Banded

I don't always find my favorite gear on my own.  Sometimes I borrow something from a friend and find myself liking it so much that I don't want to give it back.  Such was the case when I borrowed the Marware SportShell Convertible iPhone Case from Emily.

Let me explain something to you about Emily.  She's one savvy shopper.  I know that if she recommends a product to me it's with good reason.  I vaguely remembered her talking about this iPhone case in the past, but hadn't paid much attention as I had a Droid at the time.  It wasn't until I found myself ready to take off on my first leg of American Odyssey without any music that I noticed her case.  Once I ran with it, my mind was blown.  Guys, it has both a clip and an armband.  I'm pretty sure I ordered my own case from my phone during the race.

Here's what I'm working with:

(Photo courtesy of the Marware website)

The "shell" is three pieces, a top and bottom that go around the sides of the phone, and a back.  As you can see in the photos on the top right, there are two backs that come with this case - one with a clip and one without.  The clip-less back is perfect for using as an everyday case.  I've used the clipped back to attach the case to fuel belts, backpack straps, and shorts pockets.  The clip rotates, so you don't have to worry about clipping the phone on to something at a weird angle.

The arm band comes with a surface for you to clip the phone in to.  This means you can take out the phone without having to take off the arm band, making it really easy to take photos, fiddle with apps, or answer calls while you're running.  I found that wearing the arm band took a little getting used to (I had a bit of chaffing my first few runs), but now it's perfectly comfortable.  It also dries pretty quickly, which is important if you're using it during the summer (or, let's be honest, ever).

One more thing - apparently Marware's customer service is amazing.  Somewhere along the line, Emily broke part of her case and emailed the company to see if she could buy a replacement part instead of an entirely new case.  They confirmed her shipping address and sent her a free replacement lickety-split.  It was totally unnecessary (she said it was her fault it broke), totally appreciated, and totally worth mentioning.  Any company that appreciates their customers and stands behind their products like that deserves my business.