Review: Lander Moab iPhone Case – protection from drops, deadly degrees, and the dark?

Lander is a US-based manufacturer of mobile phone cases and accessories, and this is their Moab model –an iPhone case with features specifically intended for expedition style outdoor use. While it sports more trademarks than flies at a barbecue, the two features of main interest are:

• Thermoline: “Protects from Extreme Temperatures”
• Illumifind: “Reflective details for quick location in the dark”

Extreme Temperatures. What’s the problem?

iPhones have an operating temperature range of 0° and 35° Celsius. The issue is not just the inadequate range- it’s also the speed at which these temperature limits can be arrived at. Due to the high surface area to volume ratio of modern phones, they gain or lose heat rapidly.

A few minutes in sub-zero temperatures can be all it takes for an iPhone to go from a full charge to not powering up: it will display a feeble image of a charging cable and empty battery on a black screen.

I have managed to nurse an iPhone on a single charge through 11 days on the Larapinta trail, yet in minus 5-degree conditions on a Kosciusko day trip, a fully charged, the exposed phone became unusable in a matter of minutes.

At the other end of the temperature scale, when the internal phone temperature is exceeded, it shuts itself off and needs to cool down before you can use it. This is most often encountered when the phone has been in direct sun or inside cars.

What about real world performance?

On a recent Mt Feathertop Razorback traverse, where it was just below zero for most the day, I left the powered down phone in my pack. After a few hours, I pulled it out and found it would not power up. After 20 minutes warming in my pocket, it powered up. The next day I carried the phone powered up in a warm pocket, and of course had no issues.

Thermoline is no silver bullet to extreme temperatures. It is not a substitute for sensible precautions – where possible, a phone needs to be kept in a warm pocket in winter, and out of direct sunlight in summer.

I thought Illumifind might have been a luminous “glow in the dark” feature, like my wristwatch’s hands. It’s not, it’s a reflective treatment of the Lander logo and leash slots on the rear of the case.

The small reflective area and its location on the back of the phone limit its usefulness. To find your phone in the dark you’d still need to use a torch to catch the reflection.

The phone snaps into the case easily and securely. The case’s perimeter rim protrudes enough to protect the phone, should it land buttered side down. The buttons are recessed in moulded shrouds to prevent inadvertent operation – yet they can still be used with thin gloves. Case apertures are large enough for the plugs, and the speaker and microphone apertures are big enough to have no impact on voice quality.

It comes with a detachable wrist leash which I felt sure I wouldn’t like- I don’t like to walk around with a phone in my hand. However, I quickly grew to like to the leash and use it to pull the phone up from deep trouser pockets or remote corners of my rucksack. I also found it more useful than Illumifind for locating the phone in a dark tent.

The leash mounting slots look flimsy but haven’t failed yet. A longer leash would be handy to allow the phone to be hung around your neck like we used to do when we had compasses and map cases.