finally, no more cables to carry!
In this review of the Apple Smart Battery Case for iPhone 11, I'll try to answer all your questions about the case and share the reasons why I bought it.
Why I bought the Apple Smart Battery Case
After doing a lot of research, I finally bought the case at the beginning of the year. And here are the reasons why I bought it.
- It's a protective case that's a bit thicker than standard cases. I just wanted that extra layer of protection
- The Apple Battery Case is smart and unobtrusive. I don't have to turn it on; it just keeps my iPhone charged
- I can charge the battery case and the iPhone wirelessly and still can use a wall charger and cable if I need to
- The photo button, which is excellent for quick snapshots using the stock iPhone camera app.
- I didn't want to carry a power bank anymore.
After almost four months of using it, I'm still delighted with the battery case. So let's have a look at all the details and if I can help you decide if the case is for you, too.
How does the Smart Battery Case for iPhone work?
As mentioned above, you don't have to worry much about the case once you've put your iPhone in the case. Also, you don't need an app to use the case or display the remaining battery charge. It's all built into iOS.
So once your case is charged, it keeps your iPhone at 100% battery in a smart way until the battery of the case runs out. Then you still have a wholly charged iPhone.
How do you charge the Apple Battery Case?
It's as simple as charging your iPhone. Either place it, with your iPhone inside the case, on a wireless charger or use a lightning cable to charge it. That's it. As soon as you begin to charge it, the iPhone will display the charge on the main screen.
Charging indicator for Apple Smart Battery Case
The battery case supports pass-through charging, which means it will charge your iPhone and your battery case at the same time.
How much additional battery time do you get from the case?
Apple claims that you'll get a total of 33 hours talk time and 21 hours of Internet time with the Smart Battery Case. While these figures look nice, they're not very meaningful in a real-world scenario. So, let's have a look at such a situation.
Without the case, my battery is usually down to 20-30% by 6 pm in the evening, which makes me feel a bit uncomfortable, especially when I'm still out.
By using the case, the iPhone is still at 100% by mid to late afternoon (3-4 pm) because it's being charged from the battery case. So, I start into the evening with a fully charged iPhone, which, in turn, makes me feel a bit more comfortable, and I can leave my power bank and charging cable at home.
Of course, your mileage may vary. To give you an idea, my iPhone usage during the day is pretty heavy: I'm listening to music, answering emails, edit a photo or two while waiting for the bus, use it as a remote control for Apple TV, and HomeKit devices at home and so on.
How much does the battery case weigh?
The battery case itself weighs around 100 grams or 0.2 lbs, which is half of the weight of the power bank I used to carry - not including the weight of the cable that I'd need for the power bank (but it would be a bit ridiculous to add the weight of the cable, too, wouldn't it?).
Material and Dimensions of the Smart Battery Case
The Apple battery case is made of rubber, and it adds a bit to the overall thickness of the iPhone - but all battery cases do that. If you don't want that, a battery case is probably not the best solution for you.
Here's a photo of the iPhone 11 Pro in the battery case with my (broken) iPhone XS next to it.
Smart Battery Case Thickness
The case itself is made from rubber silicone. Yes, that may make it a bit difficult to slide it into a tight pocket but will also provide better protection if you you drop it. I'd opt for security.
Photo Button on the Smart Battery Case
An excellent addition to the Smart Battery Case is the photo button that you'll find on the right side of the case. By pressing it, you'll launch the built-in camera app, and by pressing it again, you'll take a photo using the iPhone stock camera app.
Note that the photo button only seems to work with the built-in camera app. Personally speaking, that's not an issue for me because when I use other iPhone camera apps, I'm shooting, and the iPhone will be in the Moment Photo Case in that case (pun intended).
But for snapshots, including photos at night using night mode, the photo button will allow you to quickly launch the built-in camera app instead of looking at your phone to unlock it, swiping up, finding and launching the camera app.
As a final note, when you use the photo button to launch the camera app from a locked iPhone, your camera roll is not accessible. iPhone does not display any photo from the photos app except for the ones you just took before your lock the iPhone again. To try it yourself, launch the camera app using the photo button (and don't look at it, so you don't unlock it), then tap the camera roll icon in the lower-left corner. It should be empty.
How the Smart Battery Case fits into the bigger picture
If you've been reading my blog for a while, you know I'm a fan of Anker Power Banks. So far, I used the Anker 10.000 mAh Slim Power Bank as my Everyday Carry charger and the Anker PowerCore II 26.800 mAh for traveling.
With the purchase of the Smart Battery Case, my setup changes a bit:
- The Smart Battery Case will be my Everyday Carry "charger "when I'm not taking photos. It weighs less than a power bank, and I don't have to carry a cable.
- The Anker PowerCore Slim 10.000 mAh power bank will be may "day excursion "power bank for all-day trips from my hometown because it's notably lighter than the "big one ".
- I will use the Anker PowerCore II 26.800 mAh power bank for multi-day trips to keep all my iDevices charged.
Conclusion
I did quite a bit of research before I bought the Apple Smart Battery Case, and I bought it because I didn't want to carry an additional power bank and cable to keep my iPhone charged.
For this type of usage, the case delivers as promised, and if you're looking with simple to use battery case that keeps your iPhone charged (and adds a photo button), then the Apple Smart Battery Case may be perfect for you.
The Apple Smart Battery Case is available for different iPhone models in different colors from Amazon, e.g., the Smart Battery Case for the iPhone 11 Pro or you can visit the Apple Storefront on Amazon to see all of them.
As of May 2021, Apple did not yet announce such a case. So I bought a MageSafe compatible power bank from Anker. Check out my my Anker Powercore Magnetic 5K review.
