Preface
I’m not really a folio case kind of guy. However I did always have a Twelve South BookBook for a wallet case, which was made even better when they added the removable case. I was excited for Twelve South’s Folio case with it’s modern design, however the case isn’t removable and I couldn’t do an all the time folio case. I was on YouTube watching reviews of various leather cases and a video popped up in my feed about a random YouTuber’s favorite leather cases. In this video there was a case made by Burkley and I really liked the look of it. I went to Burkley’s website and ran across a better case, for the same price, I could pick up the wallet folio. So I did.
Overview
I waited a week to review this case and did this for two reasons. The first being it’s a leather case and I wanted to give the leather at least a little time to break in. The second being the buttons on the case itself, they were really really stiff when I first got the case. I found it a bit odd since the case is a polycarbonate shell with leather only on the back. I spent a lot of time with the phone out of the case and just pressing the buttons down as far as I could as much as I could, I probably pressed the buttons at least fifty times each, just to try and break them in. That helped a little bit, what really helped more though was just using the case more and more, now my volume buttons are much more pleasing to press, the power button however, is still a little stiff. With raise to wake and rest to unlock on my phone, I hardly ever use my power button unless I’m taking a screenshot.
The wallet folio portion of this Burkley case is definitely one of the best I’ve ever used. It’s made from genuine European leather and much like Apple’s leather case, it’s a little slippery out of the box. This changes though, quicker than I expected. Within the first couple of days the leather started breaking in, the spine on the folio became much easier to open and close, as did the magnetic clasp that hold the case closed. What I really didn’t expect to see in the first week of using this case are the creases in the leather, showing it’s age. This not only started happening on the folio portion, it also started happening on the back of the phone case itself. The wallet has four card slots and a cash pocket, like most wallet cases do. These cards slots are naturally stiff to begin with and they break in just as quickly as the rest of the case does.
My favorite part of the case has to be the magnets. The front of the folio is held to the back with magnets so it stays out of the way, the clasp also holds to the back of the folio with magnets. You can even fold back the clasp first and the front second and they’ll both hold to the back of the folio with the magnets, and I love that more than you can believe. Magnets also hold the phone case to the inside of the folio and I really would have liked to see stronger magnets here. If you give the folio a good shake while it’s open, your phone will fall out. I understand they needed weaker magnets so everyone could easily remove the case, and to make it easier to put the case in the stand operation. That is also really easy to do, you just pick up the side of the phone with the volume buttons and pull it to the outside of the front of folio. It’s going to be stiff the first few times you do that, again, the leather breaks in really quick, it’s very nice.
The phone case itself is really well done, it hold tightly to your phone. So tightly that you have to install it quickly or you’ll bend the case instead of installing it. Don’t worry, that’s really easy too. All you do is install either both ends of the volume side of the phone or both ends of the power buttons side of the phone, then snap the other side down in one motion. This case covers your entire phone, and the cutouts are spot on, you’ll have no issues with them at all. I don’t have any wide lightning cable though you shouldn’t have any issues using those either. The bumper of the case is all polycarbonate, I would have preferred all leather myself. As I mentioned early, the buttons take a good while to break in. I was surprised that the leather broke in quicker than the buttons. The back of the case is all leather and adorned only with an embossed buffalo which you also see on the front of the folio. The only other branding is inside the wallet part of the folio and it simply says Burkley. There is more branding than many other cases have however it’s done is a very classy manner. I should also mention that inside the folio where the phone sits is also felt lined, which is unnecessary in this case though very welcome. Simply put, you won’t be disappointed in this case.
The Good
The Bad
Conclusion
If you’re looking for a wallet case, you’re either looking for a cheap one or a classy one. If you’re looking for the classy option, I would whole heartedly recommend the Burkley Leather Wallet Folio case. It’s a wallet when you need one, a case when you don’t, and a viewing stand when you need it as well. I would even recommend this over some other options simply because of the removable case and the case is more protective than others as well. If you’re okay with spending the $70 for this case, you will walk around happy with it.
You can buy the Burkley leather wallet folio from Amazon or directly from Burkley
I’m not really a folio case kind of guy. However I did always have a Twelve South BookBook for a wallet case, which was made even better when they added the removable case. I was excited for Twelve South’s Folio case with it’s modern design, however the case isn’t removable and I couldn’t do an all the time folio case. I was on YouTube watching reviews of various leather cases and a video popped up in my feed about a random YouTuber’s favorite leather cases. In this video there was a case made by Burkley and I really liked the look of it. I went to Burkley’s website and ran across a better case, for the same price, I could pick up the wallet folio. So I did.
Overview
I waited a week to review this case and did this for two reasons. The first being it’s a leather case and I wanted to give the leather at least a little time to break in. The second being the buttons on the case itself, they were really really stiff when I first got the case. I found it a bit odd since the case is a polycarbonate shell with leather only on the back. I spent a lot of time with the phone out of the case and just pressing the buttons down as far as I could as much as I could, I probably pressed the buttons at least fifty times each, just to try and break them in. That helped a little bit, what really helped more though was just using the case more and more, now my volume buttons are much more pleasing to press, the power button however, is still a little stiff. With raise to wake and rest to unlock on my phone, I hardly ever use my power button unless I’m taking a screenshot.
The wallet folio portion of this Burkley case is definitely one of the best I’ve ever used. It’s made from genuine European leather and much like Apple’s leather case, it’s a little slippery out of the box. This changes though, quicker than I expected. Within the first couple of days the leather started breaking in, the spine on the folio became much easier to open and close, as did the magnetic clasp that hold the case closed. What I really didn’t expect to see in the first week of using this case are the creases in the leather, showing it’s age. This not only started happening on the folio portion, it also started happening on the back of the phone case itself. The wallet has four card slots and a cash pocket, like most wallet cases do. These cards slots are naturally stiff to begin with and they break in just as quickly as the rest of the case does.
My favorite part of the case has to be the magnets. The front of the folio is held to the back with magnets so it stays out of the way, the clasp also holds to the back of the folio with magnets. You can even fold back the clasp first and the front second and they’ll both hold to the back of the folio with the magnets, and I love that more than you can believe. Magnets also hold the phone case to the inside of the folio and I really would have liked to see stronger magnets here. If you give the folio a good shake while it’s open, your phone will fall out. I understand they needed weaker magnets so everyone could easily remove the case, and to make it easier to put the case in the stand operation. That is also really easy to do, you just pick up the side of the phone with the volume buttons and pull it to the outside of the front of folio. It’s going to be stiff the first few times you do that, again, the leather breaks in really quick, it’s very nice.
The phone case itself is really well done, it hold tightly to your phone. So tightly that you have to install it quickly or you’ll bend the case instead of installing it. Don’t worry, that’s really easy too. All you do is install either both ends of the volume side of the phone or both ends of the power buttons side of the phone, then snap the other side down in one motion. This case covers your entire phone, and the cutouts are spot on, you’ll have no issues with them at all. I don’t have any wide lightning cable though you shouldn’t have any issues using those either. The bumper of the case is all polycarbonate, I would have preferred all leather myself. As I mentioned early, the buttons take a good while to break in. I was surprised that the leather broke in quicker than the buttons. The back of the case is all leather and adorned only with an embossed buffalo which you also see on the front of the folio. The only other branding is inside the wallet part of the folio and it simply says Burkley. There is more branding than many other cases have however it’s done is a very classy manner. I should also mention that inside the folio where the phone sits is also felt lined, which is unnecessary in this case though very welcome. Simply put, you won’t be disappointed in this case.
The Good
- Genuine leather
- Removable case
- Magnet closures
The Bad
- The case will slide around a little
- The buttons on the case are stiff for a good while
- No ID slot
Conclusion
If you’re looking for a wallet case, you’re either looking for a cheap one or a classy one. If you’re looking for the classy option, I would whole heartedly recommend the Burkley Leather Wallet Folio case. It’s a wallet when you need one, a case when you don’t, and a viewing stand when you need it as well. I would even recommend this over some other options simply because of the removable case and the case is more protective than others as well. If you’re okay with spending the $70 for this case, you will walk around happy with it.
You can buy the Burkley leather wallet folio from Amazon or directly from Burkley
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