REVIEW – PopSockets™ phone holders have been around long enough to almost define the category, like ChapStik™ or Kleenex™. There are other methods for gaining a more secure grip on your phone, but having a stick-on knob that can be compacted when not needed is their claim to fame. Today, I’m looking at a new product from PopSockets that adds to their utility – the Softgoods PopWallet+ for MagSafe™. Available in eight stylish and fun colors, it adds the ability to carry three cards along with your phone. I was sent one each in Eucalyptus and Horchata. Let’s see if I like this better than the MagSafe ring I’ve been using.
What is it?
The PopSockets PopWallet+ is a MagSafe/Qi v.2 compatible credit card/ID wallet with an integrated pop-out handle.
What’s in the box?
- PopSockets PopWallet+ itself
- Magnetic ring for cases that aren’t MagSafe
- Template for attaching magnetic ring to non-MagSafe cases
Tech specs
Click to expand
- Magnetically snaps onto your phone and allows you to remove your cards without removing your wallet
- Bottom and back notches allow for easy access to cards
- Magnets are 50% stronger than competitors for a more secure hold
- Snaps on when you want it, and easily swaps off when you don’t.
- Securely carries up to 3 credit cards
- Slim and easily pocketable
- Integrated Grip
Design and features
The PopSockets PopWallet+ for MagSafe measures 3.75” x 2.5” and sits just over .5” above the rear of your phone. The card compartment is stiff enough that the unit doesn’t compress much if you’re not using cards. The whole top is made from leather with a small hit of debossed branding on the bottom right corner. The interior matches the outer color perfectly, and the texture seems to be leathery, but I’m not sure. The back, where it interfaces with your phone/case, is a brown plastic with a thumb hole roughly opposite where the knob is attached to the top. The pieces are held together with tight stitching around three sides.
The open top accepts up to three standard-sized credit card-shaped items. The top case has a notch at the bottom center .75” across by .375” high. This is used to push the cards out of the sleeve. With my fat fingers, I have to hold them up with my thumb in this notch while I get the card out. If you’re more nimble, you may be able to grab the card without having to have force against it.
Performance
When I placed the PopSockets PopWallet+ of box onto my iPhone 13 Pro Max in its MagSafe MonoCarbon case, it fairly jumped out of my hand onto the case. I’ve been using a MagSafe ring holder for about 8 months, and it stays on better than most, but this wallet’s magnet was in another league! You have to apply quite a bit of force to pull it off laterally – or even to move it. I am afraid to pull it straight off for fear of damaging the wallet.
The knob (if you can find a better word, please suggest it in the comments!) pops out in two levels. I think this is just because of how the internal mechanism for unfolding works. I can only fit my fingers under the top disc at the higher level. When pulled out, the top disc is 0.8125” off the top of the wallet.
The three cards fit in the PopSockets PopWallet+ without issue and don’t slide out easily if you invert the phone. Depending on the cards, you may be able to place 4 cards into the case, but most standard thickness cards only allow for three to go in. (One of the cards I had in there had a plastic film overlay, and the exposure over a few days started to make the film curl at the corners. I just switched it to the rear and the other card hasn’t had the issue. Maybe I should let Citi know?) I had to show my driver’s license for a delivery the day after I started using this, and was struck by how nice it is to just pull it out of the back of my phone, rather than get out my wallet, unzip it, and find the right card in the ID section.
You do have to remove it for charging or use in most in-car or desktop holders, but it’s very easy to form the habit of placing the removed wallet in the place where you usually have your phone while it’s in use elsewhere.
What I like about the PopSocket PopWallet+
- Strong magnets!
- Room for three cards
- Interesting colors
What I’d change
- No “Find My” feature
Final thoughts
Having a “wallet” for the back of your phone is nothing new, but you are blocked from using it if you want to use wireless charging, unless it’s easily removable. Many makers now offer a wallet that can stick to the back of phones. (I think the first one I saw was back in the iPhone 3GS days – 2009 or so. I may have even had a case with a secret door to hold your cards in. I’ve slept many times since then.) But most stick to your case fairly permanently. Others that use MagSafe don’t tend to stay on as well when they are slid into tight jeans pockets.
When Apple “finally” introduced wireless charging with the iPhone 8, those who had already used the Qi protocol on other systems (some on this site, IIRC) roundly derided them for being “late to the game.” When they introduced MagSafe with the iPhone 12 in 2020, however, the press was all but silent. (There was other news on the world stage at the time, if I recall correctly!) But the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC) saw the benefits and adopted it into their Qi v.2 protocol for all phone manufacturers at the Mobile World Conference in January 2022. Qi v.2 officially launched in November of that year. I’m happy to see this innovation being improved upon by PopSockets with stronger magnets and the ability to update cases that don’t have integrated magnets.
Price: $50 (Thanks, PopSockets, for having a realistic price, rather than $49.99!)
Where to buy: Company Webstore and Amazon
Source: The sample of this product was provided by PopSockets.
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My wife and I have been sporting PopSocket wallets, magnetically connected to our iphones, for the past year. I keep 2 credit cards, medical insurance card, license, and an emergency 20-dollar bill in mine. Love it!