Set to launch this month, Classic ($75) is one of two cases being offered by newcomer Truffol. Both start with the same core — an aluminum bumper. Its Signature case simply adds a rear frame that leaves most of the back exposed. Classic, however, substitutes that piece for a leather back, which arrives in a separate box. We can definitely see the design appeal of such a case, but unfortunately it suffers from a number of problems that make the high price even harder to swallow.
Truffol’s steel frame comes in brushed silver or black, very much like the iPhone 5’s antenna bands. It’s all one piece, except for the vibrate switch cover, which comes nestled in foam in the packaging, and only stays in place when the phone is installed. We found the installation process somewhat difficult, as there’s no give, and you need to ensure that cover doesn’t fall out of place—tt may take you a few tries to do it properly. Once you have, however, the coverage is thorough. Both the volume buttons and Sleep/Wake button are fully covered, although the latter loses its clickiness and it’s hard to know when you’ve actually pressed it. Along the bottom, the openings are extremely tight. They’re so closely machined that no Lightning cable other than Apple’s will fit, and headphones with large plugs will also present an issue.
The leather backplate is quite simple. Just 0.4mm thick, it adds very little bulk to the iPhone. It’s equipped with six plastic clips that fit into the frame, and then the whole thing slides down to lock into place. For such a premium case, we’d expect a solution that’s a little more sturdy; Truffol warns to be gentle with the plastic clips.
Were this the whole story, Classic would be deserving of praise as an attractive, but expensive, case. But, like many other metal cases, it has a serious problem: signal degradation. We saw a drop of two to three bars of cellular signal, and one of Wi-Fi, with the bumper in place. In an area with already poor service, this could prove to be a real issue, and isn’t acceptable from a case.
Taken as a whole, Truffol’s Classic is a sharp-looking option, made from premium materials. It offers a greater amount of coverage than many cases do. But, at the end of the day, it affects how well the iPhone actually works, and that’s a problem, especially for something that costs as much as it does. Although we respect what the company was trying to accomplish, we can’t recommend its product, which earns a C rating.
Our Rating
Company and Price
Company: Truffol
Website: www.truffol.com
Model: Classic
Price: $75
Compatible: iPhone 5